Granville, Manche

Granville is a commune in the Manche department in north-western France.

The residents are called Granvillais.

Administratively, the island of Chausey is part of the commune of Granville, which includes a small harbour.

Geography

Granville is situated on the Cotentin Peninsula at the mouth of Bosq and Pointe du Roc (Cap Lihou) which in part closes in the north of the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel.

Harbour and Sea Traffic

Despite the proximity with the Chausey islands, which is part of the commune, there are no regular passenger sea services between Granville and Chausey. There are some tourist services by private companies from Granville, and from Saint-Malo in Brittany. French and British security forces operate permanently in this very dangerous and narrow area of the Channel, which one of the busiest sealanes in the world.

There are some sea services to England and to the Channel Islands, however, this traffic is relatively light from Granville, as Saint-Malo and Cherbourg offer better facilities for passenger and cargo traffic.

This part of the Channel is known for its many rocks off the coast, not always visible above sea level, and for the dangerous flows caused by tides. The bay of Mont Saint-Michel experiences one of the greatest tidal ranges in the world, and this causes strong currents that generate dangerous flows into the international sea routes, adding to the normal tidal flow that goes along the Channel. The area also often experiences fog as well as easterly...
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