Mont-Saint-Michel: the abbey on an island the sea surrounds twice a day

Cars stay in car parks on the mainland, about two and a half kilometres away. From there a free shuttle, Le Passeur, takes visitors along the bridge-walkway to near the entrance. Many people prefer to walk, to watch the Mont grow as they approach.

The tides in the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel are among the highest in Europe, with a difference that can exceed ten metres between low and high tide. During spring tides the sea completely surrounds the mount, and it's said to come in as fast as a galloping horse. An exaggeration, but not by much.

Check the tide tables before you go: watching the sea rise around the Mont from the bridge or the ramparts is a natural spectacle worth planning for.

You enter through fortified gates and start up the Grande Rue, the main street of the medieval village, narrow and steep, lined with old houses, souvenir shops, restaurants and little churches. Only a few dozen people live on the Mont, but it receives millions of visitors a year.

The Grande Rue gets very crowded in the middle of the day. To escape the crowds, climb the ramparts, which circle part of the mount and offer views over the bay, or explore the side stairways and small gardens.

In the late afternoon, when the coach tours leave, the village empties and takes on a different atmosphere. It's one of the best reasons to stay nearby.

Building of the abbey began in the eighth century after, legend says, the Archangel Michael appeared in dreams to the bishop of Avranches. Over the centuries it grew in layers on the rock until it became a masterpiece of medieval architecture and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Gothic complex called La Merveille, the Marvel, has rooms stacked on three levels, including the monks' refectory and the suspended cloister, with slender columns and a garden looking out into the void. The abbey church at the top is crowned by a golden statue of Saint Michael.

From the west terrace the view over the bay is immense: sand, sea, islets and, in the distance, the coast of Brittany. Allow at least an hour and a half for the abbey, and use the audio guide to understand its layers of history.

One of the most special experiences is crossing the bay on foot at low tide, as the pilgrims did. It's done barefoot over wet sand, streams and mud, with certified guides who know the tides and the quicksand.

Never do it alone: tides rise very fast and there are dangerous areas of quicksand. With a guide it's safe and unforgettable, and you see the Mont from angles few visitors know.

Around the bay graze the salt-meadow sheep, whose meat, agneau de pré-salé, has its own flavour from the salty grass. Seeing them with the Mont in the background is one of Normandy's classic images.

The Mont-Saint-Michel omelette has been famous since the nineteenth century, when an innkeeper served it to hungry pilgrims. It's fluffy, almost a mousse, whisked by hand and cooked over a wood fire. It's expensive and divides opinion, but it's part of the legend.

Salt-meadow lamb, mussels from the bay, Normandy cream and butter, cider and calvados, the apple brandy, complete the table. In Brittany, next door, there are crêpes and buckwheat galettes.

Restaurants inside the Mont are expensive and crowded at lunchtime. If you can, eat on the mainland or in a nearby village and save the Mont for walking.