Spending just one day in Normandy might not seem like enough, but it is possible to plan a one-day getaway to the region. We’ve gathered some of our best ideas on how to spend ONE day in Normandy in this little guide.
Table of Contents
Organizing Your Day
Is Normandy close to Paris?
Although it is not the largest region in France, Normandy is almost three times the size of Ile-de-France. It stretches from Giverny (where you will find Claude Monet’s house) less than an hour away from Paris to Mont Saint-Michel, which takes about four hours to reach.
Can you visit Normandy in one day?
It would obviously be somewhat difficult to see everything that a territory with a surface area of over 30,000 km² has to offer in a single day.
However, it is quite easy to craft an itinerary that will allow you to visit some of the most important places in the region such as Deauville, Mont Saint Michel, the Maison Claude Monet, the route du Camembert, or the D-Day memorial.
If you only have one day, you will have to choose your destinations carefully.
Two or three days of travel would be best if you want to indulge your inner tourist, but sometimes you have to make the most of the time you do have.
What is the best way to visit Normandy?
That depends entirely on you.
Would you rather travel in a group with a guide or on your own?
Would you rather follow an itinerary or conquer the West (of France) on a spontaneous road trip?
There is no “best way”, just the one that suits you best. It is important to note that there are many trains to and from Normandy and that the roads to get there are smooth and flat.
What Can You Do and See in Normandy in One Day?
Normandy is full of treasures. Here are a few that we think are worth stopping to see:
The Maison Claude Monet and its Gardens
Monet loved his gardens and continued to tend them until the end of his life.
Come to Giverny and discover the house where the leader of the impressionists lived! The home is now filled with his works and his own version of interior decoration, and the gardens that both impressed and inspired him are open for an afternoon stroll.
The Beaches of D-Day
The landing on the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944, now known as D-Day, is one of the greatest military operations in history and definitely the one that has impacted France the most.
Millions of people come every year to visit the D-Day landing beaches, the memorials of Omaha Beach and Caen, and the American cemeteries. If you’ve never visited these landmarks, it’s a trip everyone should make at least once.
Mont Saint-Michel
The most famous rocky island in France also attracts millions of visitors every year.
With its majestic ramparts, its incredible maze of alleys, its small gardens, and Mother Michel’s omelets, Mont-Saint-Michel has something to please all of its visitors.
Let’s not forget the abbey, of course. It is an architectural marvel standing at the top of the islet! Your day at Mont Saint-Michel will definitely be full of things to do.
Check out our other tips for visiting Mont-Saint-Michel:
Top 12 Places for Staying the Night in or around Mont-Saint-Michel
When to Visit Mont-Saint-Michel? A Detailed Study
The World War I Memorial
In 1916, the department of the Somme became the worst gathering place in the world.
Approximately twenty countries came to fight or work for the three colonial empires (France, Germany, and Great Britain). Three million soldiers died on a 45 kilometer front.
When you visit the memorial, you will learn more about the war by going first through the trenches, then through the museums.
The Côte Fleurie
The quartet of Deauville, Trouville, Houlgate, and Cabourg composes what is called the “côte fleurie“. Their Belle Époque villas, whose very purpose was to surpass the beauty of others, testify to the success the coast has enjoyed since the end of the 19th century.
These towns also have large beaches and a relatively mild climate.
Rouen
You just have to visit the “city of a hundred spires” and its approximately 2,000 medieval houses with half-timbered walls.
Of course, the Gothic cathedral with the highest spire in France and the Gros-Horloge belfry are must-sees as well.
If you are not afraid of crowds, we also recommend taking the time to attend the Armada.
The Camembert Route
Everyone knows of the Wine Route in Bordeaux, but Normandy has culinary accomplishments of its own.
Pass by the beautiful rural and natural landscapes to savor the Frenchiest French cheese of all.
The Normandy Farms
Normandy is famous for its livestock farms, especially dairy farms with cows that are raised in the crisp, fresh air.
Visit a farm with your family and pet a calf or a lamb before indulging in a glass of freshly squeezed milk. It is a real experience for city dwellers who have never known anything but asphalt and pollution!
How to Get to Normandy From Paris
1) By train, on your own
Normandy is a big place.
Therefore, there are a wide range of prices and times for the Paris-Normandy trip.
Here are four common Normandy destinations to give you an idea of travel times and prices:
- Giverny – Maison Claude Monet: 50 minutes travel time, €32 round trip; first outbound train: 9:55 am (10:10 am on weekends), last inbound train: 8:55 pm (9:55 pm on weekends); you will then need to take a 10-minute cab ride from the station.
- Deauville – beach: 2 hours and 40 minutes travel time with a connection at Lisieux, €50 round trip; first outbound train: 6:10 am (8:30 am on Saturday, 9:30 am on Sunday), last inbound train: 8:15 pm (7:30 pm on Saturday and 9:15 pm on Sunday); you will then have a 15-minute walk from the station to the beach.
- Bayeux – D-Day beach/memorial: 2 hours and 30 minutes travel time, €40 (weekdays) or €60 (weekends) round trip; first outbound train: 6:10 am (8:00 am on weekends), last inbound train: 8:10 pm (8:30 pm on Saturdays and 9:30 pm on Sundays); you will then need to take a 20-minute cab ride from the train station to Omaha Beach/memorial.
