Deauville
Chic Seaside Resort Of The Normandy Coast, The Parisians' Weekend Beach, Known For Its Boardwalk Les Planches, Its Parasols And The American Film Festival In September · Deauville, Normandy
Deauville is a chic seaside resort on the Côte Fleurie of Normandy, about two hours from Paris by train, and for well over a century it has been the Parisians' weekend beach. It was built from scratch in the 1860s as a fashionable resort, and it still has the air of one: half-timbered Anglo-Norman villas, a grand casino, luxury hotels, designer boutiques and two racecourses. Its wooden boardwalk, Les Planches, runs along a wide sandy beach lined in summer with rows of coloured parasols, and the beach cabins behind it bear the names of the Hollywood stars who have come to the American Film Festival held each September. August brings horse racing and the yearling sales. Across the small river Touques, Trouville is older, livelier and less polished, with a fish market on the quay. To be honest, Deauville is a pleasant weekend by the sea for people already in Paris or Normandy rather than a destination to cross the world for. The Channel water is cold and the tides are big.
Les Planches and the seafront, Deauville, Calvados, Deauville, Normandy, France
The beach, Les Planches boardwalk and the seafront are public and open at all hours. The rows of parasols and the beach concessions are set up only in the summer season, roughly from late spring to September, and parasols and loungers are rented by the day or half day; confirm dates. Lifeguards watch the supervised zone in summer only. The casino opens every day into the night, with slot machines earlier and table games later, and requires identity and suitable dress. Racing at the Touques and Clairefontaine racecourses takes place on set days, most intensively in August, and the yearling sales are held in August too; check the calendars. The covered market is open in the mornings on several days a week, busiest at weekends and daily in summer, so confirm. The American Film Festival takes place in early September over about ten days, with some screenings open to the public by ticket or pass. The Trouville fish market on the quay is usually open daily. Deauville is busy on summer weekends and bank holiday weekends all year, when Parisians arrive on Friday evening and leave on Sunday afternoon, and much quieter midweek.