GETTING THERE

THE BATTLE OF NORMANDY covers an area over 300 miles wide and 250 miles deep. The landing beaches alone stretch for over 45 miles. In order to understand the complex series of battles that made up the Normandy campaign, this book is divided into seven chapters. Each chapter starts with the D–Day landings on June 6th, 1944 and then expands to cover the areas captured by the advancing Allied armies.

At the end of each chapter, a suggested tour covers the main parts of the battlefield and highlights places of interest. Contact numbers for these places are listed at the end of this section, along with the numbers of local tourist information offices. We hope this will make your journey around the battlefields of Normandy as easy and as interesting as possible. But first, some advice on how to get there.

FOR U. S. AND CANADIAN VISITORS

Details of direct flights to France from the US and Canada can be easily obtained from your nearest international airport or from the French tourist information offices listed below. It would seem unlikely, however, that anyone travelling from the US or Canada would not want to visit the United Kingdom as part of their trip. The information listed in the next few pages, then, briefly details how to get to France via the UK.

For additional information on travelling, accommodation, and events in Normandy it is best to contact your nearest French Government Tourist Office, which can be found on the www.franceguide.com website.

One may also ask for detailed brochures at the following addresses.

For the US:

610 Fifth Avenue, Suite 222, New York, New York 10020–2452.

9454 Wiltshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90212–2967.

645 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60611–2836.

1 Hallidie Plaza, Suite 250, San Francisco, California 94102–2818.

2305 Cedar Springs Road, Suite 205, Dallas, Texas 75201.

For Canada:

30 St Patrick Street, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M5T 3A3.

For the UK:

178 Piccadilly, London W1V OAL.

TRAVEL TO FRANCE FROM THE UK

By Ferry: Brittany Ferries. The Brittany Centre, Wharf Road, Portsmouth. PO2 8RU. Tel: 0990 360 360 (Portsmouth to Caen or St Malo; or Poole to Cherbourg).

Hoverspeed Fast Ferries. International Hoverport, Marine Parade, Dover CT17 9TG. Tel: 01304 240 088 (Dover to Calais; or Folkstone to Boulogne).

P & O European Ferries. Peninsula House, Wharf Road, Portsmouth PO2 8TA. Tel: 0990 980 555 (Portsmouth to Le Havre or Cherbourg).

P & O Stena Line. Channel House, Channel View Road, Dover CT17 9TJ. Tel: 0990 980 980 (Dover to Calais).

Sea France. Eastern Docks, Dover, Kent CT16 1JA. Tel: 01304 240033 (Dover to Calais).

By Eurotunnel: Car carrying service Dover to Calais. Tel: 0990 353 535.

By Air: Air France Group. Colet Court, 100 Hammersmith Road, London W6 7JP. Tel: 0181 742 4488 (Gatwick to Caen).

Love Air. Building 44, First Avenue, Stanstead Airport CM24 1QE. Tel: 01279 681 434 (Birmingham to Caen).

By Coach: Eurolines. 52 Grosvenor Gardens, London SW1W OAU. Tel: 01582 404511. Regular coach services from London (with nationwide connections through National Express).

By Rail: Eurostar. Rail Europe Travel Centre, 179 Piccadilly, London, W1V 0BA. Tel: 0990 848 848.

The battlefield tourist might wish to start his tours from a base town. For the British sector, Caen or Bayeux are excellent starting places; for the American sector, we would suggest Bayeux, Carentan, or St. Mère Église. Alternatively, good accommodation can be found in many of the places mentioned in the tours themselves or from the information provided by the French Government Tourist Office.

MUSEUMS

Here is a list of the museums mentioned in the book. Their telephone numbers are included so that opening times can be checked. In addition, a few of the tourism offices located in Normandy are listed so that the ]traveler may inquire about other places of interest in the area. Please note that all telephone numbers given are local numbers. To telephone these numbers from the UK, dial 00 33 and drop the first 0 on the local number. To telephone them from the US or Canada, dial 011 33 and drop the first 0 on the local number.

Arromanches. Musée du Debarquement (The D–Day Landings Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 22. 34. 31.

Arromanches. 360 Cinema. Tel: 02. 31. 22. 30. 30.

Bayeux. Musée Memorial de la Bataille de Normandie (The Battle of Normandy Memorial Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 92. 93. 41.

Benouville. Café Gondrée Pegasus Bridge. Tel: 02. 31. 44. 62. 25.

Caen. The Caen Memorial Un Musée pour la Paix (The Caen Memorial and Museum of Peace). Tel: 02. 31. 06. 06. 44.

Cherbourg. Musée de la Liberation (The Liberation Museum). Tel: 02. 33. 21. 52. 20.

Douvres-la-Deliverande. Musée Radar (The Radar Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 06. 06. 45.

Falaise. Musée Août 44 (The August 1944 Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 90. 37. 19.

Grandchamp-Maisy. Musée des Rangers (The Rangers Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 92. 33. 51.

Longues-sur-Mer. Batterie de Longues (The Longues Battery). Tel: 02. 31. 06. 06. 45.

Merville-Franceville. Musée de la Batterie de Merville (The Merville Battery Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 91. 47. 53.

Ouistreham. Musée No 4 Commando (The No 4 Commando Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 96. 63. 10.

Ouistreham. Musée du Mur de l’Atlantique (The Atlantic Wall Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 97. 28. 69.

Port-en-Bessin. Musée des Epaves sous–marines du Débarquement (The Museum of Underwater Wrecks). Tel: 02. 31. 21. 17. 06.

Quinéville. Musée de la Liberté (The Museum of Freedom). Tel: 02. 33. 21. 40. 44.

Ranville. Memorial Pegasus (Pegasus Memorial Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 78. 19. 44.

St Laurent-sur-Mer. Musée Omaha – 6 juin 1944 (The Omaha Museum – June 6th, 1944). Tel: 02. 31. 21. 97. 44.

Sainte Marie-du-Mont. Musée du Débarquement – Utah Beach (The Utah Beach Landings Museum). Tel: 02. 33. 71. 53. 35.

St Martin-des-Besaces. Musée de la Percée du Bocage (The Bocage Breakthrough Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 67. 52. 78.

St Mère Église. Musée des Troupes Aéroportées (Airborne Troops Museum). Tel: 02. 33. 41. 41. 35.

Surrain. Musée de la Liberation (The Liberation Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 22. 57. 56.

Tilly-sur-Seulles. Musée de la Bataille de Tilly (The Battle of Tilly Museum). Tel: 02. 31. 80. 80. 26.

MAIN TOURISM OFFICES

Comité Départemental du Tourisme du Calvados, 

Caen. Tel: 02. 31. 27. 90. 30.

Comité Départemental du Tourisme de la Manche, 

St Lô. Tel: 02. 33. 05. 98. 70.

Comité Départemental du Tourisme de l’Orne, 

Alençon. Tel: 02. 33. 28. 88. 71.

Comité Régional de Tourisme de Normandie, 

Evreux. Tel: 02. 32. 33. 79. 00.

LOCAL TOURISM OFFICES