Honfleur
France
A harbour of tall slate-hung houses at the mouth of the Seine, painted by Boudin and Monet and visited by rather more people than live in it
Photo by Anne Laure P on Unsplash
Photos by Mark Lawson, Mark Lawson, Magdalena Kula Manchee and Magdalena Kula Manchee on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of France
April to June, and September — on high summer weekends the quays round the old basin are shoulder to shoulder by eleven
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 88mm in Nov
Where it is
49.42°N, 0.23°E Open in Google Maps
Things to do
Several days- Arrive before ten or stay after six, when the coaches have gone
- Go inside Sainte-Catherine and look up — the roof is two upturned hulls
- Walk up the Côte de Grâce for the view across to Le Havre
- Eat one lane back from the basin rather than on it
- Combine it with Le Havre by bus, which is half an hour away over the bridge
Honfleur travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget France
ExpensiveEuros, and cards in the restaurants, galleries and car parks. Nothing here needs cash you would have to change for; the Saturday market is the one place a few notes help.
ATMs & cards
A handful of bank machines in the town centre, away from the basin. Use a bank’s own machine and refuse any offer to convert into your own currency.
Avoid these
- independent machines that offer to charge you in your own currency
Use these instead
- Crédit Agricole
- BNP Paribas
- Société Générale
- La Banque Postale
Cards are taken almost everywhere; the town centre has a few bank machines and Le Havre has plenty.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of France
Very safeVery safe. The things to plan for are the crowds and the parking: the old town is small, coaches arrive mid-morning, and in summer the quays fill completely. The cobbles are uneven and the basin edge is unfenced, which matters with small children and after a long lunch.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (6 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
Worth more attention
- the quays of the old basin — unfenced edges, wet cobbles and a summer crowd pressing towards them
- the roads into town on summer weekends — the car parks fill by late morning; come early or by bus from Le Havre
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa France visa rules
No visa needed
Freedom of movement — no time limit, and no visa. Bring a passport or national ID card.
Other passports
No visa neededup to 90 days
90 days within any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area, not per country. ETIAS, a paid online authorisation, is being introduced for these passports — check the official link for whether it applies to your travel dates.
Visa required in advance€90 (Schengen short-stay visa)
A Schengen short-stay visa is applied for before travel, at the consulate of your main destination.
How to get it: Apply at the consulate or visa centre of the country you will spend most time in, typically 15 working days ahead and no more than six months before travel.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of France
Excellent and cheapRequired to enter
No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Routine vaccinations up to date
Getting treated
EU/EEA and Swiss visitors are treated on the same terms as residents with an EHIC or GHIC card; UK visitors use a GHIC. Everyone else pays, and travel insurance is worth having for the repatriation cover rather than the treatment.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
Very goodShellfish and fish off the boats, crevettes grises — the little grey shrimp eaten whole with a glass of white — and moules with cream and cider. The tables facing the basin charge for the view; one lane back is cheaper and no worse. Pont-l’Évêque and Livarot cheeses, cider and calvados come from the Pays d’Auge directly behind the town.
Travel tipsGetting around
Car needed- UberWorks here
- BoltWorks here
- G7Works here
- FREE NOWWorks here
G7 the taxi fleet, by app
- Against a taxi
- Much the same. The flat airport rate is a taxi rule and the apps price against it.
Time zone and your working day
Europe/Paris — 6 hours ahead of you
2 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–11:00 your time, 15:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 03:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 03:00–11:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
eSIM
A data eSIM for France, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:
Works here
Works hereRevolutIn the app
Must-see
Travel tipsNearby day trips
Travel tipsSay a few words
French
- HelloBonjourbon-ZHOOR
- PleaseS'il vous plaîtseel voo PLEH
- Thank youMercimer-SEE
- Yes / NoOui / Nonwee / non
4 more phrases
- Excuse meExcusez-moiex-koo-zay MWA
- How much is it?C'est combien ?say com-BYEN
- The bill, pleaseL'addition, s'il vous plaîtla-dee-SYON
- Cheers!Santé !son-TAY
Open with bonjour before anything else. Launching straight into a question without it reads as rude, and explains a lot of reputed French coldness.
Travel tipsReligion
Catholic, and strictly secular
Laïcité is a constitutional principle: religion is kept out of public institutions, and conspicuous religious symbols are banned in state schools. Cover shoulders in cathedrals.
Travel tipsDo's and don'ts
Do
- Say bonjour before anything else, every single time you enter a shop
- Keep your voice down in restaurants and on public transport
- Keep both hands visible on the table while eating, wrists on the edge
- Dress a notch smarter than you would at home — it changes how you are treated
Don't
- Do not ask for a doggy bag or substitutions; the dish arrives as the kitchen intends
- Do not start with English without at least attempting bonjour, parlez-vous anglais
- Do not tip more than rounding up — service is included by law
- Do not eat while walking; it reads as slightly uncivilised
Where to stay in Honfleur
No Holistay rentals in Honfleur yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Honfleur on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Paris Charles de Gaulle CDG
2h 30mfrom the airport· 175 km as the crow flies
About 2h30 by hire car; by train to Le Havre and the bus over the bridge, closer to four hours.
Also worth pricing: Caen-Carpiquet CFR — an hour by road, but it has domestic flights only.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
