Because I love Paris, I also love leaving it regularly to take little trips around France, not too far from the capital. That is how, this year, I went to discover Normandy, a region I knew very poorly and to my great detriment. My little Normandy tour consists of several stages and allowed me to discover several sites and towns in this beautiful coastal region. First, the town of Granville, then Cabourg, and finally Mont Saint-Michel.
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Table of Contents
Granville, maritime city
Located in the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel, this town with a maritime and port history is today the leading shellfish port in France. This golden age of fishing has nevertheless given way today to tourism and seaside activities.
If you are passing through Granville, I recommend taking a short walk along the beach and the Plat Gousset promenade to enjoy the charm of the Norman coast. Also, go see the Casino, inaugurated in 1911, which is a rather iconic monument of the town. On the cultural side, I encourage you to discover the Christian Dior museum (housed in the couturier’s childhood home) and its magnificent garden.
Christian Dior Museum Villa Les Rhumbs rue d'Estouteville – 50400 Granville open every day from 10 am to 6:30 pm free access to the garden
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Cabourg, romantic town
Cabourg is a very pretty seaside town on the Norman coast located in the Calvados department. I advise you to take a look (inside and out) at the Grand Hôtel de Cabourg. If you want to try the establishment’s renowned Sunday brunch, however, you will need to plan ahead a bit. As for us, we wanted to book the day before and we were kindly made to understand that it had been full for a long time… To console ourselves, we treated ourselves to a drink at the hotel bar and that was also very nice.
Another curiosity of the town is the Casino (a recurring theme of seaside towns). If gambling doesn’t appeal to you, you can still enjoy the atmosphere of the place by having a drink at the Casino’s lounge bar, Le Kaz.
After a short walk in the town, I advise you to take the opportunity to do some shopping and bring back some local specialties in terms of drinks:
- poiré (pear cider): a type of cider made from pears, super good and very sweet
- pommeau: a drink made from Calvados
- calvados: a Norman brandy obtained by distilling cider or perry
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Mont-Saint-Michel
An unmissable site if you are ever passing through Normandy, and since time may be short, don’t wait too long to discover it… Recently, it is no longer possible to access Mont-Saint-Michel directly, and you must leave your vehicle at a parking lot (paid) a little further away and walk to the free shuttles that will take you to your destination.
Don’t panic, these shuttles are very frequent, however, I won’t hide from you that there is a bit of walking to get to Mont-Saint-Michel as a result. If you are not in good physical shape, I advise you to refrain. The climb up the Mount is worth the detour, especially for the visit to the abbey, classified as a Historical Monument and managed by the Centre des Monuments Nationaux.
The good tip: admission is free for those under 18, 18-25 year-olds (European Union nationals and regular non-European residents on French territory), people with disabilities and their companions, job seekers (certificate less than 6 months old), and Culture Card holders.
To complete your discovery of Mont-Saint-Michel, a beautiful book Des Racines et des Ailes on this Unesco World Heritage wonder will be released by éditions du Chêne on October 9th (price: €35).
In any case, I hope that this short article will have made you want to go, too, for a little trip to Normandy. Happy end of the holidays to everyone!
Find all my articles on the Normandy region below:
⇒ All my articles on Normandy
MY ARTICLES ON THE NORMANDY DEPARTMENTS
⇒ The Orne
⇒ The Seine-Maritime
⇒ The Eure
⇒ The Calvados
⇒ The Manche
Photo credits: Mademoiselle Bon Plan Photos are not royalty-free, photographer's authorization mandatory before any use
