There are few sensations more stimulating than being on a beach. Running your toes through the…read moresand, walking across broken shells, staring out at the water and dreaming about what lies on the other side of the horizon. Beaches sooth the soul, stimulate your neurons, and wash away the stresses of everyday life. Parisians are lucky to have the Normandy beaches just a 2.5hr drive from the city. And of all of the beaches that we've explored when we think of beach outing we thin of Trouville. The beach begins just behind the casino and stretches out far, far and away. On holiday weekends it's a bitter battle to find a spot anywhere close by, but who's going to give up and head home after driving 200km to be there?? There's a dead end street that runs parallel the main road with a diving school at the end. Take that street and turn around for as long as you have to to find a spot. There's an entrance there that leads right onto a part of the beach that's must more rustic and tranquil.

Come see what MONET saw and painted here (google it) and see the painting in the monet museum in…read moreparis. We rented a car and drove 4 hours east to the d day beaches to pay our respect and then drove one hour west (back toward paris) and spent the day in trouville sur mer. Its a quaint seaside french village. This body of water is the english channel. Now i understand why the germans wanted to control this area, they were only 80 miles across from england in the normandy area of france. We ate in a wonderful restaurant near the water and saw fishermen still in their gollashes bringing in the new catch and delivering it to the restaurants. The kids and I still talk about our side trip to this area of france.

We walked through town from the port to get to the beach and strand of shops/ restaurants. Passed…read morethrough the container park, took pictures at random buildings, went to multiple areas of the beach, the whole town was worth walking through and exploring if you have the time to do so. The churches are beautiful as well. It was a super hot July day but the water was literally freezing and it felt nice! As soon as you get out of the water you are dry due to the climate and are ready to jump back in!

This French beach is where the allied troops arrived in 1944 to liberate Europe. It has been…read morerebuilt and is now a lively tourist area, but there are many reminders of the price that was paid by all the Allied Force Troops to create this much enjoyed freedom!

It was striking to set foot on Omaha Beach, and Omaha Beach was where the most horrendous American…read morelosses were suffered during the D-Day landings. The beach was quite flat and wide when we saw it at mid-tide, but at low tide when the troops landed, the width of the beach would have been an astounding 450 yards. It's no wonder the casualty rate of the first two landing waves was 90% as the GI's were sitting ducks under the heavy German machine gun fire. But a low tide landing was the plan so that the barricades and mines could be visible, so it was a tradeoff of two evils. Physically visiting this site gives you these insights and that was enlightening, but setting foot here on this once bloody beach where the course of world history hung in the balance was quite special and humbling.

This is touted as the closest beach to Paris and such a treat…read more We visited in mid June, after a Dinêr en Blanc event, on an overcast day. That made it even more special. Sand between my toes and salt water in the air and on my skin is a win ten times out of ten. The ride there can take 2-3 hours, so bring snacks and such. Along the way remember to bask in France's gorgeous countryside, including white cows, wild lavender and vibrant orange-red poppies. What an experience!

Kids and I had a couple of wonderful 2 days at this beach. One day, we got an umbrella and 2 chairs…read morefor 20 euro and one day we just plopped down by the water. The only problem with the umbrellas is that they are far away from the water, so I could't be relaxing under an umbrella while the kids were in the water. The tide goes way out in the afternoon so it feels like kids are miles away. The breakfast was ridiculously expensive but we took the baguettes left over to the beach for lunch later. I think, we were the ONLY Americans in Deauville, which was nice but the fact that I speak zero French, made it interesting. LOVED the colorful umbrellas and the people watching. Kids and i also had fun playing mini golf. There was also horseback riding, an Olympic size pool...

Ouistreham was a pleasant surprise on our Road Trip through France. Loved the location, our holiday…read morehome, found an amazing restaurant (Le Phare) and a brillant bakery. The town has also a very charming walking street. It's leading to this wonderful beach here. At the busiest point (where the walking street leads you) it has some market and food stalls, some games and rides and a big ferries wheel. You can rent some gear for some beach and watersports as well. The beach is really wide and long. Very clean and well taken care of. Lots of life guards on duty makes it a safe spot. What lifts it from good to great is the wonderful boardwalk here leading west. It goes a long way, an easy flat walk. Suitable also for strollers, wheelchairs. And dogs too (not on the beach though in high season). You pass some charming beach huts and a good handful of very interesting war memorials. Take your time reading the info plates. There's something to learn. A great beach. Something for everybody. For beach bums, sporty people, walkers or history buffs. A great place to be. Came here every day before dinner.

As we've been traveling through France for two weeks and this was our third night in Deauville we…read morewere looking for something a bit different. We found it in Les Planches. As former New Jerseyans we have high expectations for Italian food. We ordered the linguine ala Vongole and the Cacio e Pepe and were not disappointed. We started with the eggplant parmigiana. The eggplant arrive piping hot and cheesy and was delicious. The cacio e Pepe was delivered ina. Cheese bowl and stirred at the table, which was nice. The linguine and clams was very nice as well. Service was also on point. Attentive and responsive. I asked for a green salad with tomatoes, and was told they don't have it, which I was fine with. They figured it out and served me rocket with cherry tomatoes and vinaigrette which was delicious. Reason for a 4 instead of a 5: We sat at outside tables and smoking is apparently allowed. Big turn off. The wine list by the glass is almost nonexistent. The ones they do have are pretty terrible. Would definitely go back to this nice little restaurant.