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France travel > Normandy > Normandy cider route

The Cider Route is found in Normandy, and makes for a pleasant day or two exploring some of the Normandy villages, and discovering how and where in Normandy cider is made. Cider tasting is of course obligatory!

The cider route is a clearly signed route, approximately 40 kilometres long, that passes the producers of the "AOC Pays d'Auge" cider. You can see how cider is made, taste it and buy it. Meanwhile you will also see some lovely Normandy Villages.

The signs for the route are clearly marked ("Route du Cidre" and a picture of an apple) and are easily followed. The route passes from village to village, producer to producer, through narrow lanes in the beautiful Normandy countryside. The cider producers who are part of the route are marked as "Cru de Cambremer".

Start the route at Cambremer (35 kilometres east of Caen). Then follow the route to Grandouet, St-Ouen-le-Pin, la Roque-Baignard, Bonnebosq, Beaufour-Druval, Beuvron-en-Auge, and Victot.

The ciders qualifying for the AOC are marked as Cidre de Cambremer. To qualify, the cider must be made following strict regulations, according to traditional techniques. You will usually find Pommeau (a Normandy aperitif) and Calvados (a Normandy liquer) at the same producers.

Nearby

Five kilometres from Cambremer is the lovely Chateau de Crèvecoeur-en-Auge, a moated chateau with some lovely colombage architecture.

Other selected Normandy highlights

while the Normandy Cider route is a good introduction to the region and will introduce you to some lovely villages and scenery we suggest you also enjoy some of the other highlights the region has to offer.

Normandy has some of the most attractive rural architecture to be found in France, set in beautiful quiet countryside. Especially typical to the region are the many medieval colombage (half-timbered) houses, many of which are now surrounded by carefully tended gardens.

Normandy also has the world-renowned Mont-Saint-Michel, and some nice beaches and coastal ports, for example at Deauville and Trouville, and also nearby Honfleur (Honfleur being the most attractive of the three). This particular 'holiday-idea' section focusses more on the northern part of Normandy, and Mont-Saint-Michel is in the south towards Brittany, but you might well like to allocate a day to visiting it.

Most visitors to Normandy also like to visit the Normandy Landing Beaches and Bayeux (above all to se the Bayeux tapestry).