Baud, Morbihan

Baud, Morbihan
Location of
Country	France
Arrondissement	Pontivy
Canton	Baud (chef-lieu de canton)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	56010 /

Baud is a small town located in the Morbihan county of Brittany, France.

There are many flower beds on the approaches to the town and in the area around the church. The "Town Centre" is the highest point of the town in the area besides the Church. Baud is essentially a market town, a location where the local farmers used to trade their goods for services. Baud is situated on the crossroads of two major roads bisecting Brittany: the North South Road, which links St. Bruic and St. Malo on the north coast to the ancient towns of Vannes and Auray on the south coast, and the East West Road which links Rennes (the capital of Brittany) to Quimper (pronounced KEMPER, an old cultural capital). The Quimper Road then continues on to the tip of Brittany at Brest.

Baud is the administration centre for a number of small villages in the vicinity. It has a police station, fire brigade, ambulance, a large secondary school, a school of music, a library and a selection of sporting facilities including a swimming pool, tennis courts, two football fields and a stadium. It also has a number of primary schools including a school teaching in the Breton language.

It has a fair range of social outlets. A Cinema, the "Celtic", which is unusual in rural France, a nightclub called "Le Podium" and a selection of restaurants and pubs and similar. There is a small market held on Saturdays where animals such as rabbits, turkeys, ducks and chickens can be purchased. There are several supermarkets including Champion, Lidl, InterMarche and a number of bakeries. There are a number of pharmacies, medical doctors and nursing services in the town.

The town's population is about 5000, and is growing each year. There are extensive small scale property developments particularly to the west of the town. Over the last few years, Baud has become popular as a location to have a holiday or retirement home and there is a growing number of estate agents.

The Blavet river bassin , which flows via Pontivy to the Atlantic sea near Lorient is a local beauty spot. This river was canalised during the time of the French / British wars 1750? and links with the Nantes / Brest Canal at Pontivy. There are extensive cycle / pedestrian paths along the riverbank.