Trouville-sur-Mer: hobo-beach-paradise.

Our first travel destination is Trouville-sur-Mer, a quaint but hopping beach town less than two hours from Paris. 

Trouville, along with its posh twin city Deauville, is located on the English Channel in gorgeous Normandy.  It makes for an easy, relaxing, affordable weekend trip and is easy to get to by train from the Gare St. Lazare. 

After your short train ride through the horse pastures and wheat fields that are Normandy, you arrive at the small Trouville-Deauville train station.    The station is technically in Deauville, so when you exit the station, turn to the right and go over the bridge to Trouville.  Now you’re on the other side of the tracks and if you’re hobos like we are, you’ll be glad.

There are two kinds of people who take this train—those going to Trouville and those going to Deauville—two completely different breeds of humanity.  Just to illustrate the point, the name Trouville literally translates as “hole town”–a perfect name for a hobo destination.  So, Trouville attracts hobos and families and Deaville attracts bobos, Hollywood celebrities, and the jet set crowd.  We prefer Trouville because of its more relaxed atmosphere, cheaper hotels, abundant restaurants, and our ability to take our three sticky-fingered brats and feel just downright at home.  Trouville is our comfort food. 

Trouville has the feel of being somewhat past its prime—it’s part Coney Island and part 1950s-era Upstate New York/Catskills summer retreat.  The small town, with a population of only 5,000 residents, consists of one main drag that spills into the beachfront area.  The boardwalk is hopping with activities.  There’s a huge casino with a cute little movie theatre, pony rides, several pétanque fields, tennis courts, playgrounds, playgrounds, restaurants, and two large swimming pools right beside the beach.  There’s also a very active marina that brings in fresh seafood daily and offers sailing lessons.  In the summertime, you can sign yourself or your kids up for all sorts of activities and sports. 

This little town is famous for a surprising number of things considering its small size.  The boardwalk is lined with spacious private homes built in the typical Normandy style.  Trouville is also an art and literary magnet—from its most famous artist, Savignac, who sometimes literally painted the town with his artwork, to Marcel Proust, who summered in Trouville. 

Trouville is also famous for its local cheeses and its seafood, both of which you can find at the market at the marina (seafood market open daily; fruit and general market open on Wednesdays and Sundays).  Also, don’t forget that this is apple country—as you arrive, look out of the train car window and you’ll see apple trees at the station.  As a result, Trouville is dripping with apple juice, cider and an apple brandy called Calvados (named after the department that Trouville is located in).   There’s a little distillery on the rue des Bains that you can tour and buy some sweet apple wine (perfect hobo wine, don’t you think?)

Also famous are the bright cabanas that line the beach every summer.  You can affordably rent your own cabana (they don’t come with cabana boys, though) for the day, week, or entire summer. 

Right off the main drag is the lovely semi-pedestrian rue des Bains and that’s where you can buy bric-a-brac, antiques, costume jewelry, fresh baguettes, Calvados and cheese and then have lunch or dinner.  We love eating at a pizzeria called Chez Lorenzo.  Tucked in among seafood restaurants, Chez Lorenzo’s pizza chef makes the best pizza we’ve tasted outside of New York City and/or Italy.  Try the Pizza Napolitaine—sardines, capers, olives—perfection.

And for dessert—Trouville is full of ice cream.  Most people buy theirs on the boardwalk, but if you look at the end of the boardwalk near the casino, you’ll find a refreshingly chic little place called Tutti Frutti.  They make their own ice cream in a gazillion flavors that give you plenty to discover.  Not all flavors are made year-round, but when they’re available the violet and blueberry sorbets are alone worth the trip from Paris.

For a quick visit to Trouville without even paying the train fare, watch the short video below and then click on the "See" tab up top for more photos.  For the rest of the scoop on this cute little beach town in Normandy, go to trouvillesurmer.org. 

Trouville-sur-Mer