Fecamp attractions

Last Updated on 02/04/2023

Fecamp is one of the largest cities on the coast. The next to the south is Le Havre, to the north is Dieppe.

All cities, towns and villages are arranged according to the same principle: high gypsum banks (Alabaster Coast) are cut by a river of greater or lesser strength, a large or small gorge is formed and also an exit to the water, houses grow around this exit.

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If the river is larger and there are several of them, the exit is wider, and the city is larger. It stretches along its ravines and turns out to be much longer in length than in width.

Further to the north, the shores become lower, the exits to the water are wider and there is more and more sand on the shore, but in Fecamp itself the coast is covered with large pebbles. I think this pebble is poured specifically to protect the port. In smaller cities and less visited places, this pebble is interspersed with sand and, in general, the coast is more pleasant.

How to get to Fecamp

If you are going to Upper Normandy without car, you need to understand that public transport is slowly dying here. For example, in Fecamp, a railway is drawn on all maps. Getting ready to go to Rouen by train, we came to the railway station. And we found that the railroad on the maps was pure decoration. The station is overgrown with grass, and a bus is offered instead of trains.

The autobahn is far from the coast (for example, from Fecamp – 20 km), so along the coast you need to move along local roads. Some of them are straight, like an arrow, but there are few bypasses of settlements and gorges are often found. Therefore, you must rely on a low average speed. To many more or less large sights from Fecamp, it is about 50 km one way – i.e. about 1 hour one way.

In the city

The tourist office and the closed station are at the end of the marina, at the first bridge to the other side (20 minutes walk from the water).

The infrastructure is good. The city center is within walking distance (about half an hour on foot), there is a supermarket near the coast, a small but sufficient number of restaurants. Two large supermarkets are located in the city, and there is a large shopping center at the exit towards Le Havre.

Parking is free, but places are not easy to find.

Fecamp attractions

There are few attractions in the city itself:
two simple churches,
a couple of museums,
a rope park on the outskirts
and a small garden with a farm at the entrance to the city from the autobahn side.

You should definitely go upstairs (on foot or by car, the bus goes up very rarely). Upstairs there is a church, WWII fortifications and stunning views.

Fecamp Beach

This photo shows the entire beach of Fecamp – slow walking for about 15 minutes. There are several playgrounds for different ages.
It can be seen that at low tide, stripes of sand (light brown, in contrast to gray large pebbles and dark brown wet small pebbles) open up. The farther from the port, the more sand.

And now it’s the same from below.
View of the right slope, where the observation deck and a church are.

The lighthouse is located on the other side of the harbor entrance. To get there, you have to go back to the tourist office.

Marine. The shores, as usual, are not fenced off from the street and at low tide there are 8 meters of free flight to the water. Watch out for the kids

Beach. In that direction, you can see the Etretat arch with your eyes, but my camera does not take well.

We got to the rocks.

City

There are a lot of old houses in the city, mostly brick. Abandoned-looking houses are common. Typical street.

The main attraction is the Benedictine abbey. Inside the winemaking and regional museum.

Ruins of a fortress in the city center.

Observation point on the rock

Let’s go upstairs.

View to the other side.

Read about one of the so-called “hanging valleys” in a neighboring village.
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