Normandy Deserves More Than a Drive-By: Why Two Days Will Never Do This Region Justice

There’s something I need to say. Something I’ve been holding in for quite a while, something that makes me want to gently shake the shoulders of all the well-meaning travelers I've planned trips for over the years. Here it is:

Normandy is not a two-day destination. It’s not a quick detour. It’s not a box to check as a quick add on to your Paris itinerary. And the truth? It breaks my heart that so many people treat it that way.

Every time I meet someone who says, “Oh yeah, I went to Normandy! We did the D-Day Beaches, Bayeux, and then we were back in Paris by dinner,” I can physically feel my soul shrivel a little. Not because the D-Day sites aren’t powerful, they absolutely are. Not because Bayeux isn’t lovely, because it's totally stunning. But because that tiny sliver of Normandy is just that: a sliver. A single brushstroke in a masterpiece that stretches across orchards, villages, cliffs, cathedrals, cuisine, and centuries of history.

Normandy is so much more than its war memorials.

And yet… most travelers will never know that.

Let’s talk about what they’re missing

Imagine waking up in the quiet beauty of Beuvron-en-Auge, one of France’s Most Beautiful Villages, where half-timbered houses tilt like they’ve been whispering secrets to each other for hundreds of years. The streets are so peaceful in the morning you can hear the sound of someone sweeping their doorstep two lanes over. There’s a bakery that smells like heaven cracked open. There are flower boxes overflowing with colors that feel painted by hand.

This is Normandy. This is the life everyone rushes right past.

Then there’s Rouen (one of my personal favorites), a city so alive with history that you can practically feel it vibrating under your feet. Joan of Arc stood trial here. Monet painted the Cathedral here, more than thirty times. The medieval streets twist and turn in ways that make you want to wander without purpose. The markets are full of cheese, flowers, warm bread, fresh seafood, and people who actually talk to you, not at you.

And don’t get me started on the food. Normandy is where France’s comfort food lives. Think buttery sauces, creamy cheeses, cider straight from the orchards, seafood pulled from the coast that morning, pastries that melt if you look at them too long. It’s indulgent without being fussy. It’s rustic without being simple. It’s the kind of food that makes you close your eyes so you can focus on tasting every last detail.

Most travelers never taste any of this, they never even know it’s there.

Normandy is storybook France: alive, layered, and real

But here’s the thing I love most: Normandy is humble. She’s not clamoring for your attention like Paris. She’s not flashing neon signs like the Riviera. She’s not trendy or trying to be something she’s not.

Normandy is timeless. Rooted. A little windswept. A little wild. And completely enchanting if you give her the chance. You need time to let her unfold. You need days, not hours, to understand her. You need space to breathe her in. A two-day dash is like reading only the introduction of a brilliant novel and thinking you understand the plot.

And then there’s Mont Saint-Michel

People see the photos and think that’s it, the island, the tides, the abbey. But the real magic? It’s the way the light hits the bay at sunset. It’s the hush that falls over the island after the last tour bus leaves. It’s the history beneath your feet, written in stones worn down by centuries of pilgrims. Mont Saint-Michel isn’t a moment. It’s an experience.

And experiences take time.

So let me tell you why I go back, year after year

Because Normandy is a place you feel. Because the women who travel with us never want to leave. Because every guest has the same reaction on day three: “I had no idea Normandy was like this!”

And that right there is why I’m writing this post.

I want people to know.

I want people to slow down.

I want people to experience the real Normandy, not the rushed version everyone else settles for.

Our weeklong Normandy retreat was built for this exact reason

I created this retreat because I couldn’t stand the thought of women coming all this way only to skim the surface. Normandy isn’t meant to be skimmed, it’s meant to be savored.

So we stay in the picturesque village of Beuvron-en-Auge, inside a cozy countryside home touched by the quiet beauty of the Pays d’Auge. We wander Rouen. We taste cider where it’s made. We eat with intention. We explore villages that look like postcards. We make room for connection, with the place, with each other, and with ourselves.

And yes, we visit the D-Day Beaches and Mont Saint-Michel, but we do it in a way that honors them, not checks them off a list.

This isn’t a bus tour.This isn’t a fast-forward itinerary.This is a week that invites you to sink in.

So here’s my plea to you, whether you travel with me or not: give Normandy the time she deserves.

I promise if you do, it will be an experience that you will never forget.

And if you want to discover the Normandy that most travelers never even glimpse, the Normandy that lives beyond the beaches, beyond the guidebooks, beyond the rush, then I invite you to join us.

We have only a few spots left for our May 2026 retreat.

A weeklong, women-only, deeply connected journey through one of the most beautiful and misunderstood regions in France.

👉 Learn more and reserve your spot here and come see why two days will never be enough.