10 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.

A fascinating relic of post–World War II Le Havre, the Auguste Perret Model Apartment is a testament to the city's postwar destruction—and to the determination of architects and city planners to create new homes for displaced residents. Sign up for a guided tour at the city's well-appointed Maison du Patrimoine; while the tour is in French, even nonspeakers will find plenty to admire in the collection of mid-century furniture and utility-minded ceramics and artwork. The apartment makes an interesting counterpoint to Perret's nearby masterpiece, the Église St-Joseph.

Essentially a 225-foot-long embroidered scroll stitched in 1067, the Bayeux Tapestry, known in French as the Tapisserie de la Reine Mathilde (Queen Matilda's Tapestry), depicts, in 58 comic strip–type scenes, the epic story of William of Normandy's conquest of England, narrating Will's trials and victory over his cousin Harold, culminating in the Battle of Hastings on October 14, 1066. The tapestry was probably commissioned from Saxon embroiderers by the count of Kent—who was also the bishop of Bayeux—to be displayed in his newly built Cathédrale Notre-Dame. The extremely detailed, often homey scenes provide an unequaled record of the clothes, weapons, ships, and lifestyles of the day. It's showcased in the Musée de la Tapisserie (Tapestry Museum); free audio guides let you listen to an English commentary about the tapestry.

Perhaps the most impressive Modernist church in France, the Église St-Joseph was designed by Auguste Perret in the 1950s. The 350-foot tower powers into the sky like a fat rocket, and the interior is just as thrilling. No frills here: the 270-foot octagonal lantern soars above the crossing, filled almost to the top with abstract stained glass that hurls colored light over the bare concrete walls.

This large village, with its promenade running the length of the pebble beach, is renowned for the magnificent tall rock formations that extend out into the sea. The Falaises d'Étretat are white cliffs that are as famous in France as Dover's are in England—and have been painted by many artists, Claude Monet chief among them.

A stunning white-sand beach and white-chalk rocks, such as the "Manneporte"—a limestone portal likened by author Guy de Maupassant to an elephant dipping its trunk into water—are major elements in the composition. Here Monet became a pictorial rock climber with the help of his famous "slotted box," built with compartments for six different canvases, allowing him to switch midstream from painting to painting, as weather patterns momentarily changed. With storms and sun alternating hour by the hour, you'll quickly understand why they say, "Just wait: in Normandy we have great weather several times a day!"—it was yet another reason why the Impressionists, intent on capturing the ephemeral, so loved this town.

At low tide it's possible to walk through the huge archways formed by the rocks to neighboring beaches. The biggest arch is at the Falaise d'Aval, to the south, and for a breathtaking view of the whole bay be sure to climb the easy path up to the top. From here you can hike for miles across the Manneporte Hills, or play a round of golf on one of Europe's windiest and most scenic courses, overlooking L'Aiguille (The Needle), a 300-foot spike of rock jutting out of the sea just offshore. To the north towers the Falaise d'Amont, topped by the gloriously picturesque chapel of Notre-Dame de la Garde.

The plunging chalk cliffs of Étretat are so gorgeous and strange that they seem surreal at first—the hordes of camera-toting visitors, however, can bring you back to reality quickly. So plan on heading for the cliffs in early morning or early evening.

An imaginative museum erected in 1988 on the north side of the city, the Mémorial is a must-see if you're interested in World War II history. The stark, flat facade, with a narrow doorway symbolizing the Allies' breach in the Nazi's supposedly impregnable Atlantic Wall, opens onto an immense foyer with British Typhoon aircraft suspended overhead. The museum itself is down a spiral ramp, lined with photos and documents charting the Nazi's rise to power in the 1930s. The idea—hardly subtle but visually effective—is to suggest a descent into the hell of war. The extensive displays range from wartime plastic jewelry to scale models of battleships, with scholarly sections on how the Nazis tracked down radios used by the French Resistance and on the development of the atomic bomb. The D-Day landings are evoked by a tabletop map of the theater of war and by a spectacular split-screen presentation of the D-Day invasion from both the Allied and Nazi standpoints. The war's lasting effects are explored in an exhibition on the Cold War, examining a divided Berlin and the social ramifications of the resulting surveillance state. Softening the effect of the modern structure are tranquil gardens, including a British one inaugurated by King Charles III. Fittingly, the museum is located 10 minutes away from the Pegasus Bridge and 15 minutes from the D-Day beaches.

Occupying an innovative 1960s glass-and-metal building, the city's art museum has soaring plate-glass windows that bathe the interior in the famous sea light that drew scores of artists to Le Havre. Two local painters who gorgeously immortalized the Normandy coast are showcased here—Raoul Dufy (1877–1953), through a remarkable collection of his brightly colored oils, watercolors, and sketches; and Eugène Boudin (1824–98), a forerunner of Impressionism, whose compelling beach scenes and landscapes tellingly evoke the Normandy sea and skyline.

If you've ever imagined your home strewn with haute-couture creations, this place will, perhaps, give you a clearer picture. Christian Dior's childhood abode is now a museum dedicated to the fashion designer; the house would prove to be a source of inspiration throughout his career, as he recalled "the nostalgia of stormy nights, of the foghorn, of the Norman drizzle." A number of his garments are on display, and special exhibitions focus on themes like Dior creations worn by movie stars on- and off-screen. The beautiful "artist's" garden, created by Dior's mother Madeleine, overlooks the sea. On select Wednesdays, the museum offers themed workshops to children and adults.

You won't be disappointed by the rugged terrain and windswept sand of Omaha Beach, 16 km (10 miles) northwest of Bayeux. Here you can find the Monument du Débarquement (Monument to the Normandy Landings) and the Musée-Mémorial d'Omaha Beach (€7), a large shedlike structure packed with tanks, dioramas, and archival photographs that stand silent witness to "Bloody Omaha." Nearby, in Vierville-sur-Mer, is the U.S. National Guard Monument. Throughout June 6, Allied forces battled a hailstorm of German bullets and bombs, but by the end of the day they had taken the Omaha Beach sector—suffering grievous losses in the process. In Colleville-sur-Mer, overlooking Omaha Beach, is the hilltop American Cemetery and Memorial, designed by landscape architect Markley Stevenson; you can look out to sea across the landing beach from a platform on its north side.