Ille-et-Vilaine, alphabetically the thirty-fifth département in France, occupies an unusual position within Brittany, forming a lynch pin between Western Brittany, Normandy and the Pays de Loire area. Its main city, Rennes, is a major university town and the regional capital. With a population of 870,000 it is the largest of the Breton départements and the second largest département in Western France. Ille-et-Vilaine combines a wide range of landscapes, a wonderful blend of well-preserved natural environments and economic or cultural dynamism. With well-controlled urban development, fields, lakes, moors and woodlands provide an outstanding lifestyle. Its coastline is a window onto the open sea. It is true that the coast is not as long here as it is in neighbouring départements but it provides striking contrasts. Saint-Malo, Dinard and Cancale are still the stuff that dreams are made of... With its well-established agricultural background, Ille-et-Vilaine can look forward to the third industrial revolution with equanimity. An intense, eclectic culture drawing on tradition and modernity makes this a dynamic area in which to live, in any season of the year.