Five Days in Normandy

This five-day itinerary fits travelers who want the region’s best-known places in one loop: Monet’s garden, Rouen, the Étretat cliffs, Honfleur, the D-Day beaches and Mont-Saint-Michel. It works best by car at a steady pace, with one to four stops a day. You start from Paris and sleep in Rouen, Honfleur and Bayeux. You finish at Mont-Saint-Michel, then either drive back to Paris or take a coach and a TGV via Rennes.

Before you go

Plan this trip between April and November 1. Monet’s House and Gardens open only from April 1 to November 1. The Juno Beach Centre and the Arromanches museum run from February to December, and the Utah Beach museum closes from mid-November to mid-December. Early June is the busiest time on the D-Day beaches because of the anniversary events. See D-Day Anniversary: June 6 in Normandy and Best Time to Visit Normandy.

Book Giverny online before you leave. The gardens strongly recommend it, and once the online quota is gone you can expect long waits on site. E-tickets cannot be refunded.

Sleep in Rouen on night 1, Honfleur on night 2 and Bayeux on nights 3 and 4. Bayeux is a practical base for the beaches. The Bayeux Tapestry Museum is closed until autumn 2027, though, and the Tapestry is on show at the British Museum in London from September 10, 2026 to July 11, 2027. The town’s cathedral and its Memorial Museum of the Battle of Normandy stay open.

This road trip assumes a car. Hire one in Paris, or take the train out and pick one up in Rouen. If you drive from Paris, note that the A13 Saint-Cloud tunnel near Paris is closed in the Paris-to-Normandy direction from November 16, 2026 to the end of August 2027, with signed diversions. The drive times below are OpenStreetMap estimates that do not account for traffic, so leave a margin.

Day 1: Giverny and Rouen

Start at Monet’s House and Gardens. If you drive, Giverny has free car parks. If you don’t have a car yet, take the train from Paris Saint-Lazare to Vernon-Giverny (fastest 46 minutes). From there, the seasonal shuttle bus or a bike hired at Vernon station gets you to Giverny.

Allow 1h30 to 2 hours. Walk the Clos Normand, the flower garden under rose-covered arches in front of the house. Then cross to the water garden with its green Japanese bridge and water lilies. Inside the house, look for the yellow dining room and the kitchen lined with blue Rouen tiles. Once you leave the site, you cannot go back in.

By car, Giverny to Rouen is about 60 minutes (74 km). If you came by train, a direct train runs from Vernon-Giverny to Rouen, and you can collect a hire car there. Spend the late afternoon at Rouen Cathedral. Entry is free. Monet painted a series of thirty canvases of it, its cast-iron spire stands 152 meters high, and its stained glass includes the “fish” window. In summer a free light show plays on the west front (May 29 to September 26 in 2026).

Day 2: Étretat and Honfleur

Rouen to Étretat is about 74 minutes (88 km). Normandy Tourism says early morning and late evening are quieter, and it advises avoiding July and August and fine-weather weekends. Parking in the village is hard to find. Use the free car park at the village entrance on the route de Criquetot-l’Esneval (la Guezane), and follow the footpath in.

At Étretat, the chalk cliffs rise to nearly 90 meters. When you face the sea, the Porte d’Aval arch and the 51-meter needle (the Aiguille) are on your left, with the larger Manneporte beyond. The Falaise d’Amont is on your right. The GR21 footpath along the clifftops is free to walk.

To the east, a cliff path climbs to the Jardins d’Étretat. It is a ticketed contemporary garden that mixes topiary, architecture and art, with a view of the needle. Check its season on the attraction page before you count on it.

Étretat to Honfleur is about 48 minutes (46 km). Spend the evening around the Old Harbor (Vieux Bassin) and the Lieutenance, where Courbet, Monet and Boudin all painted. The streets are cobbled, so wear comfortable shoes.

Day 3: Caen, Juno and Arromanches

Caen is about 53 minutes (64 km) from Honfleur. The Caen Memorial covers the Second World War, D-Day, the Battle of Normandy and the Cold War up to 1989. The museum says a full visit takes about 4 hours, while Normandy Tourism suggests 3-4 hours. Parking is free.

