The town of Pont-Audemer is a very pleasant place to stroll along the narrow streets and small canals that thread through its urban fabric, recalling its past as the city of tanners. This town is located in Normandy, in the Eure department at the heart of the Risle Valley and the Boucles de la Seine Normande Regional Natural Park, a fairly rural area, 20 minutes from Honfleur for context.
At the turn of small streets, behind closed doors, one can discover beautiful private mansions and their inner courtyards that belonged to the many tanners who established themselves here as early as 1830. The town was indeed well known for the quality of its leathers, a flourishing activity in the 19th century and the reason for the network of canals that crisscross the city, as that is where the skins were washed. As usual, I will try to give you some ideas for visits and things to do in Pont-Audemer and the surrounding area in this article, as well as a selection of great addresses for gastronomy, shopping, and accommodation. This article mainly results from our stay in the Norman city with my favorite photographer in May 2025, but also from another stay where I came alone in 2017.
Table of Contents
What to see and do in Pont-Audemer?
Nicknamed the “Norman Venice” because of the many canals that flow through it, Pont-Audemer is a city full of charm. Historically known as “the city of two bridges”, the town only adopted the qualifier “Audemer” later, to distinguish it from Pont-L’Evêque and Pont-Authou. The city long prospered thanks to the activity of tanners, traces of which can still be guessed at along the narrow streets. Pont-Audemer also played an important role during the Second World War as a city of the Resistance. While walking, you might feel the “Mascaret”, that wind coming from the sea that sometimes rushes inland.
After strolling through the pretty streets of the town, I advise you to take a look at the Church of Saint-Ouen of Pont-Audemer, an unfinished 16th-century Gothic building that has very beautiful stained glass windows and a gallery decorated with carved panels. Do not hesitate to stop by the Tourist Office to gather some information and maps of the city and the region.
Pont-Audemer Tourist Office
2 place du Général de Gaulle 27500 Pont-Audemer
Open every day from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM and from 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM except Sundays and public holidays
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Visit the Alfred Canel Museum
Housed in the former home of Alfred Canel (1803-1878), this museum is a fascinating place dedicated to this local son. A lawyer by training, Canel became an elected official and then mayor of Pont-Audemer at the age of 27, carrying out innovative actions for his time. Passionate about history and literature, he created the municipal library by donating part of his own books. Today, the museum houses, like a cabinet of curiosities, his private collection (about 10,000 works but also paintings, archaeology, and natural science objects) as well as the municipal library’s collection. Upon his death, he also bequeathed his beautiful bourgeois house to the city.
One can admire his period office and discover many works by Norman artists, notably Adolphe Binet. Alfred Canel was also awarded the Legion of Honor. The museum, faithful to its vocation as a “Museum of the Book”, regularly offers temporary exhibitions in a space under the roof, like the one we were able to discover during our visit, on the illustrations of Édouard Riou for “Journey to the Center of the Earth” by Jules Verne (1864). Unfortunately, this exhibition ended in May 2025.
Visited in 2017 and 2025
Alfred Canel Museum
64 rue de la République 27500 Pont-Audemer
Prices: museum free for everyone / guided tour €2.80 for over 26s and free for under 26s
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Go canoeing in the canals of Pont-Audemer
If you want to discover the town in an original way, I recommend you go see Les Castors Rislois who offer canoe trips along the natural site of the Risle Valley. The loop we did, entitled “City“, allows you to navigate the canals of the “Little Norman Venice” to discover its architecture from another angle. Be careful though, the route, even if it is quite short, remains physical because there is a section against the current and it is better to already know how to maneuver a kayak a little. There are also very low bridges under which you have to pass by lying down completely on the kayak (and some are even quite impressive).
Tested in 2025
Les Castors Rislois
“City” loop / duration: 1h15 / price: €12 / pers
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Take a walk along the Etangs de Toutainville
This natural site is the perfect place for a bucolic stroll by the water. Furthermore, the site is really managed in an ecological way within the framework of a sustainable development project. It is therefore also an opportunity to admire remarkable and diverse flora and fauna. It can also be a good spot for a picnic or for practicing some water activities. For the walk, there are 2 loops, a medium one (which goes around the big pond) and a longer one that goes around the 2 ponds.
