A Year in Normandy: A journey through four seasons

The new film from Normandy Tourism, A Year in Normandy, invites you to experience our beautiful part of France like never before. It portrays a vibrant region to be explored throughout the seasons, showcasing its landscapes, history, local crafts, and the people who make it unique.

The story of a notebook

It all begins in a second-hand shop with an old notebook. There are a few lines and some old photographs, and a name keeps cropping up as if it were obvious: Normandy. This is where the film starts: with two friends, a notebook and the simple idea to set off and explore.

Season after season, she sketches and notes down details of façades, landscapes and moments, while he takes Polaroid pictures and captures people’s expressions. Together, their work paints a portrait of a landscape in constant flux. A new story unfolds page by page in the notebook.

4 seasons in Normandy

In its brand-new promotional film, Normandy Tourism has chosen to focus on a single theme: the four seasons. The film showcases the awakening of spring, the festivities of summer, the colours of autumn, and the lights of winter. While the landscapes change with the seasons, the memories remain.

The film captures the idea that the same destination can offer a different experience in every season. Normandy in January feels like a completely different place to Normandy in July, and that is precisely what makes you want to return. The experiences, from nature and culture to gastronomy, take on a different character as the months go by, yet never cease to delight.

An open-air history book

Normandy is like a vast history book, taking you on a journey through the ages. This land of epic tales, castles and abbeys was the birthplace and home of many notable figures from the Middle Ages. In the late 19th century, it inspired Impressionist painters, who were drawn to the ever-changing lights on the River Seine and along the coast.

The D-Day Landings and the Battle of Normandy in June 1944 became forever etched in the collective memory, representing one of the most defining episodes of the Second World War. A Year in Normandy bears witness to this. Here, history is not just a backdrop. It is an experience to be lived and a heritage that belongs to us all.

The film also explores the theme of transmission. It explores the transmission of the landscapes, traditions, stories and emotions that shape the region’s identity, and which are passed down from generation to generation. This reflects Normandy as a land of memory with a view to the future.

A wealth of destinations to explore throughout the seasons

Spring

• The authentic countryside of the Pays d’Auge. Cider houses and distilleries, orchards in bloom, rolling countryside and half-timbered houses.
• Commemorations of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy. Explore the history and pass on the legacy at the D-Day Landing Beaches, cemeteries, memorials and museums.
• Impressionist landscapes. Giverny, Vernon, Rouen, Honfleur. The banks of the River Seine. The shifting lightscapes.

Summer

• Normandy’s many music festivals. Getting together, sharing and having fun.
• Medieval fairs. Immersion, a journey back in time, shows and re-enactments.
• Caen, William the Conqueror’s city
• The Suisse Normande. Outdoor sports: hiking, trail running, kayaking, climbing. The Orne Valley and its spectacular views.
• The Perche and itsthe rolling countryside. The perfect place to relax and unwind.

Autumn

• The River Seine and its monuments. Château Gaillard, Jumièges Abbey.
• The majestic Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay. The ramparts, the abbey and the archangel, a guided tour across the bay.
• Magnificent castles. Beaumesnil, Champ de Bataille, Étalondes, Carrouges and Vascoeuil, to name a few.
• Local produce. Markets, food festivals, apples, scallops, herrings.

Winter

• The Alabaster Coast, from Le Havre to Le Tréport. The sea, the pebbles, the harbours, the cliffs, the elements.
• The Flowered Coast. Deauville and its boardwalk, the beach, the Franciscaines cultural complex, the horses. Authentic Trouville. Honfleur and its Old Harbour.
• The magic of Christmas! There are markets and festive events all across the region.

And also, throughout the year

• Normandy Experiences: hidden gems that will make your trip truly worthwhile
• Our ideas for weekend breaks in Normandy’s towns by train

Exciting encounters

It is the encounters that give the film its texture. A Year in Normandy features a cast of locals from the region, each of whom embodies a different aspect of Normandy.

Constance Chazal

Sulky specialist

Accompanied by Trotteurs — horses bred for racing — Constance offers introductory sulky rides on the beach near Cabourg. Thrills guaranteed!

David Raguet

Cheese maturer

As the owner of La Dégusterie cheese shop, he recounts the history of Normandy’s exceptional products and offers guided tastings of the region’s four AOP cheeses.

Cheese and cider tasting in Pont-L’Evêque

Sébastien Benoist

Renowned Chef

Sébastien Benoist is the third generation of oyster farmers in his family. He runs the Dégustation de l’Île restaurant, where he serves refined cuisine with a strong focus on seafood.

Find out more about Benoit’s restaurant

Sophie Justet

Plein air painter

Sophie Justet is a plein air painter who works in the Impressionist style. Her playground? The ever-changing landscapes of the Alabaster Coast and the light that bathes them at different times of day and year.

Painting like Monet on the Alabaster Coast

Dominique Hutin

Food critic

Dominique is a journalist who specialises in cider and is a passionate advocate for local cuisine in general. He is also a regular contributor to France Inter. He never strays far from La Manche, the department closest to his heart.

Cheese and cider tastings

Alexis Hanquinquant

Paralympic triathlete

The para-triathlete, a two-time Paralympic champion, has a particular affinity for Seine-Maritime, where he lives and trains. He is one of the leading figures in French sport and the Normandy team.

Follow Alexis Hanquinquant

Ben en Baie

Certified Bay Guide

Having changed careers, he returned to his home region to become a certified guide in the Bay of the Mont-Saint-Michel. He shows visitors around all year round, always with a smile.

An outing with Ben en Baie at the Mont-Saint-Michel

Loïc Bourdais

Showman

Loïc, the show manager at the Haras National du Pin, is very often accompanied by his Percheron, Echo, an impressive 900-kg draught horse who has become a surprising stage performer.

Discover the Haras du Pin