Caen Memorial Museum Tickets: how to buy and prices

After Paris, the Caen Memorial Museum is the most visited museum in France. It is a space of approximately 14,000 m² and a park of 35 hectares, where you will find the museum building , the shop-bookshop, the media library and a series of monuments distributed in the open gardens of the site.

This visit has become one of the best things to do in Caen and, therefore, one of the most popular among locals and tourists alike. Therefore, you should hurry and buy your tickets, as they sell out easily.

The best option

Caen Memorial and Museum Tickets

Entrance to the Caen Memorial Museum

You will see permanent and temporary exhibitions that review the events of the Second World War, the Cold War and the conflicts of the 20th century. You can also visit the bookshop and buy some souvenirs.

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With tickets to the Caen Memorial Museum you will have a clearer vision of the events that marked history during the 20th century (the Second World War, the Normandy landings, the Cold War). The museum offers a series of exhibits, sculptures and monuments, preserved over the years.

Since its foundation in June 1988, the Memorial Museum has set itself the objective of offering its visitors a walk through the wartime past experienced by mankind and, at the same time, promoting peace. An example of this is the statue The Knotted Gun, by the artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd, which encourages non-violence, the gardens that commemorate all those who have fallen in war, among others.

Recommended if... you are interested in war and want to review the historical events that shook the world in the 20th century.

Tickets to the Ca en Memorial Museum can be purchased for an average price of around 22 euros per person.

However, if you are over 65 years of age or a child between 10 and 18 years of age, you will be able to enjoy a reduced price of around 17.50 euros. This saves you €2.3 compared to the cost of general admission.

The Caen Memorial Museum has general admission, reduced admission and free tickets. There are also paired and family tickets. All of them, with the purpose of giving you several options, to explore the history of the Second World War, the Cold War and much more.

• General admission: this ticket provides access to all the rooms of the museum.
• Reduced admission: for people over 65 years old, military personnel, teachers, children from 10 to 18 years old and accompanying persons of disabled people, who pay 17,50€.
• Free admission: this is for children under the age of 10, disabled persons, journalists, veterans, war widows, job seekers and local guide-interpreters.
• Paired ticket: with these tickets you can complement your visit to the Museum with other destinations. This is the case for Caen Memorial + Arromanches 360 Circular Cinema (about €23 per person), Caen Memorial + Falaise Memorial (about €24 per person) and Caen Memorial + Falaise Memorial + Arromanches 360 Circular Cinema (about €28.50 per person).
• Family ticket: this is a pass which costs €51 and includes entry for two adults and one child (10-18 years) or two children and one adult.
• Adult group tickets: this option applies to groups of more than 20 people.
• School group tickets: for groups of at least 15 students in the secondary, primary, Normandy secondary and Normandy school categories.

Regarding skip-the-line tickets to the Caen Memorial, you should know that the museum does not offer this option. However, you can avoid queues by planning your visit and buying your ticket in advance.

No. Admission to the Caen Memorial Museum is not included in any tourist pass. In fact, the city does not have such a system (tourist cards) as part of its cultural and leisure offer.

The Caen Memorial Museum has a system of guided tours, aimed especially at families, students (primary, secondary and university) and teachers. This is a worthwhile option , as it will allow you to obtain more detailed information about each of the exhibitions.

The guided tours available at the museum include the following:

• General guided tour: during this tour of the Memorial, the guide will tell you about the history of the Second World War. The price of the experience starts at €18.70 per person.
• Family tour: The family guided tour takes place during the school holiday season and costs an additional €4.50 (adults) and €3.50 (children aged 8-18).
• School visit: this one and a half hour visit is adapted to the educational needs of students (primary, secondary, university). The activity takes place in groups of 15 people.

Whichever guided tour you wish to take part in, tickets must be purchased in advance. You can contact us by email at [email protected] to clarify any doubts you may have about the booking.

Yes, the Caen Memorial Museum has discounted tickets for people over 65 years old, children from 10 to 18 years old, people accompanying a disabled person, military personnel and teachers. In any of these cases, you will get a special price of around €17.50, i.e. €2.3 less than the normal adult rate of €19.80.

In addition, students and citizens of Caen pay an entrance fee of around €5, thus obtaining a discount of around €14.8.

Apart from the reductions mentioned above, you can also benefit from a full exemption on the general price. This is through free admission, which applies to children under the age of 10, ICOM members, journalists, veterans, disabled persons, job seekers, war invalids or war widows.

To enjoy any of these special rates, you will need to present your current ID card at the museum's ticket office.

The Caen Memorial Museum does not have any special tickets for children. However, children under the age of 10 can enter the museum free of charge.

