Things to Do in Normandy

As the largest German WWII cemetery in France, the La Cambe German War Cemetery serves as a poignant reminder of the lives lost on both sides of the war. It’s a moving site, with its grey schist crosses and dark, flat headstones offering a more somber atmosphere than that of the American and Commonwealth cemeteries nearby.

Although initially serving as a temporary American cemetery, today 21,222 soldiers from the German Armed Forces are buried at La Cambe. At the center of the cemetery, a 6-meter-high grassy hillock is capped with a single cross and serves as a mass grave for 296 soldiers, many of which are unknown. Just outside of the cemetery, the La Cambe Peace Garden opened in 1996, and is home to 1,200 maple trees, each planted by an individual or organization to symbolize reconciliation and lasting peace. A visitor center is also located at the entrance to the cemetery and offers further insight into the soldiers buried on-site.

The Juno Beach Center is Normandy's only Canadian museum, but there are two locations where Canada's heroes from the Battle of Normandy have been laid to rest: The Bény-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery, and the Bretteville-sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery. The former honors soldiers from earlier in the battle – on and just after D-Day - while the former is for soldiers who gave their lives later on. 

Like many of Normandy's WWII battle sites and memorials, Bény-sur-Mer is about a half-hour from Bayeux, which many visitors make as their base from which to explore the region. Bretteville-sur-Laize is about 40 minutes away, just behind Caen. Both of them are considered in the “opposite” direction from most of the most important sites, and so can be ignored by those on a fast-track tour of Normandy. But both sites deserve to be given their due.

Both cemeteries are technically on Canadian territory, as France granted the lands to Canada in perpetuity so that they could have a permanent place to bury their heroes. The grounds are maintained by Veterans Affairs Canada.

At the Bény-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery there are over 2,000 grave sites, including one of a Frenchman who fought alongside Canadian soldiers and had no next of kin to claim his body. And at the Bretteville-sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery are 2,700 graves. They are solemn places meant to remember the fallen; for learning about Canada's role in the Battle of Normandy, head to the  Juno Beach Center.

The Abbaye aux Dames in Caen is also known as the Abbey of Sainte-Trinité, or the Holy Trinity Abbey. As one could guess, “Abbaye aux Dames” translates to Women's Abbey, and that's just what it was – a Benedictine convent. It's almost a thousand years old, and one of the must-see sites for any visitor to Caen.

If the facade of the abbey looks a little worse for wear, it's because of its history; it was the site of a battle during the Hundred Years War, during which it lost its original spires. The larger convent today is home to the Regional offices for Lower Normandy, but the abbey, restored in 1983, is open to visitors. William the Conqueror's wife Matilda is buried there, and its interior is a treasure trove of architectural details.

If you're traveling from Caen to Bayeux on your way to WWII sites, you may pass by a fairly new-looking church in the small village of Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe. Its aesthetic might seem old, sure, but its overall look is too new to be the original architecture. And after seeing so many beautiful old churches in France, it would be easy to pass by without giving it a second thought.

But to WWII historians as well as those who are on the search for WWII sites of interest in Normandy, this church – the Ardenne Abbey – is high on the list of places to pay one's respects to the fallen heroes of WWII. It was here that the Germans made their headquarters during the Normandy battles of June 1944, and it's the site of one of the most egregious violations of the Geneva Convention from the war.

In this sanctuary-turned-Nazi-base, 20 Canadian soldiers were executed by the German soldiers who had captured. Now, as horrific as that is on its own, it's understandable if it doesn't seem terribly out of the ordinary; thousands of soldiers lost their lives in the Normandy battles. But the fact that they were either shot or beaten in the backs of their heads is what ultimately resulted in the trial of Brigadeführer Kurt Meyer, commander of the 25th Panzer Grenadier Regiment, and the resulting verdict of guilty under the Geneva Convention. 

Because the Ardenne Abbey was soon lost to Allied bombardment, it has since been reconstructed; thus its new-looking exterior. And on the grounds visitors will find a memorial to the executed soldiers, with the solemn vow, “Lest we forget.”

