Abbaye du Mont Saint Michel

Where the forces of nature meet the artistry of medieval architecture and Brittany melts with Normandy, there rises one of the first sites to obtain UNESCO World Heritage listing. Atop a rocky tidal island sits the legendary abbey - a symbol of the French national identity and heroic resistance to English attacks during the Hundred Years' War. The fortified walls stretching at its foot embrace a picturesque village that grew up from the Middle Ages and flourished in the pristine setting of the bay. If you happen to be there at the time of the spring tides, you'll be in for a mesmerizing natural performance of a range unseen elsewhere in Europe.