Romantic escapes
Paris, Then the Coast
City first, sea after: the Left Bank on foot for three nights, then a slow drive west to a cottage above the cliffs, where the evenings are about oysters and the light.
- Musée d'Orsay on a quiet weekday morning
- Dinner in the Rue de Charonne
- Sunset from the cliffs above Étretat
- Duration
- 6 nights · 7 days
- Destinations
- 2 stops
- Travel style
- City first, coast after, both at walking pace
- Indicative budget
- £1,440–£1,950
- Ferry crossing
- Dover – Calais
Every detail is editable: change the dates, add a stop, swap a hotel or start again from the ferry.
The route
740 km · about 9 hours driving in total
P · ferry port1–2 · overnight stopDashed line · suggested route, illustrative
Night by night
The suggested shape of the trip, in driving order. Take it as it is, or treat it as a starting point and move a night, swap a hotel or drop a stop.
- Outbound · Dover – Calais1h 30m crossing
- Drive from Calais · 3h 40m · 287 kmillustrative estimate
- 1
ParisFrance
3 nights · nights 1–3
The drive from the Normandy coast is short enough to make Paris a stop on a road trip rather than the whole point of it. Arrive on a Sunday and the boulevards are yours.
Suggested stay
Hôtel du Luxembourg · hotel · from £268 a night
Suggested attractions
- Musée d'Orsay · £18
- Jardin du Luxembourg · free
- Île Saint-Louis · free
- Drive from Paris · 2h 35m · 203 kmillustrative estimate
- 2
NormandyFrance
3 nights · nights 4–6
Wide skies and an unhurried coast road: Honfleur's harbour, the cliffs at Étretat and orchard country inland where the cider is still made by hand.
Suggested stay
Cliff Top Cottages · cabin · from £142 a night
Suggested attractions
- Étretat cliffs · free
- Honfleur harbour · free
- Drive from Normandy · 3h 10m · 250 kmillustrative estimate
- Return · Dover – CalaisSailing home