Honfleur or Étretat: where to stay?

Where to stay Best for Price level Good to know
Honfleur, Vieux Bassin and Sainte-Catherine The harbour, restaurants, everything on foot €€ to €€€€ Very busy at weekends; paid car parks fill up fast
Honfleur, outskirts Arriving by car, small budgets € to €€ 10 to 15 minutes' walk from the harbour
Étretat, seafront and centre The cliffs at sunrise €€ to €€€ A small village with few hotels: book early

How to get there from Paris

  • By car: about 200 km and 2 h 15 to Honfleur on the A13 (toll). Between Honfleur and Étretat, the Pont de Normandie (toll) crosses the estuary: about 45 km.
  • By train to Honfleur: train from Saint-Lazare to Trouville-Deauville (about 2 h 10), then a Nomad regional coach to Honfleur (about 30 to 40 minutes). Check the coach timetable before you go; services are thinner on Sundays.
  • By train to Étretat: train from Saint-Lazare to Le Havre (about 2 hours), then Nomad coach line 13 to Étretat (about 1 hour).
  • The catch: linking Honfleur and Étretat without a car means going back through Le Havre by coach. If you come by train, pick one base, or hire a car locally.

The 2-day plan

Day 1: Honfleur

  • Morning: the Vieux Bassin and its narrow façades, then Sainte-Catherine church, the largest wooden church in France, with its separate bell tower.
  • Lunch: seafood around the harbour or in the lanes of the Sainte-Catherine quarter.
  • Afternoon: the Eugène-Boudin museum or the Maisons Satie, then up to the Côte de Grâce and its chapel, with views over the estuary and the Pont de Normandie.
  • Evening: dinner and night in Honfleur.

Day 2: Étretat

  • Morning: leave early to beat the crowds. Climb the Falaise d'Aval for the Porte d'Aval arch and the Aiguille needle, then carry on to the Manneporte.
  • Lunch: in the village.
  • Afternoon: the Falaise d'Amont and the Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde chapel, the Jardins d'Étretat, or the Clos Arsène Lupin, Maurice Leblanc's house.
  • Back: on the A13 by car, or by coach to Le Havre then the train to Saint-Lazare.

Stay on the marked paths at the top of the cliffs, which crumble, and check the tide times before walking on the shingle beach below them.

One activity to book

To see the cliffs with a guide, this 3-hour hike in Étretat follows part of the GR 21 trail and the Antifer valleys in a small group, from about $46 per person (price seen in October 2026, check it). It needs average fitness and is not suitable for people with reduced mobility. If you would rather not stay overnight, our comparison of Étretat and Honfleur day trips from Paris compares the organised days.

Six hotels by budget

  • Budget: the ibis budget Honfleur Centre is about 400 m from the Vieux Bassin; the ibis Honfleur, about 1 km from the centre, has the advantage of free private parking.
  • Mid-range: the Hôtel Le Rayon Vert, on Étretat's seafront, has rooms with sea and cliff views; L'Absinthe occupies a 16th-century building near Honfleur harbour, with eleven rooms.
  • Upscale: Dormy House overlooks Étretat beach from the heights, in large gardens next to the golf course; La Ferme Saint-Siméon, just outside Honfleur facing the estuary, is the grand address of the coast. Check the state of its pool and spa area, under works when we looked.

Compare today's prices on all hotels in Honfleur and in Étretat: May to September weekends fill up weeks ahead.

When to go

  • April to June, September-October: good light, fewer people, still reasonable prices.
  • July-August: Étretat is packed in the middle of the day; arrive before 9 am.
  • Winter: much quieter, but short days and strong wind on the cliffs.

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