Lynne's Travels

Bayeux and the Medieval Festival

Bayeux is a town in the Normandy region of France, 10 kilometres from the coast. Its medieval centre contains cobbled streets, half-timbered houses and the towering, Norman-Gothic Cathédrale Notre-Dame. It is most renowned for the 68-metre "Tapisserie de Bayeux", an 11th-century tapestry depicting the 1066 Norman invasion of England - which was my main reason for visiting.

The tourist information office is in the centre of the town, almost on the bridge over the River Aure - in a delightful building that blends in so well with its surroundings - blink and you would miss it. It has a great selection of books which are very reasonably priced.

Walking along the river was an absolute delight, it was so tranquil and had some great reflections, as well as waterwheels and colourful flower displays.

The town itself is almost entirely cobbled streets - with such a mixture of stunning architecture.

There are many information signs describing how old some of these houses were and what they were used for. A walking map is available to the Tourist Information office; or you will find a copy at the end of my blog.

The beauty of this town was a complete surprise to me - as was the Medieval Festival that was on the weekend I was there. Visitors were greeted by huge knights on horseback positioned on the roundabout approaching the town.

Here is a copy of the official leaflet handed out to visitors depicting the schedule of events for the festival weekend.

It was a spectacular event, totally free; with so much to see and participate in. The streets of Bayeux were lined with hundreds of stalls selling so many different crafts. There were leather goods, jewellery, glassware, armoury and swords, dressing up outfits, perfumes, garden equipment, calligraphy - too many to list them all. Visitors could also have their hair braided, face painted or try different foods - such as crepes or beignets (local apple donuts).

As well as the stalls and numerous places to eat and drink (medieval mead and ciders), there were jugglers, entertainers acting out farces, playing musical instruments and singing old songs. The crowd was enthralled (as was I) by all that was going on.

Throughout the whole weekend, there were performers in the streets, the park - everywhere you looked there was someone dressed up. Some looked rather sinister - with animal heads on!!!

Many people were dressed as vikings, as it was vikings that raided and settled in this area approximately a thousand years ago - and their history is very special to lots of the visitors. A viking camp was set up on the edge of town, another great place to explore. There were more stalls, places to eat, an area where children could play old fashioned games, with toys or even climb aboard a long ship.

Some of the "vikings" were even sleeping in their tents, and cooking their meals - as would have been done all those years ago.

It was a great place to spend a few hours seeing how people lived hundreds of years ago and to sample some of their traditional food and drink - whilst being entertained.

One of the town's other highlights is the The Notre Dame Cathedral of Bayeux, described as a masterpiece of Norman Romanesque and Gothic architecture. It can be found at the heart of the old town - and its spire can be seen from anywhere in Bayeux.

Bayeux Cathedral, also known as Cathedral of Our Lady of Bayeux, is a Roman Catholic church; and was probably the original home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which is preserved nearby.

The canopy over the pulpit is very unusual.

It is free to enter this magnificent 11th century cathedral - although if you want a guided tour, you will have to pay for that.

Opposite the Cathedral you will find one of Bayeux's prettiest cafes - "Les Volets Roses", it is the "pinkest" place! The staff are very accommodating and they serve delicious cakes.

Here are just a few shops I spotted whilst walking around the town - they are all so quirky and original.

The lady who runs the "Poppies" shop makes many of the items sold here herself - and they are very reasonably priced. You can do "D Day Landing" and beaches tours from Bayeux - so the poppy is symbolic to this area.

Another place that you must visit whilst in Bayeux is the MAHB - Museum of Art and History Baron Gerard, which is found almost next to the Cathedral, in the former 11th century Episcopal (Bishops) Palace. It is set on 2 floors and takes you on a chronological journey from Prehistory right up to the 20th Century.

The Chapel was a very ornate room with a fabulous ceiling.

There are over 250 paintings in the museum - but I loved these chairs hanging from the ceiling.

There is a whole section on the Lace making industry that was done here in Bayeux.

It is worth a visit, you don't need more than about 2 hours to see everything, and it only costs €7.50.

Next was the main reason I had travelled to Bayeux - the see the famous Tapestry. It costs €12 to get in or you can purchase a Museum pass for only a few Euros extra (to include MAHB and the Museum of the Battle of Normandy) which is well worth doing.

The Tapestry spent seven centuries in the Treasury of Bayeux cathedral, and was then moved to a number of different locations in the city, and throughout France before ending its journey in the former Seminary of Bayeux - where it has been on display since 1983.

The Bayeux Tapestry is a UNESCO "Memory of the World" designated artifact. It is a 70-meter long embroidered cloth, depicting the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England in 1066; by William, Duke of Normandy who became King of England after the Battle of Hastings. When you visit the museum there are three sections, giving an understanding of how the work was done. The Tapestry itself is presented in a darkened room, in which only the artefact itself is illuminated. You are given an audio-guide, with a commentary describing each of the 58 scenes. You are not allowed to take photographs in that room, and to see and hear the entire story takes 30-40 minutes. After looking at the Tapestry you can visit the permanent exhibition, which shows how it was created, and a overview of the Anglo-Norman kingdom in the 11th century. On the second floor, there is a 16-minute film show, screened in French and English, which shows the story told by the Bayeux Tapestry - including reconstructions of scenes from the Battle of Hastings.

On the 2nd floor there is a reproduction of the tapestry that you are allowed to take photographs of - here are just a few sections. Note that there are also narrower scenes at the top and bottom - as well as the main scene in the centre.

There is an ongoing project to construct a 3D version of the Tapestry and the first 10 metres have already been completed.

The collage below gives you an idea of how accurate the 3D interpretation is - look at the comparisons.

It is amazing that the Tapestry is still here after some of the traumatic things that have happened to it in the past - more than once it was nearly destroyed.

From September 2025, the museum will be closed to the public for two years of renovation, and it will reopen in 2027, to mark the millennium of the birth of William the Conqueror.

As with all museums, there is always a shop at the end - this one is delightful and the items sold are very reasonably priced.

The Bayeux Tapestry it is due to go on display in the Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery at the British Museum in London, in the autumn of 2026. The Museum will draw on its own collection, as well as other loans - in order to tell the story about this period of history. This will be the first time that the tapestry has been in the UK since it was made, almost 1,000 years ago – and is expected to be one of the most popular exhibitions ever. But I was very happy that I had seen it in Bayeux, which gave me far more that just seeing the Tapestry - and I hadn't seen all it had to offer. It is somewhere I can highly recommend visiting.