- Mont Saint Michel: 3 hours and 30 minutes travel time with a connection at the Villedieu-les-Poêles station, €55 round trip; first outbound train: 7:30 am (9:00 am on weekends), last inbound train: 6:00 pm; a shuttle will then bring you to Beauvoir, where you will have to take a bus to Mont Saint-Michel.
(information obtained from the SNCF – website in French)
2) By car
Just like with the trains, it doesn’t take the same amount of time to go to Deauville and Mont Saint Michel.
We’ll look at the same four examples – to which we’ll add our personal favorite. (estimated departure from Paris – les Halles, 75001)
Giverny – Maison Claude Monet: 1 hour and 20 minutes
Deauville – beach: 2 hours and 30 minutes
Bayeux – D-Day memorial/beach: 2 hours and 50 minutes
Mont Saint Michel: 4 hours
Vimoutiers/Aubry-le Panthou – Route du Camembert: 2 hours and 55 minutes – (Check out the route du camembert – website in French)
If you don’t have the blessing of owning a car, you can always rent one in Paris.
Depending on the model and the agency, you will find cars starting at €40 or €50 for a day.
3) With an organized tour
If you would rather not have to organize anything, many companies plan expeditions that allow you to admire some of the sites in Normandy.
Here are some of our favorite organized tours in Normandy:
Excursion to the 1944 Normandy landing beaches
You will first disembark from your bus in Caen, where you will visit the Caen Memorial.
After having lunch there, you will leave for the D-Day landing beaches.
The first stop is the Pointe du Hoc. Then the bus will take you to the Saint Laurent cemetery in front of Omaha Beach, where the greatest number of deaths occurred.
Next you will pass by Arromanches, the Allies’ artificial harbor, before heading to the Canadian Memorial of Juno Beach.
Finally, the bus will take you back to Paris.
Departure time from Paris: 7:00 am
Duration: 14 hours and 30 minutes
Price: €185
We like:
- The guide takes the time to explain everything in English and French
- Lunch is included
- A souvenir booklet is given at the end of the tour
Day trip to Mont-Saint-Michel
After getting off the bus, your first step will be to go through a nearby village that dates back to the time of the Normans. You will walk through its winding streets and narrow lanes to find the best view of the bay.
From there you will get to see Mont-Saint-Michel, which was built on an island a few hundred meters away from the mainland.
Your afternoon will be spent exploring the many monuments of the fortified city, which was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. Finally, you will climb along the ramparts to reach the abbey at the top of the city. You will be able to admire this magnificent example of Gothic architecture from the early 13th century and take in the view of the surrounding bay before returning to Paris.
Departure time from Paris: 7:15 am
Duration: 14 hours
Price: €130
We like:
- The luxurious bus
- Audio and direct guides are offered
- An abbey ticket is included
We don’t quite like:
- There are no options for people with limited mobility
The Somme Battlefields (World War I)
This tour will help you discover the part of France that suffered the most from the bloody battles of what the French once naively called the Der’ des Der’ (The Last of the Last Wars).
You will get to explore the main sites in the Somme, including memorials, cemeteries, and battlefields.
You will pass by Delville Wood at Longueval, Pozière and the Mouquet Farm, the Welsh Memorial at Mametz Wood, Thiepval, the Ulster Tower, the Beaumont-Hamel site, and the Lochnagar Crater at La Boisselle, an impressive 100-meter wide and 30-meter deep hole created by a landmine.
You will also see the Newfoundland Memorial, which traces the battles with its remarkably well-preserved trenches, and the Historial de Péronne, a cultural museum about World War I that describes the war, its origins, and its consequences.
The Historial has a unique collection of over 50,000 original objects and documents concerning daily life during the war.
Departure time from Paris: 6:50 am
Duration: 11 hours
Price: €215
We like:
- Experiencing the museum of the First World War
- The very detailed visit
- The guide also speaks English
We don’t quite like:
- The tour is not available to people with limited mobility
- Lunch is not included
Monet’s Impressive Garden in Giverny
This tour will guide you through the charming village of Giverny and help you discover how it inspired Impressionist artists.
When you arrive, you will visit the house where Claude Monet lived and painted for the last 40 years of his life.
Located in a picturesque valley of the Seine, the gardens and surrounding area were the subjects of many of his paintings after he arrived in 1883.
After visiting the rooms where Monet lived with his family, you can stroll through two gardens that he himself designed and shaped throughout his life.
As you discover the more than one hundred different types of flowers and foliage in Monet’s flower garden, you’ll feel as if you’ve stepped into one of his paintings of the Japanese garden.
Admire the lake filled with water lilies and you will understand why this garden inspired more than 250 of Monet’s paintings.
Departure time from Paris: 8:00 am
Duration: 5 hours
Price: €99
We like:
- The picturesque setting
- The very detailed guides
We don’t quite like:
- The guide only speaks English
Looking for more information about visiting Normandy? Be sure to check out these articles as well:
- 7 Romantic weekend Ideas in Normandy (for all tastes)
- What is Normandy Famous for and What Makes it so Special?
- 21 of Normandy’s Must-try Specialties (Food & Drinks)
I aim to share my tips and recommendations for the beautiful country of France. My goal is to help you plan your next adventure, whether it’s a weekend getaway or a once-in-a-lifetime trip. From finding the best hotels and restaurants, to discovering unique activities and sights, I’ve got you covered!
