Normandy
Normandy, for me, is, first of all, a sky. I know that many people dream of flying. There, I just have to look up for a while to go back in time and feel a kind of peace spreading inside me, and tell myself that, deep down, what counts is this immense thing that goes beyond us and envelops us. - L'Esprit de famille - Janine Boissard, French writer.
Normandy is a region in northern France. Its varied coastline includes white chalk cliffs and World War II beachheads, including Omaha Beach, the site of the famous D-Day landings. Off the coast is the rocky island of Mont-Saint-Michel, atop which stands a Gothic abbey. Rouen, dominated by Notre Dame de Rouen Cathedral, is the city where the military leader and Catholic saint Joan of Arc was executed in 1431. Normandy is therefore one of those regions where, in the space of a few days, it is possible to visit emblematic places full of history.
In black and white or in colour, in 35 mm or in digital, hundreds of films have been shot in Normandy since the invention of cinema by the Lumière brothers. Famous for its landscapes, its lights and its heritage, this region of France attracts the directing and production teams of the greatest filmmakers. From Caen to Dieppe, via Cherbourg, Rouen, or Yvetot, follow in the footsteps of these magnificent film locations.
Four Days in Normandy
Activities
-
Caen Botanical Garden, Normandy
Caen botanical garden is a real green lung in the heart of downtown Caen. Collections of rare plants, expert gardener's advice, activities for all the family: an ideal place in Caen to stroll. The Caen plant garden is more than 5,000 m2 of green space for family walks.
-
Chausey, Normandy
It lies 17 kilometres from Granville and forms a quartier of the Granville commune in the Manche département. Chausey forms part of the Channel Islands from a geographical point of view, but, because it is under French jurisdiction, it is almost never mentioned in the context of the other Channel Islands.
-
Festyland, Normandy
Sometimes referred to as Carpiquet in the Caen area, the theme park receives around 110,000 visitors per year. Parc Festyland is a true theme park because it has a central unifying theme on which the entire park - from the rides to the restaurants to the surroundings - is built.
-
Granville, Normandy
Capital of the canton of Granville and seat of the Community of Municipalities of Granville, Terre et Mer, it is a seaside resort and spa on the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel at the end of the Côte des Havres, a former cod fishing port and the first shellfish port in France.
-
Honfleur, Normandy
Honfleur is a town in the Calvados department, part of the Normandy region of northern France. It is located on the estuary of the Seine River, which flows into the English Channel.
-
Jardin botanique de Vauville, La Hague
It is open in the afternoons during the warmer months; admission is charged. The garden was created by Eric Pellerin in 1948 on a windy site less than 300 metres from the Atlantic Ocean.
-
Museum of Norman Pottery, Normandy
The Ger ceramics museum bears witness to the flourishing activity of pottery in the Normandy countryside.
-
Normandy-Maine Regional Nature Park and Geopark, Normandy And
The Normandie-Maine Regional Nature Park is a French regional nature park created on 23 October 1975. Re-labelled in 2008, it now covers 257,214 hectares in 164 municipalities in the Orne, Manche, Mayenne, and Sarthe regions and thus extends over two regions: Normandy and the Pays de la Loire.
-
Ouistreham, Normandy
Ouistreham is a French commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region, with a population of 9,250. The municipality now communicates with the name Ouistreham Riva-Bella. The landing beach of Sword Beach encompassed the commune of Ouistreham.
-
Pointe de Barfleur, Normandy
The Pointe de Barfleur is a cape in France that forms the north-eastern tip of the Cotentin, in the département of La Manche. It is bathed by the English Channel and has the Gatteville lighthouse at its tip. It takes its name from the village of Barfleur to the south but is located in the commune of Gatteville-le-Phare.
-
Pont-l'Évêque, Normandy
It is known for Pont-l'Évêque cheese, a type of soft cheese, the oldest Normandy cheese in production. During World War II, the town was severely damaged by a two-day battle in August 1944. On 1 January 2019, the former commune of Coudray-Rabut was merged into Pont-l'Évêque.
-
Port-en-Bessin-Huppain, Normandy
Port-en-Bessin-Huppain is a French commune, located in the Calvados department in the Normandy region, with a population of 1,940. Its history dates back to the end of the Bronze Age and its destiny is linked to the sea, as shown by its motto: Res nostra mare.
-
Regional Nature Park of the Bessin and Cotentin Marshes, Normandy
Marshes and polders are part of a traditional bocage landscape. A thousand landscapes make up this little corner of Normandy. Between marshes, hedgerows, coastline, and moors, the fauna and flora develop and diversify, to the delight of nature lovers.
-
Rock of Oëtre, Normandy
It is one of the most prestigious lookouts in the west of France. The reputation of this precipice is founded on its breathtaking sheer drop: 118 metres. Neither tourists nor locals expect this kind of natural feature in Normandy.
-
The Ecouves Forest, Normandy
A royal forest from the 13th century onwards, the Ecouves state forest was intensively exploited for timber. In 1863, it was described as "totally ruined". Major reforestation operations gave it a new lease of life. Today, it has beautiful oak, beech, fir, spruce, and Scots pine forests.
-
Viaduc de la Souleuvre, Normandy
Built by the French engineer Gustave Eiffel for the line from Caen to Saint-Lô and Vire, the Souleuvre Viaduct was inaugurated on 12 November 1893.
