☰Day Trips

Rouen sits in the middle of upper Normandy and makes a good base. To the north the alabaster cliffs of the Côte d'Albâtre run from Dieppe down to Étretat, whose chalk arches and needle are the most painted seascape in the region. West along the Seine valley lie the soaring ruins of Jumièges Abbey and the harbour town of Honfleur, with its shipwrights' church and yacht-filled basin. To the east, near Vernon, Monet's house and water garden at Giverny draw a steady stream of visitors from spring through autumn. None is more than 90 minutes away by car.