Hotels Caen

Hotels in Caen are often required for tourists who require short term accommodation. Some may want to visit Caen to see the culture, history, sports and tourist attractions of the region. Some may want to see the castle in the famous French commune. Some may want to stay at large hotels or small hotels. Some may want to stay at hotels that have a good reputation and good access to scenery and to culture. Some may want to stay at hotels that have a good range of prices. Some may want to stay at hotels that good range of scenery.

Hotels in Caen are often in demand for tourists.

Caen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located 15 km inland from the English Channel.

Caen is in an area of high humidity. The Orne flows through the city, as well as different small rivers known as les Odons, most of them having been buried under the city to improve urban hygiene.

Caen sits 10 km (6 mi) away from the Channel. A canal that is parallel to the Orne was built during the reign of Napoleon III to be able to link the city to the sea at all times. The canal reaches the English Channel at Ouistreham. A lock enables the canal to withstand the effects of the tide and permits large ships to navigate up the canal to Caen's freshwater harbours.

Caen is known for its historical buildings built during the reign of William the Conqueror, who was buried here, and for the Battle for Caen—heavy fighting that took place in and around Caen during the Battle of Normandy in 1944, destroying much of the town.

Almost 600 years before being devastated in 1944 during World War II, Caen was similarly ravaged by war in 1346 when King Edward III of England led his army against the city, the richest in Normandy at the time, hoping to loot it. On 26 July 1346 his troops stormed the city and sacked it, killing 3,000 of its citizens and burning much of the merchants' quarter. During the attack English officials searched its archives and found a copy of the 1339 Franco-Norman plot to invade England, devised by Philip VI of France and Normandy. This was subsequently used as propaganda to justify the supplying and financing of the conflict and its continuation. Only the castle of Caen held out, despite attempts to besiege it. A few days later the English left, marching to the east and on to their victory at the Battle of Crécy.

During the Battle of Normandy in World War II, Caen was liberated in early July, a month after the Normandy landings, particularly those by British I Corps on June 6, 1944. British and Canadian troops had intended to capture the town on D-Day. However they were held up north of the city until July 9, when an intense bombing campaign during Operation Charnwood destroyed much of the city but allowed the Allies to seize its western quarters, a month later than Montgomery's original plan. During the battle, many of the town's inhabitants sought refuge in the Abbaye aux Hommes (Men's Abbey), built by William the Conqueror some 800 years before. Post-WWII work included the reconstruction of complete districts of the city and the university campus. It took 14 years (1948-1962) and led to the current urbanization of Caen. Having lost many of its historic quarters and its university campus in the war, the city doesn't possess what some might call the 'feel' of a traditional Normandy town such as Honfleur, Rouen, Cabourg, Deauville and Bayeux.

The Canadian Army Film and Photo Unit filmed the D-Day offensive and Orne breakout several weeks later, then returned several months later to document the town's recovery efforts. The resulting film You Can't Kill a City is preserved at the National Archives of Canada.

From 1912 to 1993, the SMN produced steel at the SMN plant to the East of the city. The land is now an industrial estate used by the food industry.

Caen is in an area of high humidity. The Orne flows through the city, as well as different small rivers known as les Odons, most of them having been buried under the city to improve urban hygiene.

Main sights

Castle

The castle, Château de Caen, built circa 1060 by William the Conqueror, who successfully conquered England in 1066, is one of the largest medieval fortresses of Western Europe. It remained an essential feature of Norman strategy and policy. At Christmas 1182 a royal court celebration for Christmas in the aula of Caen Castle brought together Henry II and his sons, Richard the Lionheart and John Lackland, receiving more than a thousand knights. Caen Castle, along with all of Normandy, was handed over to the French Crown in 1204. The castle saw several engagements during the Hundred Years' War (1346, 1417, 1450) and was in use as a barracks as late as World War II. Today, the castle serves as a museum that houses the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen (Museum of Fine Arts of Caen) and Musée de Normandie (Museum of Normandy) along with many periodical exhibitions about arts and history . (See Timeline of Caen Castle)

[Abbeys

In repentance for marrying his cousin Mathilda of Flanders, William ordered two abbeys to be built on Pope's encouragement:

Eglise de Ste.-Etienne, formerly the Abbaye aux Hommes (Men's Abbey). It was completed in 1063 and is dedicated to St Stephen. The current Hôtel de Ville (town hall) of Caen is built onto the South Transept of the building.
Eglise de la Ste.-Trinité, formerly the Abbaye aux Dames (Women's Abbey). It was completed in 1060 and is dedicated to the Holy Trinity. The current seat of the regional council (conseil régional) of Basse-Normandie is nearby.

Others

Jardin botanique de Caen, a historic botanical garden
Saint-Pierre Church.
Mémorial pour la Paix built in 1988, charting the events leading up to and after D-Day. It is an emotional presentation inviting meditation on the thought of Elie Wiesel: "Peace is not a gift from God to man, but a gift from man to himself". The Memorial for Peace also includes an exhibit of Nobel Peace Prize winners and another one on Conflict Resolution in different cultures.
Saint Étienne abbey-church, where a slab marks the place of the tomb of William the Conqueror, though his bones were scattered by Huguenots in 1562, during the French Wars of Religion.
Parc Festyland, an amusement park to the West of Caen in the nearby town of Carpiquet. The park receives 110,000 visitors every year.
Mondeville 2 is a regional shopping centre in adjoining Mondeville.

Hotels Caen

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