Deauville
Lisieux
THE AREA
Places of Interest: Come and visit Honfleur and its port (25km from Houlgate), Caen and its castle (30km), D-day landing beaches, the mansions and stud farms of the Pays d'Auge, the Normandie Bridge (25km)...
Sport in Houlgate: watersports, tennis, horse-riding, crazy golf, Beuzeval golf course...
NORMANDY offers visitors an enticing mix of the old and the new, with traditional values and cosmopolitan modern life co-exisiting to form an exciting cultural melting pot.
The area is home to contrasting landscapes, large beaches, green countryside and a rich historical hertige, with visits to Normandy's many landmarks highly reccomended. Tourists with a keen interest in medieval history will particularly enjoy seeing the famous Bayeaux Tapestry or visiting Mont-St-Michel. For those who prefer an almost first-hand look at more recent events, the beaches and battlefields that formed the backdrop to WW2 make for a fascinating and humbling experience.
No trip to Normandy is complete without sampling regional specialities, and the abundance of dairy cattle in the region means that Normandy butter and cream feature heavily on the majourity of menus. For those looking to toats their holiday with a glass of something special, the area's many apple orchards make Normandy cider and calvados (apple brandy) the tipple of choice for many locals and holidaymakers alike.
Train stations: Dieppe, le Havre, Rouen, Cherbourg, Deauville. Airports: Caen, Cherbourg. Deauville, Rouen, Le Havre. Normandy is also easily accessed by ferry, with regular crossings to Cherbourg, Le Havre and Caen.
Be a guest to one of the world's most exclusive tables. France, land of gourmets and culinary arts, offers a bewildering array of food and wines from delicious simple fare to exquisite haute cuisine. With over 340 sorts of cheese and 450 quality wines France will satisfy every palate.
Beyond gastronomy, from North to South France sparkles with an incredibly rich cultural and historical heritage of famous castles, churches, cathedrals and museums carefully preserved and restored which makes it one the most sought afterand enthralling destination for holidaymakers from around the globe.
France takes prides in the rich and diverse tapestry of its magnificent landscapes which have been celebrated throughout the centuries by its many famous writers, poets and artists in words and creations so many of which have become part of the world's cultural heritage and still inspire today's travellers to discover it for themselves. Whether you are looking for a relaxing beach holiday or want to commune with Nature, whether you wish to step back into history or are searching for an active sporting adventure, France will welcome you with open arms, seduce you with its warmth and entertain you with its wide range of attractions enabling you to achieve that perfect holiday.
A word of advice from Lagrange: French roads are excellent, but not free, so keep some euros handy.
