Deauville and Trouville are the two classy resort towns you typically think of when you hear Normandy. But insiders know of Cabourg.

This Belle Epoque seaside resort town oozes old glamour out of every corner, and the embodiment of all such glamour is in the Grand Hotel that was built in 1907.

The Grand Hotel is the landmark of the Belle Epoque, also known as the Guilded Age or the Golden Age (end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries). During this period of time, aristocrats and noble families on both sides of the Atlantic - think Astors and Vanderbilts - started to build their villas and enjoy a life of leisure during the summer. Marcel Proust wrote several parts of his multiple volumed À la recherche du temps perdu, In search of lost time, which depicts this society, in the hotel itself between 1907 and 1914.

Cabourg is also called the City of Lovers, and the hotel has been hosting the Romantic Movie Festival of Cabourg for over 40 years.

The white sand beach is 4km long. One Sunday a month there is a decadent grand buffet with live music, during season the seaside restaurant is open, and their signature cocktail is the White Swan, in honour of the trophy of the Romantic Movie Festival.

I am definitely planning to come back and spend more time in Cabourg.

OFFICIAL SITE

www.grand-hotel-cabourg.com

LEAD-IN IMAGE

Accor Hotels / Le Grand Hotel Cabourg