Best Lodging near Normandy Beaches

Recently we celebrated our anniversary in France and Germany. Our adult daughter, Amy came along to help us celebrate too. It was all that we hoped for and so much more. I was on the hunt for 2-bedroom lodging near Normandy Beaches and found this gorgeous gem in Port-en-Bessen. It’s only 20 minutes from several Normandy Beaches and a great location for relaxing and enjoying the water view.

Lodging Near D-Day Locations

My husband, Terry is a history lover and one of his Bucket List items was to visit the D-Day sites from World War II in Normandy. France hadn’t been at the top of my list of countries to visit, because of the language difference and the [out-dated] reputation of not being friendly to visitors, but my husband was interested in going on a tour of the historical sites from the D-Day Normandy Beaches, so we added it to our list. We had no problems in France at all, the people were very friendly and welcoming and I can’t wait to share all the places that I fell in love with in the country.

First, let’s visit my favorite place to stay. It was the best lodging near the Normandy Beaches for us and my top pick in the two weeks we were in Europe. It has so much character! We had a variety of lodging during our Europe vacation: hotel rooms, vacation rentals, and suites, which I’ll share more about later, but this one stands out in my mind. I only wish we could have stayed longer to enjoy the sleepy little seaside town of Port-en-Bessen.

Vacation Rental Details:

• Country: France
• Town: Port-en-Bessin
• Region: Normandy
• Type: VRBO vacation rental
• Size: 2 Bedrooms (sleeps up to 4), 1 Bath
• View: Yes, Water view, Harbor view
• Restaurants Nearby: Yes, a 2-minute walk
• Need to climb stairs to get to the unit
• Close to Places of Interest: WWII D-Day Battlefields, Utah Beach, Normandy Beaches, Bayeaux,

Normandy France Road Trip

Earlier in the week, we arrived in the Normandy Region by train from Paris. We picked up a rental car in Caen a few blocks from the train station, which was perfect for our plans. The terrain was easy to navigate, with wide country roads winding through lush, green rolling hills, and small farms dotting the landscape.

We had several places to visit in the area, but our two nights’ lodging near Normandy beaches was primarily for taking a full-day tour of World War II D-Day sites and visiting the Normandy Beaches. June 6, 2024, marked the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings and the Battle of Normandy. If you’d like to know a little more about the people involved in D-Day, this post shares some of the behind-the-scenes that you won’t learn everywhere.

Close to the World War II D-Day Sites

This lodging near Normandy beaches was an easy 15-minute drive to the town of Bayeux, which is where we started our excellent full-day World War II D-Day history tour hosted by Bayeaux Shuttle.

Places to See Near this Normandy Holiday Rental

Our host, Astrid met us at the front door of the 2nd-floor unit in the afternoon. She was very friendly and spoke English well, which was a big help to us. Astrid showed us around the place and answered all of our questions. She also left us a bottle of local La Ferme du Lavoir – a semi-dry hard cidre [cider], that’s well known in the region.

We felt at home as soon as we arrived at this lodging near Normandy beaches. Astrid added so many unique touches, we didn’t want to leave.

We were lucky to be traveling with our adult daughter, so the 2 bedroom set-up was perfect for us. It allowed us to each have space to spend time alone if we wanted. We could also gather at the farmhouse table in the kitchen to plan our days.

We were on a busy schedule while we were there. Except for using the refrigerator to store snacks and drinks and using the coffee maker in the morning, we didn’t use the well-stocked kitchen supplies much. It’s always nice to have when needed, especially for longer stays.

Within Walking Distance of Restaurants

Another huge advantage of this lodging near Normandy Beaches was that there were several restaurants just steps from our place. That came in handy at the end of our busy days when we were tired and didn’t have the energy to go too far.

On the night we arrived, we didn’t feel up to going out to a restaurant, so we walked down and picked up pizza from La Marina Pizzeria and Creperie. The next night we walked a few steps away and enjoyed delicious seafood at L’Ecailler (more on that later).

Someday I hope to go back and rent this sweet lodging near Normandy beaches for several weeks. I’d love to relax and take day trips to discover all that makes this region so special. Especially the four C’s for food lovers: Camembert cheese, cider, cream (have you heard of the Normande dairy cow?), and Calvados (apple brandy). Here’s Everything you Need to Know About Normandy France Cuisine and why you’ll want to explore it all.

What are your favorite lodging near Normandy Beaches in France? I’d love to hear about them to add to my to-do list when I go back!

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