Five of our favourite dog-friendly hotels in Normandy
With ferry ports in Caen, Cherbourg and Le Havre, it couldn’t be easier to get to Normandy with your dog. Pair the bucolic landscapes of lush meadows and beaches with fine museums, charming villages, as well as striking cities, and you’ll be happy as a clam while you’re exploring from a dog-friendly hotel.
Manoir de Surville
In bucolic Normandy countryside, you’re welcomed to this handsome estate and family mansion by gracious hosts who love to pamper their guests. Inside, the old stones and wooden beams breathe elegance, and a light-filled reception room, with its fireplace, books and chessboard, sets the tone. You’ll be well looked after by gentle, multilingual hosts Hugues and Camille – and by talented chef Magalie, who serves creative four-course menus on advance reservation. Eleven fresh rooms and suites are spread over two buildings and themed in imaginative colours. Make full use of the basement wellness area with its steam and sauna cabins. The surrounding forested countryside offers endless and varied dog-walking routes.
Owners Hugues & Camille: Discover the Harcourt Arboretum, and then visit the abbey and village of Bec Hellouin – one of the nicest in France.
Le Petit Coq aux Champs
There are fantastic dog walks straight from the door of this thatched, Norman-style farmhouse, tucked down a long village lane amongst frothing azaleas and rhododendrons. Extensions to the original timbered building give it an eclectic air while the bedrooms are simpler, with understated comfort and modern bathrooms. Most rooms have shaded balconies. The bountiful garden is centred around providing for the restaurant. You eat in the rustic, cosy dining room, choosing from a gourmet menu packed with Foie gras, lobster, veal sweetbreads and beef fillet. If you fancy something simpler, eat out in historic Rouen or coastal Deauville, both around 40 minutes.
Owner Fabienne: Do not miss a visit to Pont Audemer, 5kms from our hotel. This lovely, picturesque town is nicknamed Little Venice.
Manoir de Mathan
Drive through the baroque arch and crunch up the drive for drinks under a parasol on the terrace at this fine village manor house. Let your dog have the run of the gardens, made up of lawns, mature trees and a lily pond. Bedrooms (some in the outbuildings and converted barns, some suitable for wheelchair users) have been sympathetically revived. Expect four-poster beds, oak beams, original fireplaces, and big bathrooms, most with tubs. Stroll into nearby Crépon for an espresso in the café, explore Bayeux and the D-Day landing beaches.
Owners Isabelle & Koen: Only 3km from the nearest beach on the Côte des Nacres iridescent coast that’s renowned for scallop fishing and oyster production.
Hôtel Restaurant Bel Ami
This elegant, small country hotel has a charming riverside setting at the end of a thriving and prosperous high street in a small village. Eating here is a treat – seasonal menus use produce from the hotel’s kitchen garden and you can dine next to the open kitchen in the restaurant or on a riverside terrace for breakfast, lunch and supper. Or stroll into the village for upmarket pizza or burgers. There are two floors of bedrooms, most with sitting areas, and you can request a terrace if you bring your dog. Giverny is half an hour away, Versailles and Rouen are an hour. Drive to Paris or the Normandy coast in 1.5 hours.
Owner Nathalie: Visit Vernon, 15 minutes from the hotel, a beautiful old town on the banks of the Seine, to enjoy a moment of calm and culture.
Le Manoir des Impressionnistes
Surrounded by sea and wooded hills, your dog will delight in the superb walks circling this charming 18th-century manor house. Inside, revel in the comfort and serenity your host has created. There are bedrooms on all three floors, all individually decorated with simplicity and taste, and you can choose between sea and garden views. Start your day in the terracotta-tiled breakfast room with its generous buffet table loaded with organic local produce, and finish it in the spectacular dining room. Beneath ancient wooden beams, in the flickering light of the gothic limestone fireplace, crisp linen and white china frame gourmet meals of Gallic splendour.
Owner Bridget: Visit Mont Saint-Michel: a magical island topped by a gravity-defying medieval monastery. This holy mount is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Vive la France
This article is part of Vive la France, the home of inspiring itineraries and stories from travel writers and our team, to help you plan your next French adventure.
Written by
Carmen McCormack
Carmen is a freelance writer specialising in travel. She once lived in a bus in north Wales, skipped off to study in Barcelona, and now calls Bristol home. When she’s not tapping away on her laptop, she can be found reading (a lot), lake swimming (a little), and pottering on the allotment with husband and two kiddos. She’s currently dreaming about cold cerveza and torta in Mexico.
