Caen
MEMORIAL DE CAEN CENTRE FOR HISTORY AND PEACE
The extraordinary success of Le Mémorial de Caen lies in the initial resolve of its founder, Mr Jean-Marie Girault. With destruction wreaked across almost three quarters of this martyr city of the Liberation in the summer of 1944, Caen deserved a fitting tribute for the damage it suffered. And such a tribute was paid, but with the focus on what continues to be the Memorial’s running theme: reconciliation.
This vocation, unique to Le Mémorial de Caen, will guide you through the museum’s different stages, taking you back over the 20th century. This chapter in global history opened in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and partly ended on 9 November 1989 in Berlin with the “Fall of the Wall”.
Between these two dates and between these two World Wars, some 60 million people would lose their lives and the most hostile of political systems to the key principles of respecting life would plunge the world into the chaos and brutality that characterized the last century.
We are all heirs to this century whose memory we must keep alive at all costs. The memory of the people who suffered, the memory of ideas and the memory of sacrifices to save us from “man’s inhumanity to man”.
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Closed: |
25 Dec. & 1 Jan. and from 06 to 28 Jan. |
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Open: |
02 Jan. to 05 Jan.: 29 Jan. to 15 Feb.: 16 Feb. to 11 Nov.: 12 Nov. to 31 Dec.: |
9h30-18h00 9h30-18h00 (closed on Mondays) 9h00-17h00 9h30-18h00 (closed on Mondays) |
MC1 – THE DAY PASS: $115 per person
From the harbour of Arromanches to the Pointe du Hoc. A day to discover Le Mémorial de Caen and the Landing Beaches. From the harbour in Arromanches to the Pointe du Hoc, taking in Omaha Beach. Follow your guide and learn the story of the day that changed the future of the 20th Century.
Included:
• Free access to Le Mémorial de Caen museum (ticket valid for 24 hours)
• English guided tour* (5h.), of the Anglo-American beachheads. The two are independent and can either be taken on the same day or on separate days.
• An illustrated booklet on the Normandy Landings
* Departure at 13.00 from 24 Jan. to 31 Mar.
Departure at 9.00 or 14.00 from 01 Apr. to 30 Sep.
MC2 – THE D-DAY TOUR: $163 per person
Arrival in Caen. Relive D-Day with the help of a guide for the day.
Included:
• Pickup at Caen railway station
• English guided tour of the 2nd World War exhibition area of Le Mémorial de Caen museum
• Lunch in Le Mémorial de Caen
• English guided tour* (5h.), of the Anglo-American beachheads.
• An illustrated booklet on the Normandy Landings.
• Return to Caen railway station
* Departure at 13.00 from 24 Jan. to 31 Mar.
Departure at 9.00 or 14.00 from 01 Apr. to 30 Sep.
MC3 – SHORT BREAK: 2 DAY IN CAEN:
Two days to explore and discover Le Mémorial de Caen, the Landing Beaches and the exceptional heritage of the city of Caen (William the Conqueror’s castle, the Abbeys, etc.).
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Price per person |
** |
*** |
**** |
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Twin share |
$164 |
$179 |
$211 |
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Single Supplement |
$29 |
$46 |
$52 |
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Extra night |
$78 |
$92 |
$125 |
Included:
● The tour of Le Mémorial de Caen
● English guided tour of the Landing Beaches* (5h.)
● One night in a hotel of the category of your choice in Caen for two people minimum, with breakfast.
● An illustrated booklet on the Normandy Landings.
* Departure at 13.00 from 24 Jan. to 31 Mar.
Departure at 9.00 or 14.00 from 01 Apr. to 30 Sep
MC4 – SHORT BREAK: HISTORICAL NORMANDY: $326 per person (twin share)
A day to discover Le Mémorial de Caen and the Landing Beaches, from the harbour in Arromanches to the Pointe du Hoc, taking in Omaha Beach, with a guide to explain the Story of a day that led to the end of the Second World War. On the second day, discover the historical treasures of the medieval city of Bayeux.
Included:
Day 1
• Pick up at the Caen railway station
• English guided tour of the Second World War exhibitions
• Lunch at Le Mémorial de Caen
• English guided tour English of the landing beaches* in the afternoon (5h.)
• An illustrated booklet on the Normandy Landings
• One night in a charming hotel*** in Bayeux, in an hotel **** supplement $129
Based on 2 people sharing the same room, with Breakfast
Day 2
• Free time to visit the town of Bayeux (2h.)
