Things to do in Mont-Saint-Michel & Normandy

Mont-Saint-Michel's village on its tidal island is free to wander, with the abbey crowning the top. On the coast, the Étretat Cliffs frame the Porte d'Aval arch and the Aiguille needle along the GR21 path, and Honfleur's Old Harbour, a cradle of Impressionism, is lined with restaurants and galleries. In Rouen, see the cathedral Monet painted again and again, the Gros-Horloge clock tower and the Historial Jeanne d'Arc, which tells Joan of Arc's story in the city where the trial took place. Normandy is also a place to remember the Second World War: the Normandy American Cemetery above Omaha Beach is the resting place of 9,387 soldiers who fell in the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy, nearby Pointe du Hoc still bears shell craters, and the Caen Memorial Museum covers the war, D-Day and the Cold War.

Good to knowThe abbey at Mont-Saint-Michel charges admission and closes earlier outside summer, with last entry 1 hour before closing and many steps to climb. At Étretat, stay on marked paths at least 5 m from the edge, never walk below the cliffs and leave the pebbles on the beach. Allow about 4 hours for the Caen Memorial, which closes on some days outside the main season; without a car, reach Honfleur by train to Le Havre or Deauville and then a Nomad bus.