Living & Studying in Brest for 5 months

What is it like to live in Brest?

The first thing I thought when I set foot in this city was that it’s a very grey city. I arrived at the end of December so no trees or flowers are blooming. The city is grey because it was bombarded during the World War II and was quickly rebuild after. Trust me, when spring arrives the city will look a lot less grey and a lot more beautiful! Brest is a very green city, it has many trees and there are flowers everywhere. I really liked living in Brest because the people in Brest are very kind and understanding. Also, you are never far away from a supermarket, shops, post office or school. This because the transport in Brest is very good! For only €28 per month you can get a bus card and with this you can travel by bus, tram and téléphérique (the company is BIBUS). What I liked the most about Brest is that the ocean is so close. From my stay in Brest (end of December until the end of May) I enjoyed many days at the beach.

(an area in Brest with color houses)

What is the student lifestyle like in Brest?

Student life in Brest is good. Brest is a student city, there are many students. In the city center (around Liberté Place) you can find many bars and some clubs. Bars I liked are: Blind Piper, Pub Hamilton and Havana. For clubs, I only went to les Stendhal. There are not many things organized for students, at least not by my school. Maybe another school will organize more student activities. When you check Facebook regularly you can find some activities.

(the boats at Plage Moulin Blanc)

How much does it cost to live in Brest?

Brest is one of the cheapest cities in France to live. So if you are looking for a cheap place to stay, Brest will be a good option. As for food, it’s around normal prices. But transport and accommodations are very cheap. Transport is €28 per month, for accommodations you pay between €250 and €400. This depends if you want to live together with other people or if you want to live alone. Living together with other people is a lot cheaper.

(Phare du Petit Minou)

Is it difficult to find accommodation in Brest? Is there any advice you can give?

For me it was difficult because nobody told me where to look. So I had to look for local French websites. In the end I found the website LeBonCoin. The website is in French so it may be a bit difficult to find accommodations but it is the best website i have found. French people do not respond quickly to e-mails so it is best to just call directly if you find an accommodation that you like. You can also check Facebook for accommodations and maybe your exchange school will have some accommodations special for exchange students. An important and nice thing is that in Brest you can get extra money to pay your rent. After 1 month of staying in Brest you can apply for CAF. Depending on your situation you can get around €100 per month. Ask your future house owner for more information. (It does not really matter where in Brest you look for an accommodation, there are many busses and trams in Brest. As long as you stay under the highway and not much further away than Oceanopolis. )

(Pointe Saint-Mathieu)

What places would you recommend visiting in Brest?

I really liked visiting the Marine museum in Brest, also the area around this museum is nice. When you are at this area and you love cats then you should also visit Rue Saint Malo. It is a road with many cats and old houses that were not destroyed during the War. Plage Moulin Blanc, the beach in Brest is also worth visiting. And the street up and down Liberté Place. I would not recommend going to Liberté Place at night alone because there is many homeless people and people dealing in drugs. Always walk together when walking around at night in Brest. But I think this goes for any city.

(close to Liberté Place)

What places would you recommend visiting around Brest?

I will list a few places I visited that are really beautiful. Some places you can get to by bus or train, other places you will need a car. The app ‘drivy’ is a good option for renting a car.

• Quimper,
• Pointe Saint-Mathieu,
• Phare du Petit Minou,
• Le Conquet,
• Roscoff,
• Crozon,
• Morlaix,
• Mont Saint-Michel,
• Dinan,
• Pointe de Saint-Hernot.

With a group of friends we rented a car several times, you can visit many places on this list in 1 day by car.

(Pointe de Saint-Hernot)

What advice would you give future students heading to Brest?

Don’t let the greyness of the city bring you down or make you negative. With the right people Brest is a lot of fun. If you are not French then you will learn about habits of French people. For me some habits were irritating me, but just get along with it, it is their culture, enjoy it! There are not many touristy things to do in Brest, so get out there, rent a car or take the bus and enjoy other cities/places. Have fun during your stay in Brest!

(Quimper)