DK Travel : Normandy : Southern Normandy

From the astonishing sight of mont-st-michel , appearing like some fabulous mirage out of the pancake-flat landscape which surrounds it, to the equine elegance of the national stud at Haras du Pin or the human elegance of romantic Château d’O, this region, which consists of the département of Orne and the southern part of Manche, is crammed with history and variety. The scenery is just as varied: there’s the rugged beauty of the Pays d’Alençon in the Parc Régional de Normandie-Maine, where bands of thick forest cover the high ridges; the wooded Mortainais, with its steep valleys and exhilarating waterfalls; the gently rolling pastureland of the Perche, interrupted by cool, deep, green forests; the narrow lanes and pretty, flower-filled villages of the Pays du Bocage Ornais; and those flat salt marshes of the Baie de Mont-St-Michel.

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Musée de l’Emmigration Percheronne au Canada, Tourouvre

A recreation of the room in which 17th-century locals signed emigration contracts for Québec.
Musée de l’Epicerie d’Autrefois, Lignerolles

A nostalgic look at commerce in the first half of the 20th century.
Musée de Tinchebray et Prison Royale, Tinchebray

A chilling place, with court room, cells, and a riveting ethnographic museum.
Musée Départemental des Sapeurs-Pompiers de l’Orne, Bagnoles-de-l’Orne

A vast collection of fire pumps and other equipment traces the history of French fire-fighting.
Musique en Baie, Avranches

Avranches’ “Music in the Bay” festival stages concerts by established performers, as well as running courses for novice musicians and choristers.
Parc Naturel Régional de Normandie-Maine

With a landscape marked by escarpments and forests in the haut pays of the Alpes Mancelles, and by rolling hills, bocage and open country in the bas pays at Saosnois and around Alençon and Sées, this vast natural park dips south from Basse-Normandie into the départements of Mayenne and Sarthe in the Pays-de-Loire. Start your visit at the Maison du Parc in Carrouges, where you’ll find detailed maps and itineraries. There is also an information centre at the Comptoir du Parc in Alençon, and nature centres are scattered throughout the park.
Pontorson

Pontorson is something of a gateway to Mont-St-Michel. Its 12th-century church is a fine example of Norman Romanesque.
Sées

A bishopric since the 4th century, Sées has its fair share of religious buildings: a Gothic cathedral with a very fine interior, a former Bishop’s Palace and an abbey.
Septembre Musical de l’Orne

Churches, abbeys and châteaux throughout the Orne provide atmospheric settings for a varied programme that includes opera, chamber music, jazz and dance.
St-Céneri-leGérei

Not just pretty but officially so (listed as one of France’s top 100), this small stone village above the River Sarthe is a little gem which has inspired generations of artists.