Category: Sailing Festivals

“Welcome on board, tonight we are crossing the channel to France”, now this is sailing! A few moments ago you joined your ship and now the skipper is setting off across the seas. The promise of adventure beckons, skipping across the waves under a moonlit sky to Brittany, and a festival beyond all others, Paimpol folk music and shanty festival. If you’ve a love of music and boats, wooden ones really, then this festival is for you as this is a true celebration of both, as well as the magic of theatre, culture and happiness.

It has been said that the French do public events better than anyone, and this is true here in the charming old town of Paimpol. But you are not the public, you arrive as part of the festival having maybe visited the Channel islands en route, polished the brass and scrubbed the decks in preparation and navigated the English Channel or La Manche. You are now a sailor from another land, someone who is part of something huge and ready for a weekend of world class entertainment for the 30^th anniversary of the Paimpol festival.

With 160 bands performing over seven stages, this is an invitation to travel across music of the world. Sea shanties, Breton music and dance, street artists creates the rare fabric of Paimpol, not forgetting expositions, local food producers and some 200 traditional boats creating the perfect backdrop to the event.

Because your ship is the heart of the festival, you are free to come and go as you please, meeting friends, making new ones, stopping for a cider to swap stories or dance the night away until you drop. And the best thing- it’s up to you and your fellow crew how best to enjoy the event.

Within the closing hours of the festival, it’s time to get underway again to rest, sail and relax. Take the helm and discover peaceful meandering rivers and medieval towns or remote islands, perhaps cruise in company with other vessels making their way home. With so much to see and do, you will feel like you have discovered the world on your sailing adventure.

Join one of our fleet going to the Paimpol Festival

Classic Yacht Escape – 29 July, 10 days  from £1200

Pilgrim of Brixham – 30 July 9 days from £999

Pilot Cutter Polly Agatha  – 27 July 14 days from £1600 

Nestled in a beautiful part of Brittany lies Rosmeur Bay, Douarnenez, a fishing port rich with maritime history. The old town is full of mysterious winding alleyways and quaint buildings, facades painted an array of bright colours. All of this serves as an incredibly picturesque backdrop for the Douarnenez Temps Fête. This bi-annual maritime festive is the highlight of seafaring Brittany and a celebration of nautical culture and music. Following the Brest Festival of the Sea tall ships and classic ships gather in this historic port giving sailors and visitors alike a chance to climb aboard and experience these magnificent vessels.

Apart from plenty of sailing, over the course of the five-day celebrations, expect a salt-sprayed array of activities, music and performances, also displays of traditional vessels and classic boats. Traditional boat trips in the bay offer the experience of exploring the old-fashioned methods of navigation and seamanship. Perhaps one of the most exciting aspects of the festival is that the events take place right in the bay, allowing spectators to get right up close to the action; at times more unusual, with a water dog rescue demonstration on the line up!

You can also embark on kayaking, paddle boarding and sculling adventures so that Rosmeur Bay can be explored from the water, where the charming location was really meant to be admired from. Activities for younger shipmates are also available, with opportunities for children to climb traditional rigging, and also to try out the diving pool, as if they were really adventuring out into the big blue.

More artistically, performances quayside include ‘la Marie Claudine’ an entertainment troupe that interests with performances in an 18^th century style, in keeping with the theme of the festivities. ‘Les Douaniers du Rosmeur’ dresses up in traditional attire and also acts as authentic characters from that period in history. The festival has over 20 musicians and artists performing, covering a wide range of genres, from trance music to poetry, that express their cultural diversity and talent.