55307NOR
Caen Peace Museum, Arromanches 360 Museum and Town, US Cemetery, Omaha Beach, Pointe du Hoc, German Cemetery La Cambe
Routes
This section includes:
Caen Peace Museum (also called La Mémorial)
Arromanches 360 Museum and Town (“Gold” Beach)
US Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer/ St Laurent
“Omaha” Beach
Pointe du Hoc
German Cemetery La Cambe
Arrival Day
You will visit the Caen Peace Memorial on arrival day. It is located on the Caen ring road (N13). Check the time the Paris office has booked for you and either proceed there directly from Paris, or after checking in the hotel accordingly. The museum is a good 30 minute drive from central Caen.
Set down in the bus park beyond the museum and give a time for departure. You will require a total of 2 hours here and the group should use the free restrooms adjacent to the gift shop in the main entrance hall before departure.
You will be given a time for the cinema presentation (highly impressive) and they will issue stickers for the group; Everyone must enter the cinema presentation together. The entrance to the cinema is to your right across the ground floor entrance hall of the museum. There is a snack bar on the first floor as well as a lounge. Please note that group exit from a different door so worth telling them this. Try to do the film last so the group is ready to leave all together.
Although you need a reservation, the visit is not guided. You should allow AT LEAST 1hr30 in the Museum, which is divided into three sections:
- An exhibition charting the breakdown of peace between 1918 and 1944 (beyond the ticket desk to your left – visit if you have to wait for the cinema presentation)
- There are two cinemas/two films. Paris Office will have probably booked both with the idea you choose one. Most appropriate is the ‘1944: Sauver l’Europe’ film (the old one!), otherwise there is the new ‘L’Europe; Notre Histoire’ production. Check with GL, which they prefer.
- A gallery of Nobel Peace Prize winners (straight on beyond the ticket desk
and café)
If time is short, be sure that the group at least sees the cinema Battle for Normandy presentation or finishes the museum after the timed film. The
movie lasts 15 minutes and is silent. It is an excellent split-screen presentation of the Normandy landings from both Allied and German perspectives. On exiting the cinema, the landings and allies´ advance are documented on huge maps. There is also a section of the museum dedicated to the Cold War and the passageway from the timed film leads this way. You will not normally have time for the gallery of Nobel Peace Prizewinners. Students identify well with a lot of the exhibits and explanations.
Normandy Landings Day
Timings are suggestions only (you may want to start earlier) as is the routing. You could also reverse this always remembering that Arromanches is the best spot for lunch. Also, the group might well want more time at the Cemetery and – now that there is no access to the beach from there – to stop and pick up sand from the beach itself.
0900 Depart Central Caen and drive to Arromanches, which is a 50 minute drive from the Caen Peace Museum to Arromanches, cross country via the D22 and D65.
0950 Arrive Arromanches 360º Cinema. (Make sure you have called ahead to book) You will approach the town from the cliff top where you can make a photo stop for an impressive view of the bay, “Gold” beach (where the British forces landed) and the remnants of the Mulberry Harbour. The film in the 360º cinema is screened at 10 and 40 minutes past the hour. You should have a timed reservation. While the group is taking photographs, pay for tickets/hand in your voucher. The film lasts about 20 minutes.
Afterwards, drive down the hill to Arromanches. Alternatively, take the path down the hill into the main street of Arromanches by the Musée du Débarquement. Access this from where you exit the souvenir shop.
The bus can also drop off in the centre of town, but cannot park there during busy times. Gendarmes patrol, so make sure your group is prompt for when the bus returns – you have 5 mins. 1hr 30 should be more than enough for a quick lunch break and walk on the beach (i.e. depart roughly 12.15). The bus stop is directly adjacent to the beach and the Musée du Débarquement, which is of more interest to British groups. If they wish to visit, they pay themselves.
There are several good places for lunch along the main street, which is directly in front of the bus stop, including takeaway snack places. A very good boulangerie/patisserie at the very end of the main street round the corner on the left! Fantastic ice cream by the beach. There are also ATMs along the street, as well as public rest rooms and a Post Office opposite the bus stop.
It is a 30 minute drive cross country to the US Cemetery at St Laurent.
1245 Arrive US Cemetery. There is a large coach park, which leads to the visitor’s centre (the large grey building). Tell the group a time to be back at the bus before leading them to the entrance. Allow 1hr 15 minutes here. Leave bags on bus.
Lead the group to the entrance and point out the free public toilets to the left of the visitor centre. The group may either enter the cemetery directly or enter via the free visitor centre. There is a (sometimes lengthy) security check followed by a moving exhibition centre downstairs focusing on the American soldiers who fought in the D-Day landings. In the cinema downstairs, there is a free 15-minute film shown every 30 minutes on the half hour called “Letters”. Visitors exit the centre and rejoin the path to walk directly into the cemetery.
The group can no longer walk down the pathway to Omaha Beach and should be advised that you will be driving along it anyway. Make sure everyone has used the toilets before departure.
1400 Leave US Cemetery. It is a 45 minute drive to Point du Hoc via Omaha Beach. Unless they are very keen to actually walk on the beach, a drive along it is sufficient. Ask your driver to proceed slowly and point out the small US cemetery by the roadside where the first to fall were initially buried. If the group wants to walk on the beach, add 15 minutes to the following timings.
1445 Arrive Pointe du Hoc. This is a highlight for many groups and is by a cliff overlooking both Utah and Omaha beach. It has been left untouched with bomb craters and ruined bunkers as a memorial to the soldiers who fought here and suffered some of the worst D-Day losses. Explain about the 100-foot high cliffs that the American soldiers had to scale before their battle began. The views from here over the sea and towards Utah beach are spectacular.
Park in the car park and allow a good 45 minutes for the visit. The site is free to visit, with free toilets, but no shop. Start by getting the group an excellent map/information leaflet at the information center by the toilets. Tell the group what time to be back at the bus, lead them along the one path to the left of the information center into the site, past a semi-circular plaque that explains about the battle, and then give them free time to explore on their own. The group should take the tour in a counter clockwise direction towards the Point du hoc itself and then continue in the same direction leading back to the coach park.
It is a 30 minute drive to the German Cemetery.
1600 Arrive German Cemetery La Cambe. The cemetery is located just off the main N13 road about 25km east of Bayeux. It is the furthest point of the day away from Caen. It closes daily at 19.00.
Although it is tempting if time is tight to miss this final visit, it is well worth it and will be the only opportunity to visit a German war memorial. In the centre is a tumulus with a large, grey memorial which is the site of a mass grave. The group will be interested to hear that this was originally a battlefield graveyard with Americans buried alongside Germans. The Americans were later moved to Colleville Sur Mer or repatriated.
Park the bus opposite the visitor’s centre, which has interesting leaflets for the group. Lead the group into the cemetery via the main entrance gate. Give them 30 minutes to walk around the place and reflect on their own.
It is a 45 minute drive back to Caen straight down the main N13 road.
1730 Arrive Central Caen