Vannes

Also known as Cité des Vénètes, Gwened

Vannes (; , , ) is a commune in the French department of Morbihan, Brittany, northwestern mainland France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago.

OverviewAI-generated

Vannes is a commune in France, located in the Brittany region. It serves as the capital of the Morbihan department, the arrondissement of Vannes, and the cantons of Vannes-Centre, Vannes-Est, and Vannes-Ouest. The town has a population of 55,790, comprising 24,599 males and 28,753 females. Its area is 32.3 square kilometers, and it sits at an elevation of 56 meters above sea level.

The municipality borders Saint-Avé, Saint-Nolff, Séné, and Arradon. Vannes is twinned with Cuxhaven, Fareham, and Mons. It owns the Stade de la Rabine. The postal code for the area is 56000.

Synthesized by Vinony from 50 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Openweathermap, Open Meteo, OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Vinony graph, Geo. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Weather now

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7-day forecast

via Open-Meteo

Place details

Locality: Vannes
Region: Bretagne
Country: France
Population: 54,020

via OpenStreetMap · GeoNames

Air quality

32US AQIGood

PM2.5: 5.5 µg/m³
PM10: 8.4 µg/m³

As of 2026-08-11 02:00 · Open-Meteo

Key facts

French commune.caption: Montage of VannesTop left: View of Ramparts Garden of Vannes and Gaillard Castle Museum; Top right: Saint Peters Cathedral; Middle left: Vieux lavoirs, old washing place; Center: Connetable Tower; Middle right: Intra Muros narrow street; Bottom left: Saint Paterne Church; Bottom right: Conleau Pier
French commune.arrondissement: Vannes
French commune.canton: Vannes-1, 2 and 3
French commune.INSEE: 56260
French commune.postal code: 56000
French commune.mayor: David Robo
French commune.term: 2020–2026
French commune.intercommunality: Golfe du Morbihan - Vannes Agglomération
French commune.elevation m: 22
French commune.elevation min m: 0
French commune.elevation max m: 56
French commune.area km2: 32.3
French commune.name: Vannes
French commune.commune status: Prefecture and commune
French commune.image: Vannes montage.png
French commune.image flag: Drapeau de Vannes.svg
French commune.image size: 270px
French commune.image coat of arms: COA fr Vannes 56.svg

via Wikipedia infobox

Travel guide

See

thumb|The port of Vannes: quay Éric Tabarly, at the foot of St. Vincent gate The Medieval Village

The medieval village has several pedestrian and vehicle entrances. The port-side entrance to the rempart surrounded old town is just next to the port. Follow signs on the roads to le port, there is ample parking. Outside the walls of the village, there are several cafes on the port-side. Just inside the walls, you will find many boutiques and Creperies.

The Eglise in the old village at the top of the hill. The square nearby is often graced by musicians in the summer, while the cobblestone streets are used for costumed parades calling back centuries ago. Bastille Day in Vannes is a spectacle with horse-drawn carriages, costumes for men, women and children of all distinctions, and a small zoo of live animals...

The Port

The Castle

The Parks

Do

Take a boat to one of the Islands. Though Vannes is a lovely town, if you have any time to spare, you should check out the timetables for sailings to one of the islands in the Gulf of Morbihan.

Rugby: RC Vannes were relegated in 2025 so they now play in Pro D2, the second tier. They play at Stade de La Rabine (capacity 11,300) near the head of La Marle waterway.

Buy

The Fayencerie in Vannes (located in the medieval town, near the eglise) has beautiful pottery for sale. Though not exactly local to Vannes-proper, the pottery is very popular with locals and tourists alike.

The boutiques of the medieval town are best for prime-time shopping: find clothing, nautical-themed gifts, lingerie, home and bath goods, jewelry, and many other gifts.

The larger stores like Carrefour and Leroy Merlin are off the main highway, all centralized. There are many good independent stores mixed into the mass development.

Eat

Galettes are a must in Vannes: there are so many varieties, everyone is safe (carnivors, pescetarians, and vegetarians alike). Seafood is fresh and oysters are readily available. Les pizzas are also found. For dessert, similar to the galette (made with buckwheat), crepes (made with plain wheat) are a must.

If you visit the Golfe du Morbihan, there are many local restaurant gems: serving les menus gastronomique. The spa hotels of the Morbihan or les Thalassotherapies generally serve decadent meals. Every village in the Vannes area has a local favorite, not to be missed.

Sleep

Known as a vacation spot for French people, the Golfe du Morbihan is full of rental properties and spa hotels.

Also, with Vannes as the closest train station for the Presqu'Ile, many people rent cars in Vannes and stay near the beaches. Camping cars are popular too.

For hotels in the area, search in Vannes or the Golfe du Morbihan.