Next, drive about 24 minutes (19 km) to the Juno Beach Centre at Courseulles-sur-Mer. Normandy Tourism describes it as the only Canadian museum on the landing beaches. A Canadian guide introduces the visit, and the 12-minute film “They Walk With You” follows. From April to October you can add a 45-minute guided tour of the German bunkers in Juno Park.

The Arromanches D-Day Museum is about 17 minutes (13 km) further on, on the seafront. It covers June 6, 1944 and the artificial harbor built off the town, known as Mulberry B, and the audioguide is included. Bayeux is about 14 minutes (10 km) away for the night.

Memorial Pegasus, near Caen, is closed from September 1, 2026 with no confirmed reopening date, which is why it is not on this route.

Day 4: The American sector

Work from west to east today. Drive first to the Utah Beach D-Day Museum at Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, on the westernmost of the five landing beaches. Check the drive from Bayeux in your route planner before you set off. The museum tells the story of the landing in 10 sequences and displays an original B-26 bomber, and it recommends 1.5 to 2 hours. If you have spare time, the Airborne Museum at Sainte-Mère-Église is about 16-17 minutes from Utah.

Utah to Pointe du Hoc is about 41 minutes (40 km). The monument honors the US 2nd Ranger Battalion under Lt. Col. James E. Rudder. The ground is still cratered from the 1944 bombardment, so stay on the marked paths.

Omaha Beach is about 16 minutes (11 km) further east. If you plan a beach walk, check the tides first.

End the day at the Normandy American Cemetery, about 10 minutes (5 km) away. Entry is free. ABMC counts almost 9,400 graves, and the Walls of the Missing carry almost 1,600 names. A flag-lowering ceremony takes place one hour before closing. The path down to the beach has been closed since 2016. ABMC expects compulsory pre-registration for all visitors from summer 2027. Bayeux is about 24 minutes (23 km) back.

Day 5: Mont-Saint-Michel

Bayeux to Mont-Saint-Michel is about 126 minutes (129 km). Cars park on the mainland. From there, the free Le Passeur shuttle takes about 12 minutes to a stop 350 m from the village entrance. From the car parks to the abbey entrance, allow about 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on crowds.

The abbey church sits 80 meters above sea level. After the church, see the cloister, the refectory, the crypts and the west terrace. The abbey allows 45 minutes to 1h30 for the visit itself. The Mont and its bay have been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1979. Check the tide calendar before you go, and read the Mont-Saint-Michel guide for more on the village.

Afterward, drive back to Paris. Alternatively, return the car if your hire allows it, and take the coach to Rennes for a TGV.

Getting around

Normandy by car is the simplest way to connect these stops, especially on the D-Day coast. ABMC notes that there is no railway station there and that local public transport is intermittent. Taxis and tour buses run from Bayeux. In July and August the NOMAD Car D-Day Line links sites including Omaha Beach, Pointe du Hoc, the American cemetery, Arromanches and the Juno Beach Centre. The Caen Memorial also sells guided minivan tours to Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach and the cemetery, Monday to Friday except public holidays.

Trains cover the ends of the trip. From Paris Saint-Lazare, the fastest trains reach Vernon-Giverny in 46 minutes, Rouen Rive Droite in 1h13 and Bayeux in 2h12. For Mont-Saint-Michel without a car, the Keolis Armor coach links the Le Verger stop with Rennes bus station in about 70 minutes, and every trip connects with TGVs to and from Paris-Montparnasse (fastest 1h25). From November 2, 2026 to March 28, 2027 the coach runs 2 round trips a day, and booking is recommended. See Getting to Normandy from Paris.

Changing the plan

If five days in Normandy is more than you have, try Three Days in Normandy or Two Days in Bayeux and on the D-Day Beaches. Without a car, follow Normandy Without a Car.

Outside the April 1 to November 1 season, Giverny is closed. Start in Rouen instead and add the Musée des Beaux-Arts, which has Impressionist works by Monet, Sisley, Pissarro and Renoir and free permanent collections all year. From mid-November to mid-December, when the Utah museum is closed, consider the Airborne Museum instead and check its season on its page. For a longer trip, add a day in Caen or in Deauville and Trouville. With children, use the Explore Juno area at the Juno Beach Centre. To add up the entry prices for the sites you choose, use the Normandy pass calculator.