The 10 Best Free Things to do in Calvados, Normandy

Overlooking Omaha Beach, the launching point of the U.S. invasion of Normandy, this cemetery contains the graves of 9,386 American soldiers who died at Normandy and a touching memorial to another 1,557 whose bodies were never recovered.

The town of Bayeux, in Normandy, lies 30 kilometres north-west of Caen. Bayeux War Cemetery is situated in the south-western outskirts of the town on the by-pass (D5), which is named Boulevard Fabian Ware. On the opposite side of the road stands the Bayeux Memorial. BAYEUX WAR CEMETERY, which was completed in 1952, contains 4,144 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 338 of them unidentified. There are also over 500 war graves of other nationalities, the majority German. The BAYEUX MEMORIAL stands opposite the cemetery and bears the names of more than 1,800 men of the Commonwealth land forces who died in the early stages of the campaign and have no known grave. They died during the landings in Normandy, during the intense fighting in Normandy itself, and during the advance to the River Seine in August.

This historic beach was the primary point of landing on June 6, 1944, for the entry of American forces into World War II and saw some of the most intense fighting in the entire war.

This famous 15th-century cathedral is the largest surviving wooden church in France.

The cathedral of Notre-Dame in Bayeux is an impressive building, a mix of Romanesque in the 11th century crypt and glorious Gothic in the 13th-century nave. In the 11th century after the Conquest of England by Duke William of Normandy in 1066, ties with England were strong. You'll see a reference to the turbulent past above the south transept portal where sculpted scenes show the life of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury who was assassinated in Canterbury Cathedral on the orders of King Henry II of England. The Bayeux Tapestry was kept here from the 11th to the 18th centuries, probably displayed for the first time on the day the cathedral was consecrated in 1077 in the presence of William the Conqueror.

Romilly is a traditional Norman cider production located just behind the La Cambe German military cemetery. There we produce ciders, Pommeau, Calvados and other liquors following our ancestor's guidelines. All our products are 100% pure apple juice and we work with responsible farming methods. We offer a guided tour every Wednesday 2:30 PM all year long. This tour last roughly an hour, it is free and accessible for everyone. You will walk through our orchards, our Calvados cellar and a short film about cider production available in English will be projected. Finally you will end the tour tasting our products with the producers. For groups: We are used to welcome groups/buses. Fully fluent in English we can tailor the guided tour according to your schedule, it could last an hour or just 20 minutes. We can set up those tours for groups of more than 20 people, just e-mail us or you can phone us. Our movie is available in French, English, Dutch or German.