I always enjoy visiting major tourist spots when visiting a new place, but I also enjoy finding the lesser known, out of the way places. Prior to a past trip to Paris, I was planning some day trips out of the city. An acquaintance from Paris recommended one of his favorite nearby places to visit, Les Andelys.

Les Andelys is a charming town along the Seine River on the “Normandy-Vexin Historic Route”, an interesting and historic route from Paris to Rouen. The main attraction of Les Andelys is the 12th century fortress, the Château-Gaillard.

The plural, Les Andelys, meaning there were two towns, Andély Le Vieux (Grand-Andely) and Andély Le Jeune (Petit-Andely). While most of Grand Andely was destroyed in WWII, Petit Andely suffered little damage.

Château-Gaillard, now a ruin, sits on a hill overlooking the Seine. It was built in a years time, around 1197, by Richard the Lion Heart, King of England and Duke of Normandy. The fortress has been classified among fifteen great national sites. It was the strongest point of a vast defense system for Normandy.

There is much history associated with the château. After Richard’s death, Philippe Auguste took over the castle in 1204. In 1314, Blanche and Marguerite de Bourgogne were imprisoned in the castle after being accused of adultery. During the hundred years war, the fortress changed hands many times. During the religious wars, Henry IV overtook the castle after a 2 years siege and had it dismantled.

The Château is open daily, except Tuesday, 10:00am to 1:00pm and 2:00pm to 6:00pm.

Les Andelys was an inspiration for many great masters of art and literature. Les Andelys was the home of painter Nicholas Poussin. One of his masterpieces, “The Coriolan”, is on exhibit in the city museum, Musée Nicholas-Poussin.

The museum is open daily, except Tuesday, 2:00pm to 6:00pm.

Another museum is Le Musée Normandie-Niemen. This museum is in honor of the Normandie-Niemen fighters group. The group of 96 pilots flew 5,240 missions for the French Air Force. Forty-six of them never returned, among them Marcel Lefevre, a native of Les Andelys.

The museum is open daily, June 1 – September 15, except Tuesday, 10:00am to 12:00pm and 2:00pm to 6:00pm. In the off-season, the museum is open in the afternoon only.

You will find commercial activity mostly in Grand-Andely, while Petit-Andely is especially charming.

Les Andelys has a nice selection of small hotels and guesthouses to accommodate overnight guests. There are also a number of quaint restaurants to choose from. We enjoyed our lunch at a crêperie, La Gaillard Inn, 22, rue Grande. The prices were reasonable and it had a charming atmosphere.

We visited the city in late May and it was not crowded at all. This is not a major tourist destination, but I certainly feel it has a lot of interest to offer a visitor in the area.

As Les Andelys is only 35km from Rouen, it makes a good starting point for an extended visit to the Normandy region of France. Located just 85km from Paris, it is also a nice day trip from Paris. We combined it with a trip to Giverny and Monet’s Gardens. (If you are interested, please see my earlier review of Monet’s Gardens, http://www.epinions.com/content_102940053124 )



Recommended: Yes

Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime