We’ll meet up at the train station in Vernon, a small village just outside of Giverny. (It’s a 50-minute train ride from the Gare St Lazare in Paris.)  Someone will be there to whisk your luggage away to the hotel, and we’ll start off with a picnic at the Vieux Moulin – a beautiful setting right out of one of Monet’s paintings. The highlight will be a leisurely walk through the Giverny garden where Claude Monet drew inspiration for his paintings. It’s bright splashes of floral color in every direction, all leading to Monet’s one-of-a-kind pink house, and then across the Japanese bridges overlooking the water lily ponds. From Giverny we’ll drive to Honfleur, an iconic port town at the mouth of the Seine River. We’ll gather in the evening for a classic Normandy dinner of crêpes and cider.

Lodging: For two nights in a 4-star hotel just behind the port in the heart of Honfleur.

We’ll take a 3.5 mile morning walk along the Côte de Grace from the port of Honfleur to the village of Pennedepie where we’ll taste the local cider. Then back to Honfleur where you can enjoy lunch on your own at any of the restaurants surrounding the port. It’s a port where the Impressionist painters loved to paint, and you will no doubt see artists with their palettes capturing the light on the narrow facades of the buildings. In the afternoon we’ll do a walking tour and roam the cobbled streets.

We’ll head to the coastal town of Houlgate in the morning, and embark on a 4-mile beach walk to Cabourg. If tide allows, we’ll walk along the beach below the “Falaises des Vaches Noires” (Black Cow Cliffs) so named because the dark seaweed-covered rocks at the foot of the cliffs look like herds of black cows. If you’re lucky you’ll find a piece of ammonite or a fossil.

The path leads along the coast of Dives sur Mer, and arrives in Cabourg via the Promenade de Marcel Proust, a lovely pedestrian walkway along the sea with a splendid view homes from the Belle Epoque lining the hillside. The Promenade ends on the terrace of the Grand Hotel in Cabourg, where Proust stayed a century ago. The afternoon in Cabourg is yours to explore quintessential French bistros and creperies, sit on the beach, try your luck at the casino, attend a race at the Cabourg Racecourse, swim in the ocean, shop, or sit at an outdoor café and sip something French. In the late afternoon we’ll move on to Beuvron en Auge where we’ll spend the night. We’ll end the day with a lovely meal at the rustic bistro in Beuvron.

Lodging: One of the best parts of this stop is the manor home where we’ll stay, just outside the little village of Beuvron-en-Auge. You can walk to the village from the manor, and you can also enjoy the grounds, meet a few of the race horses who live here, and tour the stables where race horses are bred.

A visit to Normandy wouldn’t be complete without experiencing the slow country life of half-timbered houses, horse breeding, apple orchards, and dairy cows! We’ll start at the half-timbered village of Beuvron and walk along the cider route in the heart of the Pays d’Auge, stopping to visit the producers of cider and Calvados on roads lined with apple orchards. In the afternoon, we’ll visit to the quaint town of Pont l’Eveque, famous for its cheese. We’ll have a three-course lunch in Pont l’Eveque, then picnic on the grounds of the manor house in the evening.

We’ll start with a guided walking tour of the medieval city of Bayeux to get our bearings. Then you can enjoy a bit of medieval city life on your own, exploring the meandering houses and shops on the narrow streets. In the afternoon we’ll visit the masterful Bayeux Tapestry Museum that details William the Conqueror’s exploits. And then you’ll have time to design your own walk along the ramparts, catch up, enjoy the grounds of the hotel, or do some shopping, and have dinner on your own. If you are a D-day aficionado, you can visit the Bayeux D-day museum, or perhaps head off to Caen and visit the largest D-Day museum.
Lodging: 3-star hotel in the city of Bayeux

We'll start the day with a visit to Bayeux's vibrant Saturday morning market that takes place just across the street from our hotel. You can pick out your favorite cheeses, charcuterie, olives, fruit, and whatever else strikes your fancy, then we'll picnic in the beautiful garden of our hotel. After an early lunch, we leave for Arromanches where we take a short hike along the coast and see the harbor that was built during the D-day invasion. We'll move on to Saint Mère l'Eglise, best known for the American paratrooper whose parachute was caught on the church steeple, leaving him suspended on the side of the church! You'll see his replica still hanging there. We'll visit to the wonderful Airborne Museum iwhere you will be immersed in the sight, sounds, and smells of aircraft flying over northern France ready to drop troops. After a stroll around town, we'll end the day with a lovely 3-course dinner in Saint Mere l'Eglise. 

Lodgings: Two nights in a fully renovated 17^th century Normandy farmhouse in the village of Amfreville, right in the middle of American D-day territory. Spacious rooms and lots of relaxation.

We'll start the day with a stop at Pointe-du Hoc, a 100-foot cliff overlooking the English Channel where the German concrete casemates and gun pits are still visible. On D-Day, the United States Rangers captured Pointe du Hoc after scaling the cliffs. We'll have time to lunch in Port en Bessin, then we will drive up to a point high on the cliffs with a sweeping view of Omaha Beach. From there, well walk down the cliff and along to beach to  the American Cemetery and spend some time in the solemn grounds overlooking the beach, with crosses lined as far as the eye can see. We'll take time to visit the excellent museum at the cemetery. If you have a family member buried in the cemetery, you are sure to receive VIP treatment; the people of Normandy have not forgotten the sacrifice made on their behalf. Canadian tour members have the option of spending the afternoon walking Juno Beach and visiting the Canadian War Cemetery in Beny sur Mer. We'll end the day with a farmhouse dinner at our lodging. The owner is an incredible chef!

We'll get an early morning start, heading south toward Mt St Michel. When the tide is out, you can walk from Genet all the way across the bay to Mont Saint Michel, and that is what we plan to do! We will have a professional guide who is well-versed in making this three-hour walk. Once at Mont Saint Michel, there are plenty of places to stop for a drink or a snack along the village streets before ascending to the medieval abbey at the top. The abbey is over 1,000 years old, perched precariously on top, and we will take the time to tour its ins and outs. Then a climb back down the mount, and we'll drive on to St Malo, a port city in Brittany where we'll spend the night.
Lodagings: For two nights in a 4-star hotel that's a stone's throw from the beach of Saint Malo.

We will start out the morning with a walk along the ramparts of Saint Malo - tall granite walls constructed in the 17^th century that surround the old town. The town was once a stronghold for the king's pirates. We will also take time to wander through the town, do any last-minute shopping, and walk in the footsteps of Marie-Laure, the blind young French girl who is the main character in Anthony Doerr's novel, "All the Light We Cannot See." In the afternoon,we will either take a boat or drive to the little beach town of Dinard, for a last beach walk. Then back to our hotel to clean up before a farewell dinner.

After breakfast we'll have time for a quick last walk along the beach before saying our good byes.
The TGV (fast train) departs from St Malo, (the best way to get back to Paris - a 3-hour train ride) at 11:30 am or 4:00 pm.