While so many of the WWII museums in Normandy focus on the victories, this humble memorial serves as a haunting reminder that even here, so far from the atrocities to the east, had known its own kind of brutality. Lest we forget.

A National Monument of France and one of Bayeaux’s most eye-catching monuments, the Bayeux Cathedral (Cathedrale Notre Dame de Bayeux) is best known as the original home of the Bayeux Tapestry  (now a UNESCO ‘Memory of the World’ and displayed at the nearby Bayeux Tapestry Museum). Originally built in the 11th-century, the cathedral’s Gothic façade was reconstructed in the 12th century, but much of the Romanesque-style interiors remain intact, shown off by atmospheric lighting during the evening hours. 

Consecrated in 1077 by Bishop Odo of Conteville in the presence of his brother and King of England, William the Conqueror, the cathedral’s strong English ties are portrayed in its vibrant frescos, which depict the life of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and of course, the iconic Bayeux Tapestry, said to have been commissioned by the Bishop to decorate its nave.

The Juno Beach Center is a museum dedicated to the heroism of Canadian troops in the D-Day landings and the entirety of the Second World War. Located in Normandy, the center draws visitors from Canada and across the world wanting to remember their fallen patriots and learn more about France’s role in the Allied victory.

The Juno Beach Center opened in 2003 as a way to create a permanent memorial to the 45,000 Canadians who lost their lives in World War II and to preserve information surrounding their role in the war for future generations. Designed to appeal to both adults and children, the museum hosts both temporary and permanent collections made up of personal photographs, first-hand accounts, and artifacts presented alongside multimedia panels.

Many guided day tours of the Normandy landing beaches out of Bayeux, Caen, and Paris stop at the center in addition to other important WWII sites. If visiting independently, you can choose to buy a ticket to the museum or a combined pass for the museum and adjacent Juno Park.

The center is located on Juno Beach in Courseulles-sur-Mer near Bayeux, 170 miles (270 kilometers) from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport; there is free on-site parking. If not driving, you can take the train from Paris via Caen station, followed by a taxi or bus connection, or opt for a guided tour with transportation provided.

The Juno Beach Center is open from 9:30am to 7pm April to September; 10am to 6pm in March and October; and 10am to 5pm in November, December, and February. It’s closed throughout the month of January. The museum is busiest in the afternoon.

Woven almost 1,000 years ago, the Bayeux Tapestry is a fascinating piece of history that attracts visitors from all over the world. It depicts the Norman Conquest of England by invading French Norman forces in the year 1066 and is housed in a purpose-built museum in the Normandy town of Bayeux.

The hallowed history of the D-Day landings on the beaches of Normandy draws thousands of visitors a year to this beautiful region of France. Along its now-calm coastline are tours, memorials, cemeteries, museums and stark reminders of the events of June 6, 1944. As you look out over the beaches and aided by the news reels from the time as well as modern-day recreations for the silver screen, it can be almost too easy to feel as though you can see exactly what happened, right in front of you.

But not everyone who fought that day arrived by boat. In the wee hours that morning – in fact, just after midnight - American paratroopers started descending into the region. Through a series of unfortunate events the paratroopers were not able to rally in order to provide organized support for the coming attack, but their scattered arrival sent the Germans running in all directions to defend their hold, a move which ultimately was one of the many factors in the Allies' victory. 

Most of the action from this event, code-named Operation Neptune, centered on the small village of Sainte-Mère-Église, which today is the site of one of the most fascinating WWII sites in Normandy: The Airborne Museum. Here visitors can relive the harrowing story of the 82nd and 101st Airborne divisions and see a Douglas C-47 as well as a Waco Glider.  The exhibits, presentations, and items housed in this parachute-shaped museum fill in many of the missing pieces to just how the Allied forces battled their way to victory.

While in the village of Sainte-Mère-Église, don't forget to look for what appears to be a parachute wrapped around one of the spires of the church. This is a memorial to John Steele, who remained stranded up there because of his caught parachute, and who escaped eventual German arrest to go on and help his division retake the town for the Allies.

