Page 137 - Lonely Planet Europe’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

in a purpose- designed Normandy. A second sec-
TRIP HIGHLIGHT building covering 14,000 tion focuses on the Cold
1 Caen sq metres, the memo- War. There’s also the
Situated 3km northwest rial offers an immersive well-preserved original
bunker used by German
experience, using sound,
of Caen, the award- lighting, film, animation command in 1944.
winning Mémorial – Un and audio testimony to On your way around,
Musée pour la Paix evoke the grim reali- look out for an original
(Memorial – A Museum for ties of war, the trials of Typhoon fighter plane
Peace; %02 31 06 06 44; www. occupation and the joy of and a full-size Sherman
memorial-caen.fr; esplanade liberation. tank.
Général Eisenhower; adult/child The visit begins with
€20/17; h9am-7pm daily early a whistle-stop overview 54 p141
Feb-early Nov, 9.30am-6.30pm of Europe’s descent into The Drive » From the
Tue-Sun early Nov- early Feb, total war, tracing events museum, head northeast
closed 3 weeks in Jan) is a from the end of WWI along Esplanade Brillaud de FRANCE 9 D-DAY’S BEACHES
brilliant place to begin through to the rise of Laujardière, and follow signs
with some background fascism in Europe, the to Ouistreham. You’ll join the
on the historic events German occupation of E46 ring road; follow it to exit
of D-Day, and the wider France and the Battle of 3a (Porte d’Angleterre), and
context of WWII. Housed merge onto the D515 and D84
to Ouistreham. Park on the
seafront on bd Aristide Briand.
In all it’s a trip of 18km.

# e 0 0 10 miles 20 km
2 Ouistreham
On D-Day, the sandy sea-
front around Ouistreham
was code named Sword
Baie de Beach and was the focus
la Seine

LINK
Longues- YOUR
sur-Mer Juno & Gold TRIP
# \ # 0¸
# \ Beaches Courseulles-
# # D514 # sur-Mer
# \ #
5
4
#
3
Arromanches # \ Essential France
# \ 8
# \ Crepon Rade de
Join this grand tour at
# \ Douvres Caen the island abbey of Mont St-
# Beny- / · # \ Michel, about 140km from
#
D79
# ] Bayeux
6
# \
# \
sur-Mer Ouistreham # the Normandy coastline via
# ] #
2
0 ¸ the A84 motorway.
D514
F G l L # \ Ranville d Champagne Taster
8
/ · / · For a change in focus
N13
D6
Fortenay- # 1 # ^ # head east, about four hours
# \
le-Pesnel Caen / · from Caen, to the cellars of
A13
/ · Épernay for a fizz-fuelled
A84
tour.
0 ¸
CALVADOS
N158
Orne
Amayé-
# \ Villers- Bocage # \ 135
sur-Ome