France: Lupin in Etretat

 

Etretat sprawls below the lawn at our hotel, Dormy House. Notice the white cliffs in the distance.

      We had never heard of Etretat until we saw it in the fifth episode of "Lupin" on Netflix. We encountered it again as we were planning our spring 2025 European trip, which included several places on France's Atlantic coast. Etretat fit our itinerary perfectly, especially as we were looking for distinctive destinations. With little more than a thousand residents, it was by far the smallest town we visited.

     The town's historic claim to fame is geological, not fictional. Towering white cliffs will remind visitors of those across the English Channel at Dover. The town itself is nestled into a gap, with white cliffs at each end of the town's beachfront promenade. Hikes up and along the cliffs, strolls along the waterfront, and souvenir shopping are the main activities for tourists here. And, for us at least, a visit to a museum that was once the home of Maurice Leblanc, the creator of the fictional and flamboyant thief Arsene Lupin. An audio guide in the voices of Leblanc and Lupin takes you through the 19th-century house, including one room storing some of Lupin's many disguises. 

     We arrived on Monday, May 19, after an almost four-hour drive from Mont Saint-Michel and stayed two nights at Dormy House, which is half-way up the cliffs and overlooks most of the town.  Our two dinners included one in town at Le Bel Ami, a Lebanese-French fusion place. We had chicken schwama pate, spring rolls, and duck tournedos, among other small plates. The other dinner was