The Grand Hôtel
Built in 1907 facing the sea, it has stayed as Proust knew it: the glazed dining room, the hall, room 414 where he wrote through the night. It is the heart of the resort, and one of the few Norman grand hotels never to have closed.
Côte Fleurie · Calvados
DiscoverVisiting CabourgMarcel Proust's resort, forty minutes from the 5-star campsite La Capricieuse
A town laid out like a fan around its casino, four kilometres of promenade facing the sea and a Grand Hôtel where Proust came to write: Cabourg is forty minutes from your cottage.
Cabourg is a town drawn with a ruler: from 1853 its avenues were laid out like a fan around the casino and the Grand Hôtel, facing the sea. Marcel Proust stayed here every summer from 1907 to 1914 and turned it into Balbec, the resort of his great novel; his room is still there. The rest is of a piece: seaside villas, a four-kilometre promenade that carries his name, gardens and a Belle Époque casino. Forty minutes' drive from La Capricieuse, a five-star Yelloh Village campsite in Luc-sur-Mer: cottages, a heated water park, a restaurant on site and the beach at the end of the lane.
Good to know
Getting there
From the campsite- 40 kmaway
- 40 mindriving
- Ouistreham, Mervillethe route
You cross the Orne at Ouistreham, then the road follows the sea all the way to Cabourg: forty minutes in any season, outside July and August.
On the spot
Allow half a day- 1 hrthe Marcel Proust promenade
- 45 minthe casino gardens
- 1 hrDives-sur-Mer, next door
The promenade, entirely pedestrian, runs for four kilometres: one of the longest in Normandy, and one of the finest at sunset.
Good to know
Planning your visit- Paidparking in summer
- Junethe romantic film festival
- Saturdaythe Dives market
The public rooms of the Grand Hôtel can be visited freely: the bar, the dining room and the hall are worth a look, even if you are not staying.
In town
Six stops in Cabourg
The casino gardens
Between the casino and the promenade, a formal French garden whose paths, beds and benches are all aligned on the axis of the town. It is the starting point of every Cabourg walk, and the best place to grasp the fan-shaped plan.
The casino
Built at the same time as the Grand Hôtel, it stands at the exact centre of the fan: every avenue converges on it. Under its arcades, terraces and shops keep the day busy; in summer, concerts are given in the open air, facing the sea.
The Belle Époque villas
Along the avenues stand two hundred villas built between 1860 and 1930: painted half-timbering, fretted wooden balconies, turrets and verandas. A signposted trail takes you round them on foot in an hour — the finest walk in town after the promenade.
The market hall at Dives
On the other side of the bridge, Dives-sur-Mer has kept its huge 15th-century wooden market hall, where the market is still held. It was from this port that William set sail for England in 1066: the list of his companions is carved in the church.
Dives-sur-Mer
A real Norman town pressed up against the seaside resort: its red brick town hall, its craft village housed in a former coaching inn, its workers' houses. The contrast with Cabourg, five minutes away, is striking.
Photo credits: Ibex73, Reinhardhauke, GFreihalter, M. Strīķis, Zairon, René Hourdry — Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA / CC0).
The detour worth making
Under the market hall
Photo: René Hourdry · CC0Market on Saturday mornings
Six centuries of carpentry at Dives-sur-Mer
You have to step inside to understand: a forest of oak posts, a frame raised in the 15th century and never taken down since, fifty metres long. The Saturday morning market is still held there, with producers from the Pays d'Auge — cheeses, cider, tripes à la mode de Caen. Ten minutes from Cabourg, and well worth the detour.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions about Cabourg
How far is Cabourg from La Capricieuse campsite?+
Forty kilometres, forty minutes by road through Ouistreham and Merville, outside July and August. The road follows the sea for most of the way.
What can you do in Cabourg in half a day?+
The Marcel Proust promenade, entirely pedestrian, unfolds four kilometres of seafront: allow an hour. Add the casino gardens and, right next door, Dives-sur-Mer and its medieval market hall.
Can you visit the Grand Hôtel in Cabourg?+
Its public rooms can be visited freely: the hall, the bar and the dining room are worth a look, even if you are not staying. This is where Proust wrote.
Is there a seaside campsite near Cabourg?+
La Capricieuse is in Luc-sur-Mer, forty minutes from Cabourg, with the beach fifty metres away and a heated water park. It makes a quieter base camp than the Côte Fleurie at the height of summer.
Also worth seeing
Our other day trips
The D-Day beaches
Sword Beach 50 m · Juno 10 min · Omaha 50 min
Mont-Saint-Michel
145 km · 2 hrs · A full day, tides included
Étretat
115 km · 1 hr 40 · The cliffs, the Needle and the gardens
Honfleur
65 km · 1 hr · The old harbour and the half-timbered houses
Deauville
55 km · 50 min · Les Planches, the casino and the villas
Bayeux
35 km · 35 min · The Tapestry, the cathedral and the medieval lanes
Caen
18 km · 25 min · The castle, the abbeys and the Memorial
Luc-sur-Mer
On the doorstep · The beach, the park and the whale
The Côte de Nacre
On the doorstep · Arromanches 35 min · Courseulles 10 min
Courseulles-sur-Mer
10 km · 10 min · The harbour, the oysters and Juno Beach
Ouistreham
10 km · 15 min · The lighthouse, the harbour and Sword Beach
Calvados
All around the campsite · Half-timbered villages and the Pays d'Auge
All of Normandy
Thirteen trips from the campsite
Your base camp in Normandy
Five-star cottages, a heated water park and the beach fifty metres away, in Luc-sur-Mer.
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