Walk done in 2017
The Ponds of Pont-Audemer
Chemin du Haut Etui 27500 Pont-Audemer
My gourmet addresses in Pont-Audemer and the surrounding area
As usual, you will find below my selection of gourmet addresses in Pont-Audemer (chocolate shop, boutique, and several restaurants) that we had the opportunity to test during our stay with my favorite photographer. These addresses often offer the chance to discover local products and some regional specialties to taste if you come to Normandy.
I also advise you to take a tour of the town’s markets on Monday and Friday mornings to buy some local products. Otherwise, you can also go to the Au Fromage Blanc boutique (78 rue de la République, 27500 Pont-Audemer) which is a cheese shop, but the address also acts as a wine cellar, delicatessen, and it also sells local products.
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Le Mirliton, a Pont-Audemer specialty
The Mirliton of Pont-Audemer is a rolled cigarette-like wafer, filled with a praline mousse and sealed at the ends with “plugs” of dark chocolate. This medieval specialty was created in 1340 by Guillaume Tirel, originally from Tourville sur Pont-Audemer, known as Taillevent, cook at the court of France and author of the first cookbook, in memory of his native region. I give you below a good address to find some and especially to taste them, it’s essential if you visit Pont-Audemer!
Olivier Deschamps, pastry chef and chocolatier
80, rue de la République 27500 Pont-Audemer
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La Gourmandine Restaurant
This friendly restaurant offers traditional French cuisine, with quality products and a welcoming atmosphere. During our visit, the good weather even allowed us to enjoy their terrace set up in front of the restaurant. On the menu as a starter, we had the salmon tataki with sesame (€9.50) and for the main course, the monkfish medallion in an armoricaine sauce (€23) as well as the Camembert salad (€14). For dessert, we were tempted by the white chocolate soufflé with a raspberry heart (€8). As for drinks, we discovered a very nice Norman craft brewery, the Brasserie de Sutter.
Tested in 2025
La Gourmandine
7 Place du Général de Gaulle, 27500 Pont-Audemer
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Chez Ben, l’Epicurien
This small 2-story restaurant, nestled in the heart of the Norman Venice, offers gourmet dishes made with local and seasonal products. On the program: salmon gravlax with a sweet soy and ginger sauce (€12), a pollock fillet with a pan-fried selection of vegetables (€19), a duck breast with an orange sauce (€20), and for dessert, a revisited pear crumble with a caramel sauce (€9). All accompanied by a little Pays d’Auge cider, of course.
Tested in 2025
Chez Ben, l’Epicurien
22 rue Sadi Carnot 27500 Pont-Audemer
Price: starters between €8 and €16; main courses between €19 and €20 / desserts between €9 and €11
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Le Sadi Carnot Restaurant
Run by a passionate couple, with the chef in the kitchen and his wife in the dining room, this establishment is renowned for its refined cuisine made with seasonal products and its elegant setting. An interesting option for a more gourmet evening in Pont-Audemer. The address also has a very beautiful terrace at the back of the restaurant which must be particularly pleasant for sunny days. Special mention at the end of the meal for the strawberry and asparagus dessert which was really very original. We finished this evening with a little tasting of Calvados, because the house offers great brands to taste by the glass.
Tested in 2025
Le Sadi Carnot
36 Rue Sadi Carnot, 27500 Pont-Audemer
Price: menu starter + main or main + dessert €27 / menu starter + main + dessert €32 / child’s menu up to 10 years old €19
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L’Endroit Biscornu Restaurant
This friendly restaurant located in the heart of the city center offers a short but quality menu and a small terrace for sunny days. Price: main courses between €10.50 and €17 / desserts at €5.
Tested in 2017
L’Endroit Biscornu
18 rue de la République 27500 Pont-Audemer
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Restaurant du Phare in Saint-Samson-de-la-Roque
This restaurant is located not far from the Domaine du Clos du Phare where we stayed during our visit in 2025 and which I talk about at the end of the article. It is therefore a good option if you are staying there and want to eat in the immediate vicinity. This establishment is run by a couple and the chef’s specialty Grégory Fantou is a dish with pigeon wings and its crust-baked thighs (€26 and only à la carte) which we found very interesting. We also tasted the scallop and seafood vol-au-vent as a starter and the veal rump cooked at low temperature for the main course. To accompany our meal, we opted for a dry cider from Michel Bréavoine (€12 per bottle) which was very good.
