Key facts
• Location: On the northern coast of France, bordering the regions of Brittany to the west, Nord-Pas-de-Calais to the east, and Pays-de-la-Loire and Centre to the south; the region divides into the two administrative areas of Basse-Normandie and Haute-Normandie
• Capital: Rouen
• Land area: 29,906km²
• Population: 3,310,448
• Population density: 110/km²
• Average house price: €157,500 (Haute-Normandie), €139,000 (Basse-Normandie)
Departments
Haute-Normandie:
• Seine-Maritime (main town: Rouen; department number: 76)
• Eure (main town: Evreux; department number: 27)
Basse-Normandie:
• Orne (main town: Alençon; department number: 61)
• Calvados (main town: Caen; department number: 14)
• Manche (main town: St-Lô; department number: 50)
Highlights
• Normandy boasts an impressive 560km coastline ranging from sand dunes to chalk cliffs; it includes the Côte d’Albatre (Dieppe to Etretat), Côte Fleurie (Honfleur to Cabourg) and Côte de Nacre (Merville-Franceville to Courseulles)
• Inland, the countryside is gently undulating and the patchwork of green fields is home to dairy cattle and horses; the Suisse Normandie area has hills and valleys
• Seaside towns, many of which carry the Famille Plus label, range from the impressive harbour of Honfleur to upmarket resorts of Deauville and Trouville, and also include Etretat, Cabourg and Le Havre
• Just off the coast, the abbey-topped Mont St Michel is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of France’s most visited tourist destinations
• Museums and signposted circuits along the D-Day landing beaches
• The thousand-year-old, 70m-long Bayeux tapestry is displayed in the town, which is also worth visiting for its medieval buildings and Gothic cathedral
• On the River Seine, Rouen has a cathedral dating from the 4th century, the abbey church of St-Ouen, half-timbered houses, and a wide choice of restaurants, nightlife, culture and shops – the best view of the city is from the top of the Grosse Horloge clock tower
• The historic town of Caen was founded in the 11th century by William the Conqueror; the town was largely bombed in WWII, but some ramparts remain around the château and twin abbeys, and the town has a number of good museums
• Le Havre is another UNESCO World Heritage Site; all but decimated by WWII bombing, the town is a good example of post-war planning and has a good fine arts museum
• Monet’s garden at Giverny, the inspiration for his famous water-lily paintings, is open to the public
• Villes d’Art et d’Histoire: Bernay, Dieppe, Fécamp, Le Havre
• Pays d’Art et d’Histoire: Coutances, Clos de Cotentin, Auge, Rouen-Elbeuf-Austreberth,
• Plus Beaux Villages: Barfleur, Beuvron-en-Auge, Le-Bec-Hellouin, Lyons-la-Forêt, St-Céneri-le-Gérei
• Other popular towns include Alençon, once known as the Cité des Ducs, Evreux and St-Lô
• In 2013, the Normandy Impressionist festival will include major exhibitions around the region from April to September
• On the menu: cheese (Camembert, Pont l’Evêque, Neufchâtel, Livarot), apple-based products including cider and calvados brandy, butter, seafood including oysters
Climate
• Normandy has a mild temperate climate, similar to the south of England
• Annual rainfall: 852mm (Rouen); 740mm (Caen)
• Annual sunshine hours: 1,558 (Rouen); 1,691 (Caen)
• Average temperature: 6.6/14.4°C (Rouen); 7.4/15.1°C (Caen)
Access
• By sea: Channel ports at Cherbourg, Caen, Le Havre and Dieppe
• By air: flights from the UK to Caen, Deauville and Dinard (also to Rennes in Brittany)
• By train: TGV stations at Le Havre and Rouen
Property
• Characterful half-timbered ‘colombage’ buildings are typical, and there are also some thatched houses (‘chaumières’); there are plenty of farm buildings for sale and also equestrian properties, plus villas and new-build homes by the sea
• Property close to the coast carries a premium
• Being under two hours’ drive from the capital, it’s not surprising that many Parisians own second homes in Normandy – in fact the region is sometimes called the 21st arrondissement of Paris – which pushes prices up in some areas, but there are also some remarkably cheap pockets
• Average resale house price: €157,500 (Haute-Normandie), €139,000 (Basse-Normandie); (national average: €163,500)
• The cheapest department is Orne (€106,000), followed by Manche (€130,000), Seine-Maritime (€156,500), Eure (€160,000), Calvados (€175,000)
• Most expensive sectors: Caen (€194,000), Lisieux (€167,500), Rouen (€165,000), Le Havre (€163,000) and Bayeux (€160,000)
• Cheapest sectors: Argentan (€98,900), Vire (€100,000), Mortagne-au-Perche (€110,000), Alençon (€115,000), St Lô (€115,000) and Avranches (€115,500)
• In 2011-2012, prices fell by 2.2% in Basse-Normandie (following an increase of 5.8% from 2009-11) and by 2.5% in Haute-Normandie (following an increase of 8.3% from 2009-11)
• Average price of a building plot: €39,800 (Basse-Normandie), €55,000 (Haute-Normandie)
• Average price of a new apartment: €3,500/m² (Basse-Normandie), €3,150/m² (Haute-Normandie)
• Average price of a resale apartment: €2,290/m² (Basse-Normandie), €2,000/m² (Haute-Normandie)
Property prices: Notaires de France
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