GUIDEBOOKS AND WEBSITES

FOR NORMANDY
One purchase you should make before this trip is a good guidebook.  Some people read them before they go and others wait to use them until they are on the trip.  However you decide to use a guidebook, it is a really useful tool .  We recommend a guidebook on Normandy and one on Paris, rather than a general guidebook on France.

You should consider the following when you look for a guidebook:
1) how recently was it written.
2) what is the focus of this guide:  travel information; description of sites; history and culture; where to stay and where to eat, etc.
3) Size and weight:  this is important if you plan on taking the guides with you while you travel.
4) Cost - most guides run between $18 and 30. 

For Normandy, there are three guides we suggest you consider.    For description and interesting information about Normandy, we recommend the Insight Guides, France Series- Normandy.  It has been recently updated and is filled with great photos and interesting features.  It is also the most expensive and is heavy.  We use this as something to read BEFORE we travel to France.

Another guide that is quite useful, especially for maps and diagrams as well as general information and history, is the Michelin Green Guide to Normandy.  It is nicely illustrated and has practical information about when sites are open, when markets are held and so on.  It is also easy to use and to carry while traveling.  This is one we often carry with us.

The Cadogan Guide to Normandy is a newer guide series, out of Great Britain, that we really like.  While not as filled with photos or maps as the other two, it has great information on numerous topics, good city maps, useful travel tips and it is very well written.  It is also lightweight enough to carry along on a trip.

Although Normandy is a popular tourist destination, there are not as many guide books available for this region.  Much of the emphasis seems to be on World War II in Normandy.  You will find a wealth of material on this topic available here in the US but fewer overall treatments beyond those mentioned above.  Whatever you decide to purchase or borrow from the library, enjoy learning more about Normandy.  It will really help you get more out of the trip!

For  websites on Normandy,  please use the Normandy page of this site.  Click on the button on the side of the main page to go there.  You'll find a number of hyperlinks on various sites.