• Free time to visit the Museum of the Battle of Normandy in Bayeux (2h.)
• Audio tour of the Bayeux tapestry (1h.)
• Transfer to Bayeux railway station at the end of the day
* Departure at 13.00 from 24 Jan. to 31 Mar.
Departure at 14.00 from 01 Apr. to 30 Sep.
MC5 – CIRCULAR CINEMA – ARROMANCHES 360⁰: $8 per Person
Located on the Arromanches cliff tops, the Arromanches 360⁰ Circular Theatre dominates the remnants of one of the two artificial Mulberry harbours set up by the Allies. On 8 June 1944, two days after the liberation of Arromanches, the first Phoenix block ships were sunk. They formed a dike that sheltered the ships from the swell when they unloaded their cargoes. Some "whale" floating roadways and some platforms following the movements of the tide completed the deployment. On 14 June, some ships started to unload their cargo. In 100 days, "Port Winston" permitted to land 400 000 soldiers, 4 million tons of equipment and 500 000 vehicles. It remained active until 1 December 1944. A few dozen "Phoenix" block ships are still visible today and continue to keep the waters of Arromanches smooth.
The film entitled The Price of Freedom is projected onto 9 screens in a circular room. It mixes stock footage that was shot in 1944 by the war correspondents and current footage shot on the very same places, now at peace. The 360⁰ projection puts you at the heart of the action amongst the D-Day soldiers and you will be able to feel the intensity of the allied Landings, a key moment of the war. This system of 9 synchronised cameras that are either fixed on a tank, a helicopter or a boat, puts you at the heart of the action and the landscapes. You will sail alongside the pontoons of Arromanches' Mulberry harbour, fly over Pointe du Hoc, go inside the bunkers and land on Omaha Beach.
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Open: |
16 Feb. to 30 Mar.: |
10h10-17h40 |
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31 Mar. to 31 May : |
09h40-18h10 |
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01 June to 31 Aug.: |
09h40-18h40 |
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01 Sep. to 24 Dec.: |
10h10-17h40 |
NP – THE D-DAY LANDING BEACHES (5h30): $85 per Adult – $78 per Child
Pointe du Hoc: The location of the site where a group of American soldiers undertook the nearly impossible task of climbing massive cliffs with little equipment during the invasion.
Omaha Beach: This historic beach was the primary point of landing on June 6, 1944, for the entry of American forces into World War II.
American Cemetery: 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
Artificial Harbour in Arromanches: Two prefabricated or artificial military harbours were taken across the English Channel from Britain with the invading army in sections and assembled off the coast of Normandy as part of the D-Day invasion of France in 1944.
Included:
● Pick up and Drop off at Central Caen or Bayeux
● English guided tour
Monday, Thursday and Sunday. Dep.:12.45 in Caen and 13.15 in Bayeux
April to October 2 persons & November to March minimum 4 persons.
No departure in January and December
NP2 – THE D-DAY LANDING BEACHES (8h30): $114 per Adult – $107 per Child
The German Cemetery at La Cambe: “Until 1947, this was an American cemetery. The remains were exhumed and shipped to the United States. It has been German since 1948, and contains over 21,000 graves.”
Ste Mere Eglise & Musee-Airborne: This museum is dedicated to the liberators from the 82nd and 101st airborne divisions who were dropped at Sainte-Mere-Eglise on the night from 5 to 6 June 1944.
Utah Beach: Utah Beach was the furthest west of the five beaches designated for the D-Day landings in June 1944. Located at the base of the Cotentin Peninsula, it was added by General Dwight Eisenhower to the original D-Day plan to ensure the early capture of the vital port of Cherbourg, at the north of the peninsula.
Pointe du Hoc: The location of the site where a group of American soldiers undertook the nearly impossible task of climbing massive cliffs with little equipment during the invasion.
Omaha Beach: This historic beach was the primary point of landing on June 6, 1944, for the entry of American forces into World War II.
American Cemetery: 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
Included:
● Pick up and Drop off at Central Caen or Bayeux
● English guided tour
● Entrance to the Musee-Airborne
Tuesday and Saturday. Dep.:9.00 in Caen and 9.30 in Bayeux
April to October 2 persons & November to March minimum 4 persons.
No departure in January and December
To Book or Enquire
Please call us now on +61 (0)2 9247 4233 or 04 1491 4746
Alternatively, you can Skype us about this holiday by clicking the button below.
