Honfleur

Honfleur is a harbor town on the Seine estuary in Calvados. It works as a fishing port, a commercial port and a marina all at once. Normandy’s tourism board picks out the Old Harbor (Vieux Bassin) and the Lieutenance as the town’s symbols. Courbet, Monet and Boudin all painted here, and dozens of galleries and studios still operate in town.

Honfleur suits you if you want a walkable base on the coast between Le Havre and Deauville. It also suits drivers who plan to cover Étretat, Caen and Rouen. Cruise passengers can explore it easily too, because Honfleur has its own terminal close to the historic center.

What to see in Honfleur

Start at the Old Harbor. The harbor basin and the Lieutenance beside it are the town’s symbols. Galleries and studios fill the streets around them, so leave time to wander.

The tourist office lists these sights as the ones not to miss:

• Saint Catherine’s Church, in the old town.
• The Lieutenance and the Old Basin, at the heart of the harbor.
• The Eugène Boudin Museum, named after one of the painters linked to Honfleur.
• The Satie houses, devoted to the composer Erik Satie.
• The museums of Old Honfleur, which cover the town’s past.
• The Garden of Personalities, a garden in town.
• The Naturospace butterfly greenhouse.

The historic salt stores, the Greniers à Sel, host concerts and exhibitions, so check what is on during your stay. If you can, plan around the market days. A weekly market runs every Saturday morning, and an organic market takes place on Wednesdays.

The streets are cobbled, so wear comfortable shoes. Honfleur is open to visitors all year. The tourist office advises avoiding long weekends and the summer peak, or arriving early in the morning or in the evening. For season-by-season planning, see Best Time to Visit Normandy. For opening times of individual museums, check the tourist office or each museum’s own site.

Where to stay

If you want to walk everywhere, stay in or close to the historic center around the Old Harbor. The main sights, the galleries and the Greniers à Sel are then on your doorstep.

If you are driving, think about parking before you book. The tourist office advises using the car parks at the edge of the historic center or parking outside town. A place on the edge of the center, or one with its own parking, will save you hunting for a space in the old streets. Motorhomes have dedicated car parks.

If you are arriving by bus, ask your accommodation how far it is from the nearest NOMAD Car stop. You will be carrying your luggage over cobbles.

Getting there

From Paris by train and bus

Getting to Honfleur without a car takes one change, because the town has no railway station. Trains leave from Paris Saint-Lazare for three nearby stations:

• Trouville-Deauville. SNCF Connect lists 8 trains a day. The fastest takes 2h15 and the average is 2h41.
• Le Havre. The fastest train takes 1h59.
• Pont-l’Évêque.

From any of these stations, you continue to Honfleur by NOMAD Car bus, taxi or hire car. Normandy’s tourism board also mentions a combined train-and-coach ticket from Paris, sold from April to the end of August. For fares, see the From Paris box above. Our guide to getting to Normandy from Paris compares the main routes. If you only have one day, read the Honfleur day trip from Paris.

From other Normandy towns

The tourist office lists three NOMAD Car bus lines for reaching Honfleur:

• Line 122: Caen, Deauville, Honfleur.
• Line 111: Le Havre, Deauville, Caen.
• Line 123: Lisieux, Honfleur, Le Havre.

These lines connect Honfleur with Caen, Deauville and Trouville and Le Havre without a car.

By car

From Paris, the drive takes about 2 hours via the A13 (192 km). The northern tube of the A13 Saint-Cloud tunnel near Paris is closed from November 16, 2026 to the end of August 2027. This is the direction heading out of Paris toward Normandy. Signed diversions run via the RD910 and RN118, or via the RN13 and A14, and rejoin the A13 further west. Expect longer journeys at some hours.

By air and by sea

Deauville-Normandie airport is 10 km from Honfleur. Cruise ships can call at Honfleur’s own terminal, close to the historic center. The tourist office publishes the schedule of ship calls under the port code QSH.

If your ship docks at Le Havre instead, Honfleur is about 28 minutes and 23 km away by road. That is a routing estimate without traffic. Our Le Havre cruise port day plan shows how Honfleur fits into a day ashore.

Getting around

You can cover Honfleur on foot. The old town is compact, but the cobbles make good shoes worth packing.

If you arrive by car, leave it in one of the car parks at the edge of the center and walk in. The tourist office lists several car parks, including a free one by the beach. For rates, check the tourist office’s parking page.

For travel beyond town, NOMAD Car lines 111, 122 and 123 run toward Deauville, Caen, Le Havre and Lisieux. Taxis are another option, especially for the link from Trouville-Deauville, Le Havre or Pont-l’Évêque stations.

A car is not essential, but it makes day trips much easier. This is especially true for places the buses do not link directly with Honfleur, such as Étretat. If you are touring Normandy by public transport, see Normandy Without a Car.

Day trips from Honfleur

The driving times below are OpenStreetMap routing estimates and do not account for traffic.

Deauville and Trouville

These seaside towns are the closest outing, about 21 minutes (17 km) away. You can also reach them on NOMAD Car lines 111 and 122. See our Deauville and Trouville page.

Étretat

Étretat is about 47 minutes (46 km) away by car. The Étretat Cliffs and Gardens are open to visitors year-round. To avoid the crowds, skip July and August and fine weekends. Read more on our Étretat page.

Caen

Caen is about 53 minutes (64 km) away by car, or you can take bus line 122. The main draw is the Caen Memorial Museum, a good starting point for D-Day and the Battle of Normandy.

The Pegasus Memorial at Ranville lies between Caen and the coast. It is closed from September 1, 2026, including January to May 2027, and no reopening date has been confirmed. Check its status before you plan around it.

Rouen

Rouen is about 63 minutes (77 km) away by car. You can spend the day around Rouen Cathedral and the old center. See our Rouen page for more.

For more ideas across the region, browse Places to Visit in Normandy. To fit Honfleur into a longer trip, see Five Days in Normandy.