Parking and access to the Mont-Saint-Michel

Surrounded by its bay, which boasts one of the greatest tidal ranges in the world, access to the Mont-Saint-Michel is limited to a few options, listed below.

How do I get to the Mont-Saint-Michel?

• By car
  To get to the Mont-Saint-Michel by car  from Paris and the North of France take the A13 to the approaches of Caen, then the Périphérique Sud (the southern ring road) to the A84 exit, signposted ‘Mont-Saint-Michel.’ 

• By train
  All you now have to do is get off the train at Pontorson, the closest station to the Mont-Saint-Michel, then take the ‘Midibus’ shuttle bus there.

• By bike
  If you have a bike, the nicest way to discover all the riches of the Bay area and to enjoy shifting perspectives on the mount itself, is to follow the green way, a 12km-long level cycling path that approaches the Mont-Saint-Michel from the western side. But do note that you have to dismount and leave your bike on the mainland like the cars do, and either walk or take the shuttle to the mount itself. It pays to take into account extra time needed at busy times:
  – Every day from 1 October to 30 April  
  – Before 10am and after 6pm from 1 May to 30 September
  If you’re into long-distance cycling, look into the Veloscenic cycle route which links Paris to the Mont-Saint-Michel, or the Velomaritime which links Roscoff to Dunkirk via the mount. 

Where can I park at the Mont-Saint-Michel?

You can’t. A car park with 4,000 parking spaces is provided on the mainland, over a mile from the mount.

How do I get from the car park to the Mont-Saint-Michel?

There are several options:

• By ‘passeur’ shuttle bus
  Just outside the tourist information centre, you’ll find the passeur  shuttle bus to take you to the Mont-Saint-Michel. It’s free, and runs without interruption from 7:30am to midnight. The journey takes about 12 minutes and is easy to use for people with mobility issues. 

• By maringote
  If you’re in no particular hurry you could take a rather unusual mode of transport, namely the maringote, or horse-drawn carriage. There are two horses in harness and this way you can approach the mount in the same way as the first pilgrims would have done. From the car park, this more traditional option will take you about 20 minutes.

• On foot 
  There are three ways of approaching the Mont-Saint-Michel Bay area on footpaths: la Lisière, les Berges du Couesnon and the central route. You should allow about 40 to 50 minutes for any one of them.