Rouen

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Rue du Gros Horloge, Rouen France, Rouen, Normandy, France

Cathédrale de Rouen vue de l'Opéra, Rouen, Normandy, France

Jardin des Plantes (Rouen), Rouen, Normandy, France

Hôtel Ville Rouen (FR76) 2023 06 17 4, Rouen, Normandy, France

About Rouen

Rouen is the city Monet painted again and again, catching its cathedral facade in morning haze, noon glare and sunset gold. The capital of Normandy rewards the same slow attention: more than a thousand years of history are packed into a compact centre of half-timbered houses, Gothic churches and lively squares on the Seine.

The city was a seat of the Norman dukes and later one of the great cities of medieval France. Joan of Arc was tried and burned here in 1431, and the Place du Vieux-Marché still carries her memory alongside a strikingly modern church. Wartime bombing damaged the centre badly, but patient restoration brought back streets such as the Rue du Gros-Horloge, with its gilded Renaissance clock.

Museums are a highlight, from one of France's finest fine-arts collections to museums of wrought iron and faience. Climb the Côte Sainte-Catherine for the classic view of spires along the river, then return for cider, Normandy cheeses and an evening in the old town. Paris is little more than an hour away by train.

Best seasonMay to September; December for the Christmas market

Ideal stay2 days

ArrivingTrains from Paris Saint-Lazare to Rouen Rive Droite, about 1 h 15

Why People Love Rouen: 12 Things to Discover

Churches 4

Rouen Cathedral

Notre-Dame de Rouen is a soaring Gothic cathedral whose cast-iron spire, completed in the 19th century, makes it the tallest churc...

Église Saint-Maclou

This late Gothic church is one of the finest examples of the Flamboyant style in France, with a fan-shaped porch of five arches, d...

Saint-Ouen Abbey Church

Once the church of a powerful Benedictine abbey, Saint-Ouen is a vast and luminous Gothic building whose slender pillars and huge...

Church of Saint Joan of Arc

Built in 1979 on the Place du Vieux-Marché, close to where Joan of Arc was burned in 1431, this church has a sweeping, boat-like r...

Landmarks 2

Gros-Horloge

Spanning the busy pedestrian street of the same name, this Renaissance arch carries a large gilded clock face with a single hand,...

Palais de Justice de Rouen

Built in the early 16th century for the Exchequer and later the Parliament of Normandy, this lavishly carved palace is one of the...

History 1

Aître Saint-Maclou

This rare surviving charnel house was built around a courtyard used as a burial ground during plague outbreaks. Its timber galleri...

Museums 3

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen

One of the most important art museums in regional France, this collection spans from the Renaissance to the 20th century, with wor...

Historial Jeanne d'Arc

Housed in the archbishop's palace where Joan of Arc's rehabilitation trial took place, this museum uses projections, voices and st...

Musée Le Secq des Tournelles

Set inside the former Gothic church of Saint-Laurent, this unusual museum holds one of the world's great collections of wrought ir...

Viewpoints 1

Côte Sainte-Catherine

This steep chalk hill on the eastern edge of Rouen offers the classic panorama of the city, with the cathedral spire, church tower...

Parks 1

Jardin des Plantes de Rouen

South of the Seine, this botanical garden spreads across wide lawns, flower beds, an arboretum and glasshouses filled with tropica...

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