The Pointe du Raz is a promontory

Headlands and bays

Headlands and bays are two related features of the coastal environment.- Geology and geography :Headlands and bays are often found on the same coastline. A bay is surrounded by land on three sides, whereas a headland is surrounded by water on three sides. Headlands are characterized by high,...

 that extends into the Atlantic from western Brittany

Brittany

Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...

, in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. The local Breton

Breton language

Breton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...

 name is Beg ar Raz. It is the western point of the commune of Plogoff

Plogoff

Plogoff is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.It contains three small ports suitable for very small vessels: Pors-Loubous, Feunten-Aod and Bestrée...

, Finistère

Finistère

Finistère is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.-History:The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel...

.
It is named after the Raz de Sein

Raz de Sein

The Raz de Sein is a stretch of water located between the Isle of Sein and the Pointe du Raz in Finistère in the Brittany region of France.This tidal water is an essential passage for vessels wishing to pass between the Atlantic and the English Channel, because further west at high tide the Isle of...

, the dangerous stretch of water between it and the island of Sein (Enez Sun in Breton). It is a dramatic place of crashing waves and strong winds.

The lighthouse of "La Vieille

La Vieille

La Vieille is a lighthouse in the département of Finistère at the commune of Plogoff, on the northwest coast of France. It lies on the rock known as Gorlebella , guiding mariners in the strait Raz de Sein, across from the companion lighthouse Tourelle de la Plate—also known as Petite Vieille...

" is clearly visible from the rocks.

Although it is not quite the westernmost extent of France (that would be Pointe de Corsen

Pointe de Corsen

The Pointe de Corsen is the westernmost point of continental France, located west of Brest in the Plouarzel Commune, Finistère, Brittany. The nearest village is Ruscumunoc.A CROSS sea monitoring site is located at the point.Pointe de Corsen is located at...

, just to the north), its rocky isolation makes it a popular tourist destination, (comparable in some ways to Land's End

Land's End

Land's End is a headland and small settlement in west Cornwall, England, within the United Kingdom. It is located on the Penwith peninsula approximately eight miles west-southwest of Penzance....

in the southern UK).

External links

Shortfilm "L'Hôtel" about the Hôtel de l'Iroise (1947-1997), placed on the Pointe du Raz Photos of the Pointe du Raz
Penn Ar Bed - Photothèque & Lighthouse