In addition, for primary and secondary school children, who come to the museum for a group visit (minimum 15 people), a guide and educational material will be provided. In this way, the little ones will understand the events of history in the most appropriate way for their age.

Buying tickets online for the Caen Memorial Museum is a really worthwhile option, as it allows you to secure the exact day and time of your visit. You will save significant time by not having to wait at the ticket office to pay.

If you choose to purchase tickets directly from the ticket office, you should be aware that there may not be immediate availability and you may have to wait 30 minutes, an hour or more. This is due to the large influx of locals and tourists at the Caen Memorial.

The doors of the Caen Memorial Museum usually open at 09:00 and 09:30. These opening hours depend on the time of year when you visit.

For example, if you decide to visit the museum in the last week of January, in February and March, the opening hours are from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. From April to September the opening hours are from 9:00 to 19:00. From October to December, you can enter from 9.30am to 6pm.

The Caen Memorial Museum is closed on Mondays in November and December, except on the 24th and 31st December. You will also find the building closed on certain public holidays in France. This is the case on 25 December, 1 January and the month of January (except for the last week).

The Caen Memorial Museum is designed to be visited in just over half a day, as it is a huge place. Therefore, one or two hours will not be enough for you to appreciate the wealth of history to be found in all its rooms and open spaces.

Ideally, you should take a leisurely tour and enjoy each of the collections and the sensory stimuli that accompany them. You will also have the opportunity to delve into history by visiting the underground bunker, the gardens with the accompanying monuments and other spaces.

But if you don't have much time in your itinerary because you have to attend some of the best tours and day trips from Caen, then the best strategy is to take a scenic tour of the World War II, Normandy Landings and Cold War exhibits.

Any time is a good time to visit the Caen Memorial Museum. However, there are specific times when the tour is more convenient due to the low crow ds. You will be able to walk through the rooms more freely, stopping in front of each exhibition without anyone getting in the way.

For example, if you go to the Caen Memorial Museum in the early hours of the morning (9:00 or 9:30 am), you will notice that there are few visitors in the rooms. This is also the case three hours before closing time, which is usually at 18:00 or 19:00.

On the other hand, the busiest times of the week are Thursdays and Fridays between 11:00 and 16:00.

Getting to the Caen Memorial Museum is a simple task, which you can do by public transport or by private car.

In the first case, i.e. by public transport, you will have to get on the Red line 2 in the city centre in the direction of La Folie - Memorial. And, if you are at the train station, then you will have to take the circular line Ellipse 6a or 6b.

If you have decided to drive yourself, you will have to travel a route of approximately 3.9 kilometres or 9 minutes from the centre of Caen. Just follow Rue de Rosel in the direction of Av. du Général Dempsey. Then turn right onto Av. du Maréchal Montgomery.

At the Caen Memorial Museum you will find an impressive historical record of one of the most important war events in history, the Second World War. You will feel like you have stepped back in time as you look at the various exhibits, sculptures and monuments preserved in its rooms.

The Second World War and Normandy Landings Hall

As you enter this room you will see the Enigma machine (used by the Nazis), war uniforms, yellow Stars of David (used by the German-Jews), weapons, gas masks and political posters.

You will also see recreations of the streets of the countries in combat, the maps used by the generals to decide the strategies during D-Day. You will also find on display tanks and combat planes, rifles, portraits of Stalin, Mussolini, among others.

Cold War Room

In this room you will have the opportunity to observe the recreation of a Russian and an American house, which will allow you to learn about the cultural, ideological and social differences between the two nations.

There are also exhibits with artefacts and information related to the beginning of the Cold War, the loss of power of the USSR, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the covert missions, the Chernobyl nuclear accident, counter-espionage and much more.

The underground bunker

In this on-site museum set in an original bunker dug into a monumental rock (3 metres high and 70 metres long) used during the Second World War. You will see communication equipment, old posters, artefacts and more.

The gardens

At the entrance of the Caen Memorial you will find a garden area with one of the 31 replicas of the sculpture The Knotted Gun by the Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd.

In addition, you will enjoy three memorial gardens:

• The American Garden (1994), with 50 plaques representing the states of the USA and an imposing fountain as a symbol of freedom.
• The Canadian Garden (1995), with the 122 communes liberated by Canadian soldiers, represented on a memorial wall.
• The British Garden (2004), which honours 15 British divisions with a series of sculptures.

If you want to improve your experience during your visit to the Caen Memorial Museum, you should put some basic tips into practice.

For example:

• Buy your tickets online and thus guarantee the time and day of your visit.
• Check the museum's internal rules and avoid any mishaps.
• Do not take your pets with you, as they are allowed in the museum, unless it is an assistance dog.
• In case of disability, be sure to inform the museum staff in advance.