Dinard – a city of chic seaside villas

Dinard - a city of chic seaside villas is a beautiful resort in the Emerald coast (La Côte d'Émeraude). Facing Saint-Malo, the city of corsairs, on the other side of the estuary, Dinard has a more bourgeois character. Many celebrities spend their vacations here, and every year in September Dinard hosts the famous British film festival. But one of the delights of Dinard is the exploration of its coastline. You can go for a long walk along successive coastal paths and admire its beautiful seaside villas. It is a romantic and magical place that will enchant you during the visit to Brittany.

La Côte d’Emeraude (the Emerald Cost)

Saint-Briac-sur-Mer, France

Dinard

35800 Dinard, France

A seaside resort

Until the mid-19th century, Dinard was nothing more than a small fishing village. But then, a certain English lady, Mrs Faber found the climate of Dinard agreeable and the village beautiful. In 1852, she rented the Villa Beauregard, and then she built the Villa Sainte-Catherine. Soon the fishing village became a fashionable seaside resort that attracted a large number of English tourists, and after them, the wealthy Parisians started visiting Dinard too. Today, Dinard's reputation as the “Cannes of the North” attracts a wide variety of stars. Joan Collins is a frequent visitor, while Winston Churchill, and Alfred Hitchcock also enjoyed holidaying here. T.E. Lawrence lived here as a child and Picasso painted in the 1920s. Oscar Wilde, an Irish poet, also visited Dinard and mentioned it in his “De Profundis”, a letter written during his imprisonment. No wonder, Dinard is a place with the most exclusive hotels, like “the Grand Hôtel Barrière“, an aristocratic five stars hotel with the elegant high ceilings and an exceptional seaside view.

Grand Hôtel Barrière, Dinard

46 Avenue George V, 35800 Dinard, France

The main attractions

The first thing to do in Dinard - a city of chic seaside villas is to go for a walk along its coastline and see and admire many impressive villas perched on the top of the cliff. Dinard’s architecture is a very unconventional mixture of different styles, and villas are made “to see and to be seen”. The other attractions are a casino and a restaurant with a beautiful panoramic seaside view and the Dinard Festival of British Cinema. Each year in September, this festival has six films in the competition, and the best one wins the Hitchcock Gold Award (Hitchcock d’Or). The Festival was launched in 1989 to bring a variety of British productions for both professionals and cinephiles in France. Many French and English cinematic celebrities attended the Dinard Festival, like Catherine Deneuve, Hugh Grant, Charlotte Rampling, Jane Birkin, etc. Dinard also has a beautiful golf club. Even if the Dinard Golf Club was founded by a small colony of British residents living in Dinard at the end of the 19th century, it is a trendy and famous place for all golf lovers, hosting many tournaments.

Golf de Dinard

53 Boulevard de la Houle, 35800 Saint-Briac-sur-Mer

The Barrière Casino, Dinard

4 Boulevard Wilson, 35800 Dinard, France