11 Best Sights in Normandy, France

Caen's finest church, of cathedral proportions, is part of the Abbaye aux Hommes, built by William the Conqueror from local Caen stone (which was also used for England's Canterbury Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, and the Tower of London). The abbey was begun in Romanesque style in 1066 and expanded in the 18th century; its elegant buildings are now part of City Hall, and some rooms are brightened by the city's fine collection of paintings. Note the magnificent yet spare facade of the abbey church of St-Étienne, enhanced by two 11th-century towers topped by octagonal spires. Inside, what had been William the Conqueror's tomb was destroyed by 16th-century Huguenots during the Wars of Religion. However, the choir still stands; it was the first to be built in Norman Gothic style, and many subsequent choirs were modeled after it. Guided tours in English are available weekdays in July and August. 

A magnetic beacon to millions of travelers each year, this "wonder of the Western World"—a 264-foot mound of rock topped by a history-shrouded abbey—remains the crowning glory of medieval France. Wrought by nature and centuries of tireless human toil, the sea-surrounded mass of granite adorned with the soul-lifting silhouette of the Abbaye du Mont-St-Michel may well be your most lasting image of Normandy. The abbey is perched on a 264-foot-high rock a few hundred yards off the coast: it's surrounded by water during the year's highest tides and by desolate sand flats the rest of the time. Be warned: tides in the bay are dangerously unpredictable. The sea can rise up to 45 feet at high tide and rushes in at incredible speed—more than a few ill-prepared tourists over the years have drowned. Also, be warned that there are patches of dangerous quicksand.

Legend has it that the Archangel Michael appeared in 709 to Aubert, bishop of Avranches, inspiring him to build an oratory on what was then called Mont Tombe. The rock and its shrine were soon the objects of pilgrimages. The original church was completed in 1144, but additional buildings were added in the 13th century to accommodate monks as well as the hordes of pilgrims who flocked here even during the Hundred Years' War, when the region was in English hands. During the period when much of western France was subjected to English rule, the abbey remained a symbol, both physical and emotional, of French independence. Because of its legendary origins and the sheer exploit of its centuries-long construction, the abbey became known as the "Merveille de l'Occident" (Wonder of the Western World).

Year-round, free 75-minute-long guided tours in English and French (frequency depending on season) can take you through the impressive Romanesque and Gothic abbey and the spectacular Église Abbatiale, the abbey church, which crowns the rock, as well as the Merveille, a 13th-century, three-story collection of rooms and passageways. The tourism office also offers a list of local experts available for tours on its website. La Merveille was built by King Philippe Auguste around and on top of the monastery; on its second floor is the Mont's grandest chamber, the Salle des Chevaliers. Another longer tour, which also includes the celebrated Escalier de Dentelle (Lace Staircase), and the pre-Roman, exquisitely evocative Notre-Dame-sous-Terre has a higher ticket price and is only given in French. Invest in at least one tour while you are here—some of them get you on top of or into things you can't see alone. If you choose to proceed independently, stop halfway up Grande-Rue at the medieval parish church of St-Pierre to admire the richly carved side chapel with its dramatic statue of St-Michael slaying the dragon.

Give yourself at least half a day here, and follow your nose. The mount is full of nooks, crannies, little gardens, and echoing views from the ramparts. It's worth lingering to see the Mont spectacularly illuminated, nightly from dusk to midnight.

Founded in 1060 by William the Conqueror's wife, Matilda, the Abbaye aux Dames was rebuilt in the 18th century; it then served as a hospital and nursing home before being fully restored in the 1980s by the Regional Council of Lower Normandy, which promptly requisitioned it for office space. The abbey’s elegant arcaded courtyard and ground-floor reception rooms can, however, still be admired during free guided tours. You can also visit the squat Église de la Trinité (Trinity Church), a fine example of 11th-century Romanesque architecture, though its original spires were replaced by timid balustrades in the early 18th century. Note the intricate carvings on columns and arches in the chapel; the 11th-century crypt; and, in the choir, the marble slab commemorating Queen Matilda, who was buried here in 1083.

The ancient cod-fishing port of Fécamp was once a major pilgrimage site, and this magnificent abbey church bears witness to its religious past. Founded by the duke of Normandy in the 11th century, the Benedictine abbey became the home of the monastic order of the Précieux Sang de la Trinité (Precious Blood of the Trinity—referring to Christ's blood, which supposedly arrived here in the 7th century in a reliquary from the Holy Land).

Next to the imposing neoclassical City Hall, this stupendous example of high Gothic architecture is noted for its stained-glass windows, dating from the 14th to 16th centuries. They are the most spectacular grace notes of the spare interior, along with the 19th-century pipe organ, and are among the finest in France.

Even in the so-called City of 100 Spires, the one crowning this cathedral stands out. Erected in 1876, it’s the highest in France—a cast-iron tour de force rising 490 feet above the crossing. The original 12th-century construction was replaced after a devastating fire in 1200; only the left-hand spire, the Tour St-Romain (St. Romanus Tower), survived the flames. Construction on the imposing 250-foot steeple on the right, known as the Tour de Beurre (Butter Tower), was begun in the 15th century and completed in the 17th, when a group of wealthy citizens donated large sums of money for the privilege of continuing to eat butter during Lent. Interior highlights include the 13th-century choir, with its pointed arcades; vibrant stained glass depicting the crucified Christ (restored after heavy damage during World War II); and massive stone columns topped by some intriguing carved faces. The first flight of the famous Escalier de la Librairie (Library Stairway), attributed to Guillaume Pontifs (also responsible for most of the 15th-century work seen in the cathedral), rises from a tiny balcony just to the left of the transept.

Bayeux's mightiest edifice, the Cathédrale Notre-Dame, is a harmonious mixture of Norman and Gothic architecture. Note the portal on the south side of the transept that depicts the assassination of English archbishop Thomas à Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170, following his courageous opposition to King Henry II's attempts to control the church. 

A late-Gothic masterpiece, this church sits across Rue de la République behind the cathedral and bears testimony to the wild excesses of Flamboyant architecture. Take time to examine the central and left-hand portals of the main facade, covered with little bronze lion heads and pagan engravings. Inside, note the 16th-century organ, with its Renaissance wood carving, and the fine marble columns. Recent renovations revealed the beauty of the church's stone filigree.

Across the square, beneath a 240-foot spire, the late-Gothic church of St-Pierre is a riot of ornamental stonework.

Dedicated to Joan of Arc, this church was built in the 1970s on the spot where she was burned to death in 1431. The aesthetic merit of its odd cement-and-wood design is debatable—the shape of the roof is supposed to symbolize the flames of Joan's fire. Not all is new, however: the church showcases some remarkable 16th-century stained-glass windows taken from the former Église St-Vincent, bombed out in 1944.

Soak up the seafaring atmosphere by strolling around the old harbor and paying a visit to the ravishing wooden church of Ste-Catherine, which dominates a tumbling square. The sanctuary and ramshackle belfry across the way—note the many touches of marine engineering in their architecture—were built by townspeople to show their gratitude for the departure of the English at the end of the Hundred Years' War, in 1453.