The Mémorial de Caen (Caen Memorial Museum) is a major history museum and war memorial located in Caen, Normandy, France. It covers the Second World War, the D-Day landings, and the Cold War through permanent and temporary exhibitions. This guide covers opening hours, admission, transport, parking, and practical visitor tips.
To skip the detail and just book your tickets, head here.
Updated May 2026. A new permanent gallery on the Holocaust (La Shoah) opened in 2025 and is not reflected in many older guides.
Quick facts: Caen Memorial Museum
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Address | Esplanade Général Eisenhower, 14050 Caen Cedex 4 |
| Hours (April–September) | 9:00am–7:00pm daily |
| On-site ticket sales close | 1 hour 15 minutes before closing |
| Closed (2026) | 4, 18 & 25 November; 2, 9 & 16 December; 25 December |
| Adult admission (19–65) | €20.80 |
| Child (10–18) | €18.50 |
| Children under 10 | Free |
| Family ticket | €53 (2 adults + unlimited children 10–18, or 1 adult + 2+ children) |
| Parking | Free, on site |
| Typical visit duration | 4 hours |
Caen Memorial Museum opening hours
The museum is open daily. The official page confirms current (April–September 2026) hours as 9:00am to 7:00pm.
On-site ticket sales close 1 hour and 15 minutes before the museum closes. Arriving at 6pm means you have just 45 minutes before the ticket desk closes.
2026 closure dates: 4, 18 and 25 November; 2, 9 and 16 December; 25 December. Check the official website for the winter 2026–2027 schedule, which was not yet fully published at time of writing.
The museum is open on French public holidays including Armistice Day (11 November) unless that date falls on a weekly closure. Confirm before visiting on public holidays.
Caen Memorial Museum ticket prices
Tickets can be booked online at billetterie-memorial.fr or purchased on arrival. On-site sales close 1 hour 15 minutes before closing.
| Visitor | Price |
|---|---|
| Adults (19–65) | €20.80 |
| Children (10–18) | €18.50 |
| Seniors (65+) | €18.50 |
| Family (2 adults + unlimited children 10–18; or 1 adult + 2+ children 10–18) | €53.00 |
| Post-baccalaureate students | €6.00 |
| Caen residents | €6.00 |
| Children under 10 | Free |
| WWII veterans | Free |
| People with disabilities and one companion | Free |
The Caen City Pass offers 15% off items in the museum shop (excluding books, 5% off books).
Admission was checked on the official website and last updated in May 2026.
How to get to the Caen Memorial Museum
By car: The museum is on the north-western edge of Caen, close to the A13 motorway. From Paris, take the A13 towards Caen (approximately 2.5 hours). Signs for the Mémorial are posted throughout the city.
By train: Caen railway station is served by direct TGV from Paris Saint-Lazare (approximately 2 hours). From the station, take Twisto bus line 2 (tram) towards “Hérouville Saint-Clair” and alight at the “Mémorial” stop. Journey time is around 15 minutes.
By bus from Bayeux: Regular bus services run between Bayeux and Caen. The journey takes approximately 30 minutes.
Parking at the Caen Memorial Museum
Free parking is available on site. The car park is large and rarely fills outside the D-Day anniversary period (early June). No pre-booking is required.
How long to spend at the Caen Memorial Museum
The museum itself states that a full visit requires approximately 4 hours. This is accurate. The permanent collection is extensive, covering three major historical periods across multiple gallery wings, and the archive films take time. Visitors with less time can focus on the WWII and D-Day galleries and be comfortable in 2–2.5 hours.
Accessibility at the Caen Memorial Museum
The museum is fully accessible. Baby care rooms, equipment loan (including pushchairs), luggage storage, and accessible restrooms are all available. No pets are permitted; assistance dogs are welcome. The underground bunker (General Richter’s command post) involves stairs; contact the museum in advance at +33 (0)2 31 06 06 45 if this is a concern.
Inside the Caen Memorial Museum: what to see
World War II galleries cover the period from 1918 to 1945 in sequence: the rise of Nazism and conditions that led to war; France under Occupation and Vichy; the widening of the conflict in 1941; and the D-Day landings and Battle of Normandy. Several original military vehicles are on display. A dedicated cinema screens an archive film on the Battle of Normandy — a 20-minute summary covering events from the landings to the liberation of Le Havre.
La Shoah gallery (new, 2025) is a permanent addition covering the Holocaust, with Tal Bruttmann (a leading French historian of the Shoah) as the scientific adviser. It was not present in the museum before 2025.
General Richter’s underground bunker is the actual WWII command post of German General Wilhelm Richter, located directly beneath the museum. It operated during the first weeks of the Battle of Normandy. The bunker has been renovated and provides direct historical context unavailable anywhere else in Normandy.
“Europe: our history” is a 360° immersive film linking the Second World War and the Cold War galleries. It runs continuously on an 11-screen installation.
Cold War galleries trace the confrontation between the US and Soviet blocs from 1945 to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, with exhibits on the Cuban Missile Crisis, the arms race, and Berlin.
