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Geonivora
District

Finistère

Located in Brittany Region, France Coordinates: 48°15′08″ N 3°59′33″ W

Finistère
Moreau.henri · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Population
927,912
927.9K
Elevation
136 m
above sea level
Local time
UTC+01:00
Europe/Paris · UTC+01:00
Places inside
88
listed under Finistère
When to go
June–September
See the climate
Airports
BES Brest Bretagne airport38 km
GCI Guernsey Airport166 km

About Finistère

Finistère is a district. Location: Brittany Region, France. Population: 927,912.

From Wikipedia

Finistère (; French: [finistɛʁ] ; Breton: Penn-ar-Bed [ˌpɛnarˈbeːt]) is a department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. Its prefecture is Quimper and its largest city is Brest. In 2023, it had a population of 933,455.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

At a glance

Built
1790
Area
6,733 km²
Official website
finistere.fr

Source: Wikidata

Travel notes for Finistère

From Wikivoyage

Finistère in Brittany is the westernmost French department. Its name comes from the Latin from "end of the earth". The abers, rugged fjord-like inlets on the north coast, are a notable feature of the landscape. The westernmost point of continental France, known as the Pointe de Corsen, extends from the northwestern tip of Finistère. About 40 km to the south is the slightly less westerly, but rugged and isolated, headland of Pointe du Raz.

Understand+

Finistère (Breton: Penn ar Bed, the end of the world) unites two territories that were not intended to be: the bishopric of Cornouaille (bishop of Quimper) to the south and that of Léon (bishop of St Pol de Léon) to the north, the border between the two being located on the harbor of Brest. If Léon has disappeared, the rivalry has taken another form, that between the large city of the north (Brest) and the administrative capital (Quimper). This rivalry, if it is not exacerbated, never misses an opportunity to resurface.

The department is literally cut in two, both geographically and demographically. If, in Brest, someone tells you that he comes from the south, don't immediately imagine him as a Marseilles resident, he probably only comes from Quimper.

Get in+

By train:

The TGV serves Quimper and Brest from Paris in just over 4 hours. Regional trains connect Rennes to Brest and Quimper, and Nantes to Quimper.

By plane:

Brest-Bretagne Airport, in Guipavas, connects Brest to Paris (CDG), Lyon, Marseille, London and other cities in France and Europe.

You can reach Ouessant by air from Brest airport in around 15 min:

Finist'air airline: around € 70 one way. (2018)

By car:

Two expressways serve Finistère:

the national 12 serves Brest from Rennes

the national 165 serves Quimper and Brest from Nantes and passing through Vannes and Lorient.

By boat:

The port of Roscoff has ferry connections with the ports of Plymouth (United Kingdom), Cork and Rosslare (Ireland).

Ferries connect the continent to the surrounding islands:

Penn ar bed, ☏ +33 2 98 808080. It serves the ports of Brest, Le Conquet, Camaret and Audierne on the continent, and the islands of Ouessant, Molène and Sein. There are 1 to 3 crossings per day, with a duration of 1 hr to 2 hr 30 min, depending on the route. (updated Feb 2018)

Finist'mer. serves the ports of Le Conquet, Camaret, Audierne and Lanildut on the continent, and the islands of Ouessant, Molène and Sein. It also offers guided tourist cruises in the Iroise Sea. (updated Feb 2018)

Source: Wikivoyage · CC BY-SA 4.0 · abridged

Places bordering Finistère

Population of Finistère over time

Population of Finistère over time
2015 907,796
2017 909,028
2018 911,735
2019 915,090
2020 917,179
2021 921,638
2022 927,912
2023 933,455

Censuses and official estimates; source: Wikidata.

Climate of Finistère

Best months for sightseeing

Best months for sightseeing: June–September.

This month · November

A wet month

Day 12° · Night 6° · Rain 131 mm

Hottest month
August (day 21°)
Coldest month
February (night 4°)
Wettest month
January (131 mm)
Driest month
July (49 mm)

Bars: average monthly low and high temperature. Below: precipitation. Monthly averages for 1970–2000 at about 18 km resolution, adjusted for elevation. Highlighted months are mild and relatively dry. Source: WorldClim 2.1 (CC BY 4.0).

Show values as a table
Climate of Finistère
Month JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Average high (°C)8°9°11°13°16°19°21°21°19°15°12°9°
Average low (°C)4°4°5°6°9°11°13°13°11°9°6°5°
Precipitation (mm)13110492717456496083102131130

Other places to visit in this season: June July August September

How to get to Finistère

The nearest airport is Brest Bretagne airport (BES), 38 km to the northwest as the crow flies. The nearest large city is Brest, 40 km to the northwest.

Airports

  • Brest Bretagne airport (BES) Brest 38 kmnorthwest
  • Guernsey Airport (GCI) Saint Peter Port 166 kmnortheast
  • Rennes-Saint-Jacques Airport (RNS) Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande, Ille-et-Vilaine 169 kmeast

Nearby large cities

  • Brest Population: 144.9K 40 kmnorthwest
  • Rennes Population: 227.8K 173 kmeast
  • Nantes Population: 325.1K 216 kmsoutheast
  • Plymouth Population: 260.2K 236 kmnorth
  • Angers Population: 168.3K 272 kmeast

Straight-line distances; road distances are longer. Airport data: OurAirports.

Day trips from Finistère

Within 100 km: 248 historic and cultural sites, 134 natural sites, 260 lakes, rivers and coasts.

0–25 km58 places

  • Île de Tibidy Island 20 kmW
  • Île de Terénez Island 22 kmW
  • Ménez Keryéven Mountain 13 kmNE
  • Roch Veur Mountain 16 kmS

25–60 km335 places

  • Plage du Trez-Hir Beach 54 kmW
  • Île aux Rats Island 47 kmS
  • Moros River 42 kmS
  • Plages de Trévignon Beach 49 kmS

60–100 km249 places

  • Île de Groix Island 79 kmSE
  • Île Grande Island 68 kmNE
  • Kastell Koad Freg Historic site 66 kmNE
  • Kastell Tonkedeg Historic site 64 kmNE

Straight-line distances.

Places in Finistère

88 places

Cities & villages4

Mountains & nature5

Lakes, rivers & coasts18

Heritage & sights1

Nature and heritage in Finistère

Nearby attractions & nature

Everything nearby

Sources & licences

Data last updated: · 2 independent sources