Lush countryside is not the only green thing about Normandy. Check out the region’s sustainable initiatives and events for 2025 and go green in Normandy.
Caen Millennium blends past, present and future
First mentioned in documents generated by the Dukes of Normandy, the city of Caen will be honouring its past and shaping its future through 2025 with a wide range of events to mark 1000 years of colourful history. The celebrations kick off on March 20 with a light show projected on the walls of the ducal castle, emblematic site of this historic city and closed for restoration over the last two years.
Visitors to the castle can expect around 75% of the 4-hectare site to be landscaped with redesigned walkways leading to the museums and other sites within the castle walls. Highlights of the medieval fortress, one of the largest in Europe, include the battlements, Exchequer Hall and Saint George’s Church plus – new this year – previously hidden treasures such as the remains of the castle keep, the watchtowers and Porte Saint-Pierre jails.
One of many highlights of Caen Millennium will be the Millennium Parade on 9 May featuring a cast of 1100 people on a 5km route past 5 emblematic sites – or stations – and lasting for 5 hours. Monumental works at each of the five sites will symbolise key events in the city’s history. Each one will be accompanied by a troupe of 100 people representing characters in the scenography – the narrators of the city’s story -with a further 600 participants bringing each of the five stations vividly to life.
A local study has already proved that encounters with works of art are good for our mental health, so residents and visitors alike can up their wellbeing at a series of Millennium Places and artworks. The quiet cloisters of the Men’s Abbey and Women’s Abbey, for instance; an innovative iron sculpture along the castle ramparts over the summer months; and the leafy Cimetière des Quatre-Saisons, host to new outdoor art and a theatre production.
With 25% of the city’s overall surface area made up of parkland, Caen is ranked 8th on the list of France’s greenest cities. See the sites by following one of the two pedestrian trails, rent a bicycle, or use the free electric shuttle bus for trips within the city centre. In 2024, the wider area of Caen la Mer was awarded the Green Destinations label, Silver level, by the World Council for Sustainable Tourism in recognition of factors such as nature conservation and cultural preservation.
And as Caen looks to the future, the city’s Millennium commemorations also aim to develop large-scale projects at the crossroads of culture and science, an initiative that will further cement Caen’s creative and dynamic reputation.
Find out more about the Caen Millennium: millenairecaen2025.fr/en
Discounts for low-carbon travellers – go green in Normandy
We all want to do our bit for the planet and thanks to Normandy’s Low Carbon Rate initiative, visitors can now save money on their holiday budget too. More than 70 cultural and tourist sites are joining forces to offer a reduced rate to those who lower their carbon footprint through travelling travel by train, coach or bike.
On arriving at a partner site, simply present a dated ticket to a train station in Normandy, a bus ticket, or a photo of you and your bicycle to benefit from at least 10% discount on admission. And if you are not sure how to get to your destination by public transport, simply visit www.atoumod.fr to use the regional route itinerary calculator.
Included in the scheme are some of Normandy’s most high-profile visitor attractions. Museums such as Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg with its Art Deco Transatlantic liner terminal, Titanic exhibition, and stunning aquariums. Remembrance sites like the Pegasus Memorial Museum at Ranville, located beside the strategic bridge that was the first target on D-Day. And castles such as Falaise, birthplace of William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy and future King William I of England.
Meet some of the elegant equine residents of the Haras National du Pin, flagship stud in a national network of bloodstock breeding centres and dubbed the ‘Versailles of the Horse’ for its classic brick buildings. And discover the secrets of local lacemakers at the Fine Arts and Lace Museum in Alençon. Sustainable travellers can also save money on activities such as guided canoe trips, cycle tours and horse riding.
Details of the partner sites: en.normandie-tourisme.fr
Follow the Tour de France through Normandy
Many holidaymakers have discovered the delights of cycling through the Normandy countryside and this year, this lush landscape will be on show to the world as the Tour de France returns to the region.
On 8 July, competitors leave Amiens in the neighbouring region of Hauts de France for a hilly 173km leg to Rouen, described by Victor Hugo as ‘the city of a hundred spires’ and a stage tour for the 19th time. If you are following the Tour, leave time to visit the magnificent cathedral, fine arts museum and church dedicated to Joan of Arc. Next day the riders face an individual time-trial over a 33km loop from Caen, the first time that Le Tour has been to William the Conqueror’s ducal city since 2006. Take advantage of all the city has to offer during the Caen Millennium year.
Another hilly ride awaits competitors on the third and final day in Normandy, a 201km ride from Bayeux to Vire. Home to the famous tapestry of William’s invasion of England in 1066, another stunning cathedral, and a moving Commonwealth cemetery from World War II, Bayeux has never previously hosted a Tour de France peloton, but Vire hosted four Tour finishes in the 1930s and featured on stage two in 1997.
The Guillaume de Normandie – new hybrid ferry for a sustainable future
Named after William of Normandy, holder of England’s top job from 1066, the new hybrid vessel from Brittany Ferries is a cleaner, greener cruise-ferry that will join the Portsmouth to Caen-Ouistreham route on 18 April, sailing three times a day.
Guillaume de Normandie and its sister ship Saint-Malo are the first ferries on the English Channel to be powered by hybrid-Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)-electric propulsion. They will each be equipped with the largest batteries of any ferry in the world and this hybrid technology will deliver reduced emissions throughout the voyage, but especially when manoeuvring in port where the ships will operate on battery power alone. A sustainable start to any holiday in Normandy.
Replacing the long-serving Normandie, the new ship sports a bright new design with colour highlights that are typical of the coastal area – the light blue timbers of traditional seaside villas and the vibrant primary colours of beach huts. For passengers wanting a bed but not necessarily a private cabin, new dormitory style bunk beds with a nautical feel look set to prove a popular option. In addition, passengers can choose from a wider range of deluxe cabin grades and, in a first for Brittany Ferries, the new ship will also offer cabins especially furnished for passengers with allergies.
And for travellers who cannot bear to be parted from their pets whilst on holiday, Guillaume de Normandie will feature 22 pet-friendly cabins with hygienic laminated floors and convenient access to a dedicated pet promenade area on the outside decks.
Caen ferry port at Ouistreham is just 15km north of the city with direct access to the autoroute network. Foot passengers can catch a bus into the city centre with Twisto (www.twisto.fr/en) or into Paris with Flixbus (www.flixbus.co.uk) or by train.
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