Flers Castle

Located in the heart of a park, the castle of Flers is bordered on three sides by a moat and a small pond. It consists of two wings arranged at right angles. The oldest, built in the 16th century under the leadership of Nicolas III Grosparmy is characterized by its bell roofs crowned with lanterns. The classical facade, with its monumental steps, was erected in the 18th century by Ange Hyacinthe de la Motte-Ango. Property of the Counts of Flers until the Revolution, the park and the castle of Flers are then acquired by the count of Redern then by the family Schnetz. In 1901, Julien Salles, Mayor of Flers, bought the estate on behalf of the city. The castle has undergone major renovations between 2012 and 2016.

The Castle Museum & its collections

Follow the footsteps of the men and women who made the estate! The new museography, set in 2016, gives pride of place to the history of the castle and its owners. While crossing the rooms of life of the old castle, imagine the life of the old counts of Flers and the family Schnetz. In the basement, two rooms evoke the textile past of the region.
The fine arts collection offers a wide panorama of Western painting with old paintings from Italian, French and Dutch schools, as well as paintings from the 19th century (Caillebotte, Courbet, Boudin, Daubigny, Lépine, Léandre, Schnetz). Ceramics by Jean Cocteau, bronzes by Aristide Rousaud (pupil of Rodin) and works by the fléren writer Jean Chaudeurge complete the presentation. Labeled Museum of France, it houses today nearly 4000 objects including 300 paintings.

After your lunch break in the morning, you will join one of the groups of the guided tour, to discover, this time true, the landing beaches which were the scene of many loops that allowed the liberation of France. You will go there, and among many other possibilities, to discover the history of the Canadians of Normandy. Assigned to the Juno Beach area, 14,000 Canadians landed on June 6, 1944 with 9,000 Britons and suffered heavy casualties. You discover Juno Beach, the Canadian Cemetery of Beny-sur-Mer and the Abbey of Ardenne. A tourist circuit which will reserve you nice surprises, in particular with the visit of the overturned Bunker of Graye-sur-Mer.

Bike rides: the queen activity

Cycling is the queen activity of Normandy Bocage. That is why, for several years, the Hotel Le Galion has been developing a holiday offer adapted to Cyclotourists by offering them all the necessary facilities: Bicycle parking closed and secure, triple and quadruple rooms that can accommodate groups of people. friends or family members (3 to 5 people). A washing machine is also available to Cyclotourists, for free, for washing their linen.
Hotel le Galion has the “Accueil Vélo” and “Normandie à Vélo” labels. Another advantage, and not the least, that Cyclotourists stay in Flers appreciate is access to bike wash points and access to bike repair kits at several Flers service providers located near starting points of hiking trails.