Sentier des Douaniers (GR34)

The Sentier des Douaniers, officially marked as the GR34, is Brittany's coastal footpath. Its name means the customs officers' path, and it follows a track first kept clear in the late eighteenth century so that coastguards and customs men could patrol the shoreline, watch for smugglers and help in shipwrecks. After the patrols ended the route fell out of use in places, and walkers later restored it as a long-distance trail that now runs for roughly two thousand kilometres, from the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel around Brittany to Saint-Nazaire in the Loire-Atlantique.

Around Perros-Guirec the path reaches one of its best sections, on the north coast known as the Pink Granite Coast, or Côte de Granit Rose. The shore here is a jumble of rounded pink and orange boulders, piled by weathering into shapes that locals have named after animals, witches and loaves of bread. The classic stretch runs from the beach at Trestraou to Ploumanac'h, a small harbour village dominated by its lighthouse and the little oratory of Saint-Guirec, which sits on rocks right at the water's edge. It is a walk of a few kilometres, and it can be done at a gentle pace with plenty of pauses for photographs.

The path is narrow, rocky and uneven in places, with short climbs and descents and steps cut into the granite, so sturdy shoes are essential. Tides and weather change the mood completely: on a bright day the sea is a clear green over pale sand, while a westerly blow throws spray against the boulders. Gorse and heather colour the cliff tops in summer, and gulls and cormorants work the rocks below. The islands offshore include the Sept-Îles archipelago, a bird reserve, whose silhouettes show on the horizon, and boat trips leave from the Perros-Guirec area.

The path can be combined with the village streets and the Plage de Trestraou, or with a visit to the Église Saint-Jacques and the Marché de Perros-Guirec. Many walkers take it as a half-day outing and return by bus or retrace their steps; fewer commit to the full multi-day stages, which require planning for accommodation and weather.

It costs nothing to walk, and it suits hikers of moderate fitness, families with older children and photographers. Check the tide tables, carry water and take a windproof layer, since the Breton coast can turn quickly.