Patrick Chauvel photography collection and Jean Moulin Library are freely accessible without a ticket — a useful option if visiting with someone who’s not all that bothered about paying to see the other exhibits..
Practical visitor tips for the Caen Memorial Museum
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Arrive early | The museum recommends allowing 4 hours. The ticket desk closes 1 hour 15 minutes before the museum closes — an easy trap for afternoon visitors who plan to buy on the day. |
| Book tickets online | Advance booking and lets you skip the entrance queue. Recommended at any time, essential during June. |
| Combine with a beach tour | The museum’s own guided minivan tours visit Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach, and the American Cemetery. These can be booked separately through the museum and combined with a morning at the museum. |
| The Bistro is open to non-visitors | The Bistrot du Mémorial is open to all and does not require a museum ticket. It closes 30 minutes before the museum. Useful for a pre-museum coffee or a post-visit lunch. |
| Check the November closure dates | The museum closes on specific Tuesdays in November and December 2026 (4, 18, 25 Nov; 2, 9, 16 Dec). These are not public holidays — they are museum-specific closures that catch visitors out. |
Frequently asked questions about the Caen Memorial Museum
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| How long does a visit take? | The museum itself states approximately 4 hours. Visitors focusing on the WWII and D-Day galleries can complete a shorter visit of 2–2.5 hours. |
| Do you need to book in advance? | Not required, but strongly recommended. On-site ticket sales close 1 hour 15 minutes before closing. Book online. |
| Is the museum suitable for children? | Yes. Children under 10 are free. The museum has baby care rooms, equipment loan, and family visit provisions. Some WWII content is serious and may not suit very young children; judge based on your child. |
| Is the Cold War covered as well as WWII? | Yes. The museum covers the period from 1918 to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, with full galleries on the Cold War, the Berlin division, and the arms race. |
| Can you visit the underground bunker? | Yes. General Richter’s command post is included in standard admission and is one of the museum’s most distinctive features. |
Things to do near the Caen Memorial Museum
Mémorial Pegasus (Bénouville, ~15 km north-east, ticketed) covers the British 6th Airborne Division’s capture of Pegasus Bridge — the first Allied objective of D-Day — and the wider airborne operations on the eastern flank.
Abbaye aux Hommes (Caen city centre, free or ticketed for guided tour) is an 11th-century Benedictine abbey founded by William the Conqueror, partially used as a town hall. One of the finest examples of Norman Romanesque architecture.
Caen Castle (Château de Caen) (city centre, free entry to the grounds) is a large Norman castle founded by William the Conqueror in 1060. Two museums within the walls — the Musée de Normandie and the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen — are separately ticketed.
Arromanches-les-Bains (~35 km north-west, ~40 minutes) is where the Mulberry B artificial harbour remains are still visible in the sea. The Musée du Débarquement covers the engineering of the harbour and the Arromanches 360° cinema shows an immersive film on the Battle of Normandy.
Bayeux (~30 km north-west, ~30 minutes) has the Bayeux Tapestry (an 11th-century embroidered chronicle of the Norman Conquest), the Bayeux War Cemetery (the largest Commonwealth cemetery in Normandy), and a well-preserved medieval town centre.
What to visit tomorrow: WWII museums in Normandy
Airborne Museum (Sainte-Mère-Eglise, ~70 km north-west, ~1 hour) is Europe’s largest museum dedicated to the American paratroopers of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions, with an authentic C-47 aircraft, a WACO glider, and an augmented reality Histopad included with admission.
Overlord Museum (Colleville-sur-Mer, ~45 km north-west, ~50 minutes) is a private museum with one of the largest collections of restored WWII armoured vehicles in France, positioned directly alongside the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach.
American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer (free, open daily) has 9,387 graves on a bluff above Omaha Beach, managed by the American Battle Monuments Commission. No ticket is required; the visitor centre is free.
Utah Beach Museum (~80 km north-west, ~1.5 hours) covers the American beach landings at Utah Beach on 6 June 1944, with outdoor vehicles and equipment on the beach itself.
Mémorial Pegasus (Bénouville, ~15 km north-east, ~20 minutes) is the closest major D-Day museum to Caen — a natural half-day addition when visiting the Memorial on the same trip.
More France travel
Other France travel guides on Planet Whitley include:
- French castle guides: Foix Castle near Toulouse and Chateau de Castelnaud in the Dordogne.
- Loire Valley castle guides: Chenonceau Castle, the Chateau de Bouges, the Chateau Royal d’Amboise, the Chateau de Saumur and Chambord Castle.
- Important visitor information for Chateau de Compiegne and Chateau de Pierrefonds in Hauts-de-France.
- Visitor guides for National Monuments around Paris: The Chateau de Vincennes, the Chateau de Maisons and Villa Savoye.
- Planning your visit to the Airborne Museum in Sainte-Mère-Eglise, Normandy.
- The end of the First World War at the Glade of the Armistice in Compiègne.