Tested in 2025
Restaurant du Phare
4 route de Tancarville 27680 Saint Samson de la Roque
Prices: gourmet menu €45 / menu at €32 / menu at €20 (except Saturday night, Sunday and holidays)
What to see and do in the surroundings of Pont-Audemer?
We also took advantage of our visit to Pont-Audemer to discover some local gems and villages with character and ancestral know-how to discover in the surroundings. The north of the Eure department is a peaceful, green territory, where cows seem to reign supreme and where time seems to pass more slowly. A true haven of peace, ideal for a getaway far from urban bustle.
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Go hiking on the Chemin des Sources Bleues in Aizier
Located in the Seine valley, the Chemin des sources bleues d’Aizier is an 8 km walk along the water that follows the banks of the Seine, connecting two typical villages on the Routes des Chaumières: Aizier and Vieux-Port. All along this discovery loop trail by the water, we discover picturesque paths, Norman thatched cottages, and the ruins of the Saint-Thomas chapel accompanied by its explanatory panels. A very beautiful walk that I warmly recommend.
Chemin des sources bleues d’Aizier
Distance: 8km / duration: about 2h
Start of the hike on the banks of the Seine
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Visit the Grestain Abbey
Leaving the hinterland to get closer to the Seine estuary, a stop at Fatouville-Grestain allows you to discover the vestiges of an old abbey, in a bucolic setting that offers a peaceful visit. Founded in the 11th century by Herluin de Conteville, the Grestain Abbey was important in the Middle Ages. Today, one can freely discover the romantic ruins in a pretty green setting. The visit allows one to appreciate the park, the location of the former monks’ refectory, and the remains of the chapel with its 18th-century framework.
Grestain Abbey
2169 route de l’Estuaire, 27210 Fatouville-Grestain
Free and open access to the exteriors, generally accessible all year round during the day
Where to stay in the surroundings of Pont-Audemer?
As usual, you will find below my selection of great accommodation addresses in the surroundings of Pont-Audemer that we had the opportunity to test during our stays in 2017 and 2025 with my favorite photographer.
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Domaine du Clos du Phare
Located about 15 minutes by car from Pont-Audemer, these guest rooms are nestled in a magnificent Norman estate that houses a manor with traditional half-timbered architecture. The rooms are very comfortable and each has a balcony or terrace, opening onto the landscape, the Marais Vernier, and the Seine estuary. We stayed in the Les Capucines room which is 20 m2 and we were very well there, perfectly quiet. The place also offers 3 gîtes for families, and guests of the rooms and gîtes can enjoy a covered and heated swimming pool which is open from April to October. It is a very beautiful place that I recommend for a stay in the area if you have a car.
Tested in 2025
Domaine du Clos du Phare
6 route du Plateau, 27680 Saint-Samson-de-la-Roque
Prices: overnight stay from €120 (breakfast included in the price of the guest rooms)
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Le Petit Coq aux Champs
This charming 4-star hotel, whose building is typical of the Eure department, is a haven of peace that one would wish to know more often. You feel far from everything and isolated from the world when you are there, and yet you are only a few minutes from the little Norman Venice. It is extremely restful, calm, peaceful, and very bucolic. The restaurant of this address is also very renowned because it is actually at the origin of the hotel’s opening. One eats extremely well there and I could not recommend you too strongly to taste this cuisine! As for breakfast, it is served in the oldest part of the building and offers a nice choice of good products.
The little extra: the establishment has a swimming pool which is very appreciable in the summer.
Tested in 2017
Le Petit Coq aux Champs
400 chemin du petit Coq 27500 Campigny
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Thanks to the Eure Tourist Office for organizing this stay and to Laurent from the aiRPur agency for this beautiful Norman discovery.
I hope that with all this, I have made you want to discover Pont-Audemer and if you also have your good addresses for this destination, do not hesitate to share them in the comments!
Find below all my articles on the Normandy region:
⇒ All my articles on Normandy
MY ARTICLES ON NORMANDY DEPARTMENTS
⇒ Orne
⇒ Seine Maritime
⇒ Eure
⇒ Calvados
⇒ La Manche
Photo credits: Nicolas Diolez and Melle Bon Plan (photos taken with the Kodak PixPro AZ526)
Photos are not royalty-free, photographer's authorization is mandatory before any use
