Étretat

France

The Cliffs at Étretat, Claude Monet Etretat is a small coastal village in Seine-Maritime, Upper Normandy, France.

It is on the Alabaster Coast in Normandy. The town is nestled between the famous towering cliffs, which inspired numerous paintings by the impressionist Claude Monet. The beach is composed of stones that have been smoothed by the waves of the English Channel and the town is set just behind the beach.

English is not common here, but basic French or use of a phrasebook will get you by. The tourist information centre, next to the bus stop, has a lot of information about the history of the town and can direct you to the beach, a few blocks from the bus stop. Once at the beach, there are trails to hike up to either cliff. There are two large arch formations on the southwest side of the beach is one large arch on the northeast side of the beach; both are spectacular.

You can walk or hike from the town to the tops of the cliffs and get a commanding view of the channel, the beach and the opposite cliffs.

  • Walks. Excellent walks along the cliffs enables one to view the limestone cliffs and remarkable erosion.
  • Etretat Golf Club. Challenging golf along the clifftops.

Walks. Excellent walks along the cliffs enables one to view the limestone cliffs and remarkable erosion.

Etretat Golf Club. Challenging golf along the clifftops.