things to do
things for the kids
Just a hop, skip and a jump from Le Pressoir you’ll find museums and activities for the younger generation, plus sea life centres, caves, bowling, bungy jumping, kayaking and cycling routes… so whatever activity you and your young ones love, you’ll find it in Normandie!
Kids of all ages will be spoilt for choice of things to do in Normandie, with wide open beaches that are perfect for hours of fun simply running and playing to sand yachting, flying a kite, kite surfing, swimming or just building a sand castle.
Festyland Amusement Park
Festyland Amusement Park near Caen has thirty attractions for the whole family to enjoy – a Carousel, a special tribute is paid to William the Conqueror, thanks to his 1066 exploit and thrills await you in the Vikings’ Drakkar and you can also embark with the pirates on the Captain Roc. Festyland has 2 cinemas, Thor and Dome, together with 3 live shows every day throughout the summer. Restaurants and picnic areas are also available.
Bayeux Adventure
Bayeux Adventure is a treetop adventure trail located about 15 minutes from Le Pressoir.
5 treetop adventure trails for children and adults, 2 paintball grounds karting circuit and maze. An amusing day out for the whole family or with friends.
Eolia Normandie
Eolia Normandie is just 15 minutes from Le Pressoir at Colleville-sur-Mer.
From dunes to sea spray, Eolia Normandie offers a whole range of outdoor activities: land yachting, sea-kayaking, catamaran, sea wading and, the latest in beach sports – Fat bike, a cycle with which you can ride on the sand!
A qualified instructor will unveil the treasures of this area steeped in history and amazing fauna and flora and after braving the winds and experiencing the exhilarating experiences on Omaha Beach, you can come inside to the cosy atmosphere of the club house where you can sit and sip a hot chocolate or have a snack and enjoy the panoramic sea views.
La Cité de la Mer
here are delights for all ages at La Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg – Le Redoutable is the largest submarine open to the public in the world! Once you’ve entered through the massive door, armed with your audio guide, you’ll be inside the submarine and taken down into the bowels of the ship. You can then see the submarine in another light as you ‘walk under the giant’ – It’s so enormous it will take your breath away.
The Deepsea Challenger Submarine is a life size replica (24 feet – 7.3 meters) used by James Cameron to do his record-breaking 35,787 foot solo dive to the deepest known place on Earth.
The Aquarium at 11 metres deep is the deepest aquarium in Europe, but apart from its amazing scale, it is also an amazing space full of life and colours. The glass is 33 centimetres (over a foot) thick, giving you a vantage point to observe over 1,000 tropical fish, which would usually be found swimming around a Tahiti atoll.
Paleospace
Delve into the Jurassic Period! Some 160 million years ago, dinosaurs occupied the Earth, and the seas that covered Normandie were home to ferocious marine reptiles… Discover the skeletons of these fearsome predators (Anna the ichthyosaurus: 5.4m in length, a liopleurodon: 10m) together with a great variety of fauna and flora: the Black Cow Cliffs abound with fossils that bear witness to its bygone underwater past. Among the many discoveries on the site, the fossil of a 10 metre-long pliosaur, an ichthyosaurus, a saltwater ‘crocodile’, and many ammonites, sea urchins and sponges have been unearthed.
Take part in workshops, guided tours, the treasure trail, etc.
Souterroscope
Souterroscope is a unique subterranean world in a slate mine which still maintains the workings from the 19th century. As you go deeper and deeper underground you’ll discover in turn the ‘Lac des Merveilles’ with an audio visual display about the water cycle, then the spooky dragon’s cave and the chasm with its sunken arch, worn away by the very early miners who worked right at the bottom of the mine. A must see is the treasure trove of giant crystals – semi precious stones which take you into another world. This is a very unusual place – both exciting and strange and gives you a marvelous insight into the underground world. (Underground temperature is 12° so bring warm clothing). 1 hour guided tour in French or English.