Founded by Napoleon’s half-brother on the Normandy coast in 1861, the chic seaside town of Deauville (pronounced “Dovil”) has been a summer playground for the French elite, including Yves Saint Laurent, ever since the late 19th century. Full of designer boutiques and five-star hotels, manicured gardens and ritzy restaurants, Deauville is the place for Parisians to see and be seen in the summer. 

Known in France for its starring part in Proust’s “In Search of Lost Time,” Deauville is in the heart of the Parisian Riviera and boasts the Grand Casino, Deauville-La Touques racetrack and the American Film Festival in the first week of September every year. Unlike at Cannes’, public admission is available for many of the previews at Deauville. 

Very much a resort town, Deauville’s population of 4,100 heavily depends on tourism. Twinned with the town of Trouville right next door, visitors often hop over to Trouville by simply wandering over the pont des Belges bridge, which is just east of the train and bus stations in Deauville. 

The Bayeux Tapestry might be almost 1,000 years old, but it’s still one of the top tourist attractions in northern France. Housed in a purpose-built museum and depicting the infamous Norman invasion of England, its detailed needlework and impressive size draw hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the world every year.

A UNESCO “Memory of the World,” the Bayeux Tapestry is a very rare object, one of few textiles to last almost 1,000 years. The 230-foot-long (70 meter) embroidered frieze shows William the Conqueror invading England, and the subsequent Battle of Hastings told from the point of view of the victorious Normans.

 

Since 1983, the tapestry has been displayed behind glass in a purpose-built, climate-controlled museum called Tapestry Museum (Musée de la Tapisserie), in central Bayeux. The colors and level of detail of the figures shown are remarkable when viewed up close, and make the tapestry a must-visit stop on guided tours of northern France.

 

 

The Tapestry Museum is located at 13B Rue de Nesmond in Bayeux, France. It’s accessible by car or as part of a guided tour that includes transport. Rail links join Bayeux with St.-Lazare station in Paris.

 

The museum is open seven days a week from February to December, with the exception of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. It closes for the whole month of January. From March to October, it is open from 9am–6:30pm (until 7pm in May–August). In November, December, and February, the museum closes every day for lunch, 12:30pm–2pm.

 

Also found in Bayeux is the Battle of Normandy Memorial Museum that details the events leading up to and including the Normandy or “D-Day” landings. With a collection of military artifacts, including uniforms, guns, and armored vehicles, the museum recreates the events of August 1944 in vivid detail and will be of interest to visitors who want to learn more about the history of the Second World War.

Bayeaux is best known for its vast tapestry illustrating the Norman Conquest of Britain in 1066, but is also renowned as a center of lacemaking. The Conservatoire de la Dentelle de Bayeux was founded in 1901 in a bid to conserve the local tradition of lacemaking, which began in the 17th century. Bayeux lace is made by hand on bobbins and its delicate patterns come in just three colors: white, black and ecru. While once there were more than 5,000 lacemakers in Normandy, today there are less than a dozen exponents of the art and several showcase their handiwork in the Lace Conservatory.

Located in a 16th-century mansion with the figures of Adam and Eve carved into its façade, the conservatory is open for tours of the workshops, where expert lacemakers are always on hand to demonstrate their skills while keeping alive their techniques. Visitors can have a go at creating their own lacy masterpieces and there are year-around exhibitions of delicate shawls, napkins and bookmarks; these are also on sale along with lacemaking implements and books. Individual commissions are undertaken.

A collection of handmade 18th-century Bayeaux lace is on show at the Musée Baron-Gérard (MAHB) on the same street; a side trip to the Lace Conservatory can be combined with touring the Normandy beaches.

The elegant seaside resort of Cherbourg sits by the English Channel (known as La Manche en français) on the Normandy coastline of France, a popular destination with families who visit for the miles of sandy beach as well as cross-Channel sailors who head for the marina at Port Chantereyne. The old town itself is a charming tangle of cobbled streets hiding stylish restaurants and bars as well as a smattering of museums, art galleries and smart shops.

