6. SANDS OF TIME AT D-DAY BEACHES For more than 70 years, the D-Day beaches along the Côte de Nacre have stood as poignant reminders of the historic Allied operation of June 6, 1944, when a massive armada of troops, with more than 5,000 ships and 13,000 aircraft, converged on the heavily fortified coastline to fight Nazi Germany. The wartime code names for the beaches along this 50-mile stretch still exist – Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, Sword – paying proud tribute to the heroism of the thousands of soldiers who lost their lives here. Our expert local guide shares insights during stops at Omaha Beach, bordered at each end by large rocky cliffs, and the American Cemetery, located on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach, eternal resting place for some 9,300 American World War II soldiers. Visit Arromanches, situated along Gold Beach, after lunch at the Omaha Beach Club, then return to the riverboat to continue your cruise. Enjoy evening cocktails before dining onboard as you wish. Meals BLD
7. MORNING AT LEISURE & JUMIÈGES ABBEY Spend the morning at leisure before your riverboat arrives in Caudebec-en-Caux. Schedule permitting, join your Tauck Director for a casual walk into town. Have lunch onboard before
Stroll through painted landscapes in Monet’s garden at Giverny
taking a scenic drive along the “Route des Fruits” en route to Jumièges Abbey, once one of the great Benedictine abbeys of France. First built in 654, this wealthy limestone abbey grew to house 700 monks and 1,500 lay brothers in its first 50 years. Destruction came in waves when it was attacked by Viking raiders between 841 and 940, rebuilt in the 11th century, then razed again in a succession of French wars. Today it reigns unrivalled in a park-like setting that evokes memories of its former grandeur, giving measure to what Victor Hugo called “the most beautiful ruin in France.” Return to ms Swiss Sapphire late afternoon in Caudebec-en-Caux and cruise to Les Andelys tonight, strategically located on a bend of the Seine. Meals BLD
A local expert shares a historic perspective on the top-secret invasion that caught Nazi Germany off guard
on June 6, 1944, when 150,000 Allied forces – Canadian, British, French, American and Polish among them – landed on the beaches of Normandy. It marked the beginning of the end of World War II, but its legacy will last forever. Your visit here is a poignant tribute to the lives lost and liberties won, where history and heroism are etched in the sands, on headstones and in memories undiminished by time.
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8. CHÂTEAU GAILLARD & A SIP OF CIDER Taking full advantage of its hilltop perch overlooking the river, the Château Gaillard is the crowning centerpiece of Les Andelys. Built in 1197 by Richard the Lionheart, King of England, during a power play with France’s King Phillip II, Château Gaillard was lauded as the strongest castle of its time. It earned this designation for its innovative military-style concentric construction that was designed to confound invaders and for its use of machicolations, holes in the flooring that enabled castle occupants to drop stones or other heavy objects on attackers at the base of a defensive wall. The limestone castle consisted of three enclosures separated by dry moats, with a keep in the inner enclosure. Unlike other castles of its time which took a decade or more to build, Château Gaillard was completed in just two years by some 6,000 laborers under the watchful, and often impatient, eyes of its king. What remains today evokes images of how this medieval castle looked and operated at its height of power, with the riverside views affording you the same vantage point coveted by its royal inhabitants. Pommes, apples
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