Pleyben is located in the centre of Finistère department, in Brittany region. It is surrounded by the Mounts of Aree and Les Montagnes Noires, in the middle of the regional park of Armorique. Pleyben owns the most beautiful architectural complex of Brittany.
Access
By car, Pleyben is 25mn from Quimper and Locronan, 35mn from Brest and 45mn from Morlaix.
History
Pleyben comes from the Breton noun « ploe » which means parish and from a Breton Saint called Iben. Pleyben was created between the 5th and the 7th century AD and included the land of Lannedern, Lennon, Le Cloitre-Pleyben, Saint Segal, Pont du Buis and a part of Chateaulin. It is only from the 17th century that Pleyben became a significant town thanks to a very powerful family: Les Seigneurs de Treziguidy who took part into the Crusades.
Activities
The architecture in Pleyben is remarkable and consists of a church, a Calvary monument, a boneyard and a sacristy that thousands of visitors come to see every year. The church is half gothic style half Renaissance style, the Calvary monument takes the shape of a triumphal arch, the sacristy, built in 1680, is considered as one of the most beautiful building as much by its exterior as by its interior design. Finally, the boneyard of Pleyben is the oldest in Finistere and dates from the 16th century. Today, it houses a museum of local customs.
Around Pleyben, there are numerous fountains, wayside crosses and chapels such as la chapelle de la Madeleine or the chapel of Lannelec.
Pleyben also offers the visitor hiking ways, cycle touring, canoeing, tennis or fishing activities.
Food and Drink
Brittany artichoke (Camus de Bretagne), served from the 16th century onwards, is steamed and eaten with vinaigrette, butter sauce, or béchamel.
The Cornouaille cider was granted the AOC label in 1996. It is made from Brittany’s apples such as Kermerrien, Douce Moën, Douce Coetligne, Guillevic…
But Brittany is the home of French seafood cuisine. The visitor will enjoy meals with a variety of fish, seashells. The Brittany lobsters were already very popular in the 17th century. Fishermen go fishing lobsters from June to September. It is grilled or flambé.
Belon Oysters are the only one to be kept in estuary. The combination of fresh and sea water gives the oysters their nuts flavour.
Kouign Amann is a pastry made of flour, sugar, butter. Each region of Brittany has a different version of it and it is well-known that it is difficult to make a good Kouign Amann.
Restaurants
- LA BLANCHE HERMINE, Place Charles de Gaulle. Tel : 02.98.26.61.29
- L’AUBERGE DU POISSON BLANC, Pont-Coblant. Tel : 02.98.73.35.95
Our team of sale advisers at Sextant Properties will be happy to help you to find a property in Pleyben. We have a large network of estate agents near Pleyben. All of them are registered French estate agents and speak both French and English. Whatever kind of property you are looking for: farmhouse, longere, barn, gite, B&B, country house, mill, castle or chateau, we will do our best to find a property in Brittany matching your requirements. Do not hesitate to contact us to find out more about our selection of properties for sale near Pleyben.