| Sufficient quantities of tuna, sardines and assorted crustaceans are still landed at the port of DOUARNENEZ, in the superbly sheltered Baie de Douarnenez, south of the Crozon peninsula, to keep the largest fish canneries in Europe busy. However, the catch has been declining ever since 1923, when eight hundred fishing boats brought in 100 million sardines during the six-month season. Over the last twenty years or so, Douarnenez has therefore set out – at phenomenal expense, the subject of considerable local controversy – to redefine itself as a living museum of all matters maritime. Searching for a Douarnenez hotel, this website has a lot of choice. Since 1993, Port-Rhû, on the west side of town, has been designated as the Port-Musée, with its entire waterfront taken up with fishing and other vessels gathered from throughout northern Europe. Its centrepiece, the Musée du Bateau in the place de l'Enfer (April to mid-June & mid-Sept to Oct daily except Mon 10am–12.30pm & 2–6pm; mid-June to mid-Sept daily 10am–7pm; €4.64), doubles as a working boatyard, where visitors can watch or join in the construction of seagoing vessels, using techniques from all over the world and from all different periods. When the Port-Musée first opened, it was possible to roam in and out of all the boats in the port itself. Sadly, however, although you can still admire them from the quayside all year, for no charge, only three remain accessible, during only those hours (and months) when the museum is open (€6.20 including museum). Of the three separate harbour areas in Douarnenez, the most appealing is the rough-and-ready port de Rosmeur, on the east side, which is nominally the fishing port used by the smaller local craft. Its quayside – far from totally commercialized, but holding a reasonable number of cafés and restaurants – curves between a pristine wooded promontory to the right and the fish canneries to the left, which continue around the north of the headland. The various beaches around town look pretty enough, but are dangerous for swimming. The tourist office in Douarnenez is at 2 rue du Dr-Mével (July & Aug Mon–Sat 9.30am–7pm; Sept–June Mon–Sat 9am–noon & 2–6pm; tel 02.98.92.13.35, www.douarnenez-tourisme.com), a short walk up from the Port-Musée. Among good-value hotels are Le Bretagne, nearby at 23 rue Duguay-Trouin (tel 02.98.92.30.44, www.portzic.fr; €30–40), and the more upmarket De France, also nearby, on the main street at 4 rue Jean Jaurès (tel 02.98.92.00.02, [email protected]; €40–55), which is home to the high-quality Le Doyen restaurant. Close by on the bay, there's a two-star campsite, Croas Men (tel 02.98.74.00.18, www.croas-men.com; closed mid-Oct to March), at Tréboul/Les Sables Blancs. Good central seafood restaurants include Le Tristan, near the port de Rosmeur at 25 rue du Rosmeur (tel 02.98.92.20.17), and Le Bigorneau Amoureux (tel 02.98.92.35.55; closed Tues), which has a terrace overlooking the plage des Dames.
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