Fun for all the family in feudal Normandy

Maybe you’ve been to the Mont-Saint-Michel already? But how much time did you give to the Abbey itself? And now, if you have children between 7 and 12 years old you can book a family tour. They get riddles to solve, forbidden doors to push open, everything is done to engage parent and child alike! And it’s free – for the kids under 18.

Jumièges Abbey was founded in the year 654. No-one challenges its reputation as the most beautiful ruin in France! These great imposing white towers thrust out of the Seine valley in the crook of the meandering river. The “Jumièges 3D” App gives you an idea of just how it looked on the eve of the French revolution and its demise. There are medieval pageants in the summer months, or if you are in search of something more original, why not try our “Night of the Bats” or an Escape Game?

If your kids haven’t already been there, they’re now going to find out what it is to inhabit the soul of a medieval knight! You have to admit that the majestic fortress of King Richard the Lionheart invites the imagination to tales of Yore. Even in its ruinous state (and what ruins they are, with their superb views over the meanders of the Seine) it lends itself to re-enactments, medieval encampments and tournaments galore, all through the spring and summer months, and some days are organised specifically for families.

This medieval castle has a moat and is a unique example of a beautiful little seigneurie. Pageants, fairs, and various entertainments are a regular feature of each season, bringing to life a miraculously preserved piece of history.

Just for the record, the Bayeux Tapestry has over 600 characters but only 3 women and one child (being led away from his burning home by his distraught mother).

End summer 2025, work will begin at the new Bayeux Tapestry Museum, which will open in 2027, to mark the millennium of the birth of William the Conqueror. To meet this deadline, the current museum will have to be closed to the public after the 2025 summer season. While the museum is being built, the Bayeux Tapestry will be kept in a storage area specifically designed for its conservation.

Here you are in the heart of the Caen-Falaise plain. If you are following the extraordinary life and history of William the Conqueror, where better to start than the site of his birthplace? Just look at those massive triple keeps, the great curtain wall with its 15 projecting towers, all atop a rocky outcrop! Inside, the living quarters of the castle are recreated through a tactile tablet which will reconstruct how the castle may have once looked, and you can climb to the very top of King Philippe Auguste’s tower for wonderful views on the surrounding countryside.

Domfront has managed over time to preserve its medieval character with its cobbled streets, timber-framed houses  and the remains of a huge castle keep overlooking the town on a sandstone outcrop. And only 15 minutes away is the Andaines Forest and a “King Arthur Trail” ripe with XIIth century Arthurian legends of Sir Lancelot and the Knights of the Round Table.