During your stay you’re going to leave the comforts of your four star campsite L’Espérance to go on the search of the wonders around Barneville-Carteret and the Cotentin area in general. Here is a selection of the places to visit as a family to create everlasting memories.
Mont-Saint-Michel is about 100km from the campsite and is a great day trip. The abbey, which stands at the heart of a bay submerged by the biggest tides in Europe, is considered one of the wonders of the western world and is a testament to medieval architectural prowess and the power of the church at the time. It is an unusual visit as it is both instructive and physical and you will want to bring back some of the local produce from the abbey and around.
Normandy is a tourist region with lots of things to see, as it is rich in history and in landscapes. From Mont-Saint-Michel to the Landing Beaches and including the famous Bayeux tapestry and the Channel Islands, the list is long of places to visit and some of them are close to the four star campsite L’Espérance.
Granville is only one hour away from L’Espérance campsite, and you can also visit the Dior museum. It was once a pirate town, but is now a place for lovers of markets and boats. You can also take a boat to discover the magnificent archipelago of Chausey or the islands of Jersey or Guernsey to see the close ties between Normandy and England for yourselves.
The Landing Beaches are an essential remembrance place in Normandy. See Utah beach, which is located 50km from the campsite, and walk in the steps of the soldiers who landed there during the Second World War or go for a boat ride in the fresh water of the Cotentin marshes. There are so many iconic places to visit like Saint-Mère-Eglise; the landings museum at Utah Beach, the D-day experience as well as the many bunkers and batteries that can be visited, that your trip will be full of discoveries and emotions.
You will always find something to do as a family or a place to see and show your children no matter how old they are. We have selected some activities and places to discover as a family in Normandy to explain historical events to your children, to make them aware of the environment or just to have fun together.
You can take your children to the Ludiver planetarium near Cherbourg to show them the magic of the stars. If yo want to introduce them to environmental questions there are a number of living museums spread across the area on the subjects of cider production or life on farms (the farm museum of the Cotentin). You have to visit the Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg, which has an unmissable aquarium and Le Redoubtable, the largest submarine you can visit (five years or over). On a more general level you will find farms, gardens and parks that preserve the local biodiversity.
To make a change from museums, you can take your children to have fun in the park around the viaduct of La Souleuvre to discover the local pastime of tree climbing and the luge on grass or an incredible bungee jump for the more adventurous. You should also not miss the Coutances labyrinth, which is open to children of four years or more, or the Raptor Parc; And finally there is the biggest theme park in Normandy : Festyland near Caen with the themes of pirates, Vikings and knights. Thrill seekers should definitely look out for this.
The Jurques zoo in the heart of Normandy will welcome you with its more than 500 animals from all around the world. In a more traditional vein, the Champrepus zoo and its gardens will delight both young and old. You can also discover near Saint-Vaast-La-Hague the zoo at Montaigu-La-Brisette with its wolves, zebras, lemurs and baboons.
As a land of abundance Normandy is rich in iconic products to try and to let your children try. Whether we’re talking about sweet or savoury, products from the land or from the sea or even alcoholic beverages, there is something for every palate, and there is no lack of museums and other places to visit that are connected to this heritage. For example, there is the Maison du Biscuit in Sortosville en Beaumont, the Domaine de Rugueville cider house in Portbail, Cotentin ham and the Réo cheese dairy in Lessay, Isigny caramels, Délices de Camille and their jams in Brêhal and Lait Douceur de Normandie in Saint Sauveur le Vicomte. With all of this to choose from, if you don’t put on a kilo or two during your stay here, then you haven’t been out of the campsite.
The four star campsite with water space L’Espérance is ideally located on the Côte des Isles near Cherbourg and a lot of other historic and tourist sites to visit. The hardest part will be organising your holiday schedule and deciding what to see now and what you will have to put off until … next year.
Camping Espérance
36 Rue de la Gamburie, Denneville, 50580 Portbail Sur Mer – France
Tél. : 02 33 07 12 71
email : contact@camping-esperance.fr
Haute saison (juillet et août) :
8h30-12h30 / 14h30-19h00
Basse saison :
8h30-12h00 / 14h30-18h00
© Camping L’Espérance – 2020