Le Havre, France
The About Cruises Guide and the About Fishing Guide Cruise Northern Europe
Le Havre is cruise lines' most popular port of call on the northwest coast of France. It offers easy access to the rest of Normandy, including the D-Day World War II beaches. Paris is also "do-able" as a shore excursion since it is only about 3 hours away. The city lies 131 miles down the Seine River from Paris. I remember first hearing of Le Havre in connection with the classic cruise ships that used to ply the Atlantic Ocean between New York and France. However, Le Havre has been an important port since 1066 when the Normans conquered England.
Le Havre was almost totally destroyed during World War II. It suffered through more than 170 air strikes during the War, but the city has been rebuilt and has a new city center. However, most travel resources recommend a shore excursion away from the city. The white chalk cliffs rising west of the city promise to look much like those we saw in Dover.
We awoke in Le Havre when the captain turned on the thrusters to move the ship into the dock, having sailed the short distance across the English Channel during the night. The ship stayed in Le Havre until 9:00 pm tonight.
Renaissance had several shore excursion options from Le Havre. Here's our first big decision--which one to choose? I love Paris, but sitting on a bus for 3 hours to ride into the city after just sitting on an airplane all night on August 14 was not very appealing to us. Many cruisers ventured into Paris and took one of Renaissance's tours or just explored the city on their own. There were also shore excursions offered by the R6 to Honfleur and to Fecamp and Etretat that got good reviews. Some cruisers went on their own to Rouen or to the beach resort of Deauville.
However, after reviewing all of our options and reading postings from past cruisers who have ported in Le Havre, our choice was fairly easy. Ronnie loves history, so we signed up for the "Normandy Landing Beaches" Renaissance shore excursion. Since I chose the cruise for our anniversary vacation, the least I could do is let him pick SOME of the shore excursions! Here's the description from the Renaissance Cruises Website. Here are some of the pictures we made on our shore excursion to the Normandy D-Day beaches.
"Drive to Arromanches, once an integral part of the Allied Landing on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The remains of the artificial port (Mulberry B), considered one of the most extraordinary industrial and maritime achievements of the war, endure as a monument to the exploits and sacrifices of the Allied forces during Operation Overlord. Visit the Landing Museum where models and films recreate the entire landing operation and you can see remains from the artificial port. A stop will be made in Arromanches where you can browse through the shops or have lunch on your own. Afterward, drive to Colleville Saint Laurent to visit the American Cemetery where nine thousand three hundred and eighty six marble crosses and Stars of David stand in perfect alignment on a cliff overlooking Omaha beach. A monument on the grounds contains a garden and the Tablets of the Missing. Inside the monument, a map of the operations allows you to recreate the battle of the Normandy beaches. Just west of Omaha Beach lies the jutting cliff of Pointe du Hoc where American Rangers braved intense enemy fire and rolling grenades to gain strategic ground during the D-Day invasion."
If you would like to follow the Garrisons on our 30th wedding anniversary cruise, check out the table below for links to each day's itinerary. You can also follow my postings to the About Cruises Forum. Click here for link to the About Cruises Forum postcards from the R6. Here are some links to the pictures I made and detailed articles from each port of call.
Pictures from the Renaissance R6 cruise
Articles on Each Port of Call --
Cruising from Dover to Le Havre on the Renaissance R6
Normandy Beaches - Le Havre and Normandy, France
D-Day Beaches - Arromanches and the Artificial Harbor
The Medieval City of Bruges, Belgium
A Walking Tour of Bruges (Brugge)
Sunday in Amsterdam, Netherlands
|
Date |
Port |
Arrive |
Depart |
|
Tuesday, August 14 |
-- |
-- |
|
|
Wednesday, August 15 |
Embark |
5:00 pm |
|
|
Thursday, August 16 |
8:00 am |
9:00 pm |
|
|
Friday, August 17 |
12:00 pm |
6:00 pm |
|
|
Saturday, August 18 |
8:00 am |
5:00 pm |
|
|
Sunday, August 19 |
8:00 am |
6:00 pm |
|
|
Monday, August 20 |
-- |
-- |
|
|
Tuesday, August 21 |
8:00 am |
5:00 pm |
|
|
Wednesday, August 22 |
12:00 pm |
-- |
|
|
Thursday, August 23 |
-- |
7:00 pm |
|
|
Friday, August 24 |
-- |
-- |
|
|
Saturday, August 25 |
8:00 am |
3:00 pm |
|
|
Sunday, August 26 |
8:00 am |
-- |
|
|
Monday, August 27 |
-- |
5:00 pm |
|
|
Tuesday, August 28 |
8:00 am |
5:00 pm |
|
|
Wednesday, August 29 |
12:00 pm |
-- |
|
|
Thursday, August 30 |
-- |
Debark |
Photo Courtesy of Renaissance Cruises
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