Today Cherbourg’s ferry port connects with the English port towns of Portsmouth and Poole, but for centuries it was an important naval base, thanks to its deep natural harbour. During Napoleonic times in the early 19th century, grandiose sea walls and fortified defenses were constructed to protect the port from English attack. World War II saw most of these destroyed amid fierce fighting but after the end of the war in 1945, US troops rebuilt the harbor and it briefly became the busiest in the world. It can be explored by boat or the electric tourist train that chugs gamely around the town, and Cherbourg’s fascinating Museum of Liberation tells the story of its military history in Fort de Roule, which perches on a rocky crag high above the town. The Cité de la Mer complex is found in the former ocean-liner terminal and has exhibitions on immigration, an aquarium and a tour around a disused French nuclear submarine.

With its grand Gothic façade overlooking the central Place François Mitterrand, it’s impossible to miss the Lisieux Cathedral, or Cathedral Saint-Pierre. Built on the site of a former Roman church, the cathedral dates back to the 12th century and is one of the earliest examples of Gothic design in France, now preserved as a National Monument.

 

Along with its notable architecture, Lisieux Cathedral is also famous as the resting place of Bishop Cauchon, who famously oversaw the prosecution of Joan of Arc.

Famously painted by artists, such as Claude Monet, Gustave Courbet, and Eugene Boudin, the picturesque waterfront and colorful harbor of Honfleur are among the most memorable in Normandy. The historic port is renowned for its architecture, especially Vieux Bassin harbor’s 16th-century buildings and the wooden church of Sainte Catherine.

 

Strategically located at the mouth of the Seine River, facing the Port of Le Havre, Honfleur is a popular destination for cruise passengers, as well as day-trippers from Paris. On a day tour from Caen or Bayeux, a visit to Honfleur is often combined with Normandy towns, such as Pays d’Auge, Deauville, and Trouville. Alternatively, art fans can follow in the footsteps of Impressionists by pairing a visit to Honfleur with a tour of Monet’s home and gardens in Giverny.

 

Multi-day tours of Normandy from Paris also often include a stop at Honfleur, en route to D-Day beaches, the Loire Valley, or Mont-Saint-Michel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

Honfleur is located northwest of Paris on the Normandy coast. There is no direct public transport from Paris, but trains run to nearby Le Havre, from where buses and taxis cross the Seine to Honfleur.

 

Honfleur is at its busiest in July and August, and hotels and restaurants along the main waterfront can book up quickly. The most atmospheric time to visit is on a Wednesday or Saturday morning, when a lively market runs along Cours des Fossés up to Place Sainte-Catherine.

 

When 19th-century landscape artist Boudin brought Monet to Honfleur, it started an art legacy lasting to this day. Honfleur’s stunning waterfront is said to have inspired Monet to begin painting landscapes. Soon, artists, such as Courbet, Alfred Sisley, Camille Pissarro, and Pierre-August Renoir, flocked to paint or sketch the pretty quays. Today, Honfleur still attracts artists and has a number of art galleries plus the Boudin Museum, where Boudin, Monet, and Courbet’s works are on display.

With an impressive 18 underground bunkers linked by trenches and reinforced by barbed wire fences and minefields, the Hillman Fortress was once an important German WWII command post and the headquarters of the German 736th Regiment. Known as Hill 61 by the Germans and codenamed ‘Hillman’ by the British, the strategic bunker complex was attacked on 6 June 1944 as part of the D-Day Allied invasion and finally liberated by the Suffolk Regiment the following day. 

Today, the hilltop bunkers have been preserved as an open-air museum, run by volunteers, and visitors are free to explore the 24-hectare site, including the kitchen, bunkers, command posts and well. A memorial museum is also located on-site, where visitors can learn more about the Hillman Bunkers and the Suffolk Regiment.

Arromanches-les-Bains, with a population of just under 600, is a village on the Normandy coast. But this tiny dot on the map has a huge legacy dating back to WWII, commemorated in the D-Day Museum on the site of the artificial Mulberry Harbor. It was here that hundreds of thousands of tons of equipment were brought to the shores of France by the Allies, and it served as one of the most important military bases of the time.

The museum itself is a must-visit for anyone honoring the heroes of WWII; from working models of vehicles to a panorama of what the its shores looked like at the time to remains of the war strewn about the harbor, it's an unforgettable look into just what an enormous undertaking D-Day was.

The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial may very well be the most visited American military cemetery in the world after Arlington, and with good reason: It is an emotional experience that stays with visitors long after they've returned home from their travels, even if they've never given much thought to World War II battle history.

There are four distinct features to the memorial, located in Colleville-sur-Mer, about half an hour from Bayeux and three hours from Paris. First, there is the cemetery itself, the final resting place of more than 9,000 soldiers. The vast majority of them lost their lives fighting the D-Day battles of Normandy, but there are other World War II heroes buried here as well. The rigid lines of so many thousands of graves are an astonishing sight, and the sense of loss is overwhelming. You'll see small stones placed upon the headstones in the shape of the Star of David for Jewish soldiers; this is a common Jewish custom and they should not be removed.

The next feature is the memorial, which includes a reflecting pool, a chapel and inlaid maps detailing the events of D-Day. The American flag flies here, as France conceded the land to the Americans and it is considered U.S. soil. The memorial and cemetery give way to the next feature, which is the view from from the site's vantage point above the famous Omaha Beach. From news reports and cinematic depictions we've come to recognize the beach from the point of view of the soldiers coming in from the English Channel; to see it from above, though, is to see just how precarious their circumstances were and how incredible it was that victory belonged to the Allies that day.

The final feature of the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial is its brilliant visitor center, which puts everything into context. Far from jingoistic chest-thumping, the center instead stands in humble awe of the men who gave their lives on D-Day and pays every ounce of due respect to the enormity of the operation. Inside are items the soldiers carried with them, from ammunition to good luck charms, as well as first-hand accounts recorded by veterans. Learn about the French involvement in the region and the small details that could have made or broken the operation.

Originally built in 1635, Château d'Auvers-Sur-Oise is the gorgeous castle where Vincent Van Gogh famously spent the last 70 days of life. Consequently, the site now features a fascinating exhibit dedicated to Impressionism and works to immerse visitors in 19th-century Parisian life.

At the time of construction, the château featured a splendid Louis XIII facade, along with lavish Tivoli-inspired gardens with numerous fountains and orangeries. While the façade still exists today, the rest of the castle was significantly renovated in 1662 to make it inherently French and considerably larger, with two new pavilions. Nowadays, the castle is entirely dedicated to impressionists and features exciting highlights, including holograms of household painters like Renoir and Monet, an interpretation center with interactive terminals and even a simulated steam train whizzing through Haussmann-era Paris.

The Mémorial de Caen, a museum and war memorial, is one of the city’s most popular attractions and a must-see for anyone visiting Normandy to pay respects to the heroes of World War II. While the site specifically commemorates D-Day and the Battle for Caen, it is the overall sentiment that provides the perfect primer for those planning to see multiple memorials in the area.

The museum's exhibits take visitors through life in the 1940s during the war while specifically noting the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy before continuing with coverage through the fall of the Berlin Wall. The many personal accounts, artifacts and multimedia segments work to bring the war out of the past and into sharp focus. In addition, there are British, Canadian and American gardens on the grounds for strolling and picnicking.

The Abbaye de Saint Étienne (Saint Stephen's Abbey) in Caen is also known as the Abbaye aux Hommes (Men's Abbey), to distinguish it from the Women's Abbey close by. If it looks a bit like an English cathedral, you're on the right track – this stunning example of Norman Romanesque architecture indeed served as the inspiration for so many churches on the other side of the Channel. (Although keen-eyed visitors will notice the Gothic apse, a sign of the church's architectural evolution.)

There are two highlights of the Men's Abbey; the first is the tomb of William the Conqueror, whose mark on Normandy has never been forgotten. The second is a bit of a hidden gem – the cloistered gardens, accessible by going through the town hall. It's another world inside there, and a favorite with photographers.