Nantes and Rennes are two of the most beautiful cities in France. They are the definition of true French cities. From the incredible food, wines, beers, and architecture, both cities are truly enjoyable. If you are trying to decide between Nantes or Rennes, here is the ultimate guide to which city you should visit.
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Nantes or Rennes Overview
Nantes
Nantes is the sixth-largest city in France with over 300,000 residents. It is known for having a high quality of living and for being one of the most environmentally friendly cities in Europe. It won the European Green Capital Award in 2013 and has continued to become even more sustainable. For centuries is one of the main port cities in France because of its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. Because the city was heavily damaged during WW2, more buildings were built in the 20th century than any other era. The area around Nantes is known as “Chateau Country” because of the large number of chateaus in the area.
Rennes
Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany. It was originally a Gallic village more than 2,000 years ago. The city is known for having timber-framed architecture in the older parts of the city. Rennes is known for being a university city, in fact, more than 1/4th of the population here are students. Rennes is known for having many large parks within the city. Rennes has been ranked as the best place in France to live (besides Paris) because of its lower cost of living and less congested atmosphere.
Places to See
Nantes
Château des Ducs de Bretagne was the residence of the Dukes of Brittany from the 13th century to the 16th century.
Les Machines de l’Île is known for the Great Elephant that is a giant mechanical elephant that is 12 meters tall.
Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle is the French history museum.
Nantes Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church that started construction in 1434.
Cours Cambronne is one of the most iconic city squares in Nantes. It is one of the newer squares as well, not being built until 1791.
Rennes
Rennes Old Town features some buildings that escaped the great fire. The buildings here are known for their wood-framed buildings.
Cathedral Saint-Pierre de Renne is a Roman Catholic cathedral that was completed in 1845.
Parlement de Bretagne is the Parliament Building of Brittany.
Saint George Palace was built in 1670 and used to be an abbey but today it is just a historic monument.
Rennes City Hall is an ornate building in the center of Rennes.
Food
Nantes
Beurre blanc, or buerre Nantais, is a buttery sauce made with butter, vinegar, white wine, and shallots. It is one of a local favorite and is put on many dishes, especially seafood. Being so close to the Atlantic, seafood plays a large role in the local cuisines. Of course, you have to remember to try some of the local wine. The most famous wine from the area is Muscadet, a dry white wine that is produced in the Loire region.
Rennes
Galette saucisse is the Rennes version of a hot dog and it is possibly the most popular street food in here. It is a cooked pork sausage wrapped in a cold buckwheat crepe. Crepes have a long tradition in Rennes. When you are here, going to a creperie is an absolute must. Believe it or not, Rennes is more into brewing beer than producing wine. There are quite a few micro-breweries you can test out in Rennes.
Getting Around
If you plan of staying in the center of the city you should be able to walk to where ever you want to go. Biking is a popular option for exploring Nantes. Most of the main roads have bike lanes running along the side as well as many streets designated for pedestrian and bike use only. You can rent a bike for 10 Euros a day or 20 Euros for the week from the Nantes Métropole. You can also use the Bicloo bikes which are basically the city bikes with stations all over the city. Bus and tram tickets will cost you 1.70 Euros for a single ride, otherwise, you can buy a 24-pass for just 5.60 Euros.
There is a metro system and a network of buses. Using the buses seems to be the most efficient way to get around the city if you need to use public transportation. The buses even run to nearby towns and villages, making it easy for you to explore outside of the city. Rennes is another great city for biking with an abundance of lanes designated for biking. LE vélo STAR is the bike-sharing system here and it has 81 pickup and drop-off stations scattered throughout the city.
Nightlife
Nantes
The areas around Place du Bouffay and Place du Pilori are known to have the best nightlife in the city. If you start off at either of these two squares, you will have access to dozens of bars. Bar hopping is a popular thing to do on a night out. Le Hangar à Bananes, or The Hangers, is another popular place for nightlife. The Hangers is a popular place for university students because there are multiple big bars at the same place. Some of the best nightclubs in the city are CO2, Conclave, The Colors.
Rennes
With more than 1/4th of the population being students, the nightlife in Rennes is quite lively. Rue Saint Michel is a street in the center of the city that is known for having bars on both sides of the street. The most popular time to go out in Rennes is on Thursday nights. University students pack the bars on these night making for a pretty wild night. If you had to pick a part of town to go for the night, you should pick the area around Rue Saint Michel, especially if you want to go bar hopping.
Day Trips
Nantes
Angers is a city known for its architecture, chateaus, and castles.
Château de Saumur is located in the town of Saumer. It was originally built as a castle but was later turned into a chateau.
Pornic is a coastal town on the west coast of France. It is also known for its Chateau de Pornic.
Rennes
St. Malo is a walled city on the coast, just north of Rennes.
Mont Saint-Michel is one of the most famous places in all of France. It has a population of 50 people.
Nantes is a large city to the south of Rennes. It is less the 1.5 hours away from Rennes and would make an excellent day trip.
Rennes is also less than four hours away from Paris. Nantes is about three and a half hours away from Bordeaux.
Overall
Nantes and Rennes are two beautiful French cities that are often overlooked by tourists. Nantes is the bigger city of the two cities but Rennes has just as much if not more than Nantes. Nantes has a bigger airport so you might be able to get there cheaper than Rennes. If you are struggling to decide between Nantes or Rennes, your biggest decision will be between Pays de la Loire and Brittany regions.