D-Day Beaches (Plages du Débarquement de la Bataille de Normandie)

The Allied Landings that took place at dawn on D-Day, June 6 1944, signalled the beginning of the end of World War II. Some 83,000 British and Canadian and 73,000 US troops landed by sea and air along a 64-kilometre (40-mile) stretch of the Normandy coast in northern France. The horrific conditions, with many of the floating tanks sunk before they even reached the beaches, meant that thousands of soldiers never returned. The war cemeteries where many of the soldiers were laid to rest are open to the public, and some contain chapels and memorials. One of the most famous beaches is Omaha Beach, portrayed in Steven Spielberg’s film ’Saving Private Ryan’, where there is a large American cemetery overlooking the beach at Colleville-sur-Mer.
Air: Caen-Carpiquet Airport, Paris Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris Orly Airport. Water: Ferry: Services to Cherbourg, Caen and Le Havre (from Ireland and the UK). Rail: Train: Caen Station or Bayeux Station (services from Paris St Lazare Station). Road: Car: D514 or D513, N158, N13 (to Caen).