Honfleur

Beloved by artists, Honfleur is the most picturesque of the Côte Fleurie's little seaside towns. Much of the city's Renaissance architecture remains intact, especially around the 17th-century Vieux Bassin harbor, which is almost as supremely colorful as in the days when the great Impressionist masters often painted it. The town has become increasingly crowded since the opening of the elegant Pont de Normandie, providing a direct link with Le Havre and Upper Normandy. (The world's largest cable-stayed bridge, it's supported by two concrete pylons taller than the Eiffel Tower and is designed to resist winds of 160 mph.) Honfleur, full of half-timber houses and cobbled streets (now lined with a stunning selection of stylish boutiques and shops), and once an important departure point for maritime expeditions, including the first voyages to Canada in the 15th and 16th centuries, remains a time-burnished place.