The magical northern shores of Brittany are rough and deeply indented. This landscape, with its wet weather, charming fishing villages, rocky islands, and Celtic language, is very similar to that of its cultural siblings, Scotland and Ireland. Despite its ruggedness, the coast has a number of good beaches, especially near Saint-Malo and the mouth of the Loire River. In the Gulf of Morbihan near Vannes, a multitude of tiny islands grow and shrink with the tides.