Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
D-Day Beaches
On 6 June 1944, Nazi-occupied France was invaded by British, American,
Commonwealth and Canadian troops, resulting in the country's liberation.
The Allied landings on the beaches of the Seine Bay (still known by their
wartime codenames) and the ferocious Battle of Normandy that followed are
commemorated today through a moving mixture of museums, memorials and
cemeteries. Beautifully maintained and presented with great clarity, they give
visitors a fascinating insight into the events of that momentous summer.
Top 10 D-Day
Highlights
1 Utah Beach and
Ste-Mère-Eglise
2 La Pointe du Hoc
3 Omaha Beach
4 American Cemetery
5 Batteries de Longues
6 Arromanches
7 Gold Beach
8 Juno Beach
9 Sword Beach
0 Pegasus Bridge
Arromanches beach, site
of the British landing
Three seaside
restaurants
recommended for
their seafood:
La Marine at
Arromanches,
Le Bistrot d'à Côté
at Port-en-Bessin,
and La Marée at
Grandcamp-Maisy.
Decide in advance
which of the many
museums, memorials
and beaches you
most want to see.
Consider starting at
the Musée de la
Bataille de Normandie
in Bayeux and ending
at Arromanches 360
(see p30)
.
Utah Beach and
Ste-Mère-Eglise
Over 13,000 US para-
troops were dropped into
the Cotentin marshland;
the US 4th Division came
ashore on Utah
(above)
and linked up with them.
La Pointe du Hoc
Preserved as it was
at the end of fighting, this
bleak headland
(below)
was stormed by elite US
Rangers using ropes and
ladders to scale the cliff,
with heavy casualties.
Omaha Beach
“Bloody Omaha”
(above)
saw terrible losses
among the 1st and 29th US
Divisions. A viewing table,
two museums, 11 monu-
ments and the American
Cemetery tell the story
.
• Map C3, D3
•
Office du Tourisme:
pont St-Jean, Bayeux.
02 31 51 28 28
American Cemetery
Formal yet serene, the
American Cemetery
(main
image)
, containing 9,386
graves, receives many
thousands of visitors each
year. d
Colleville-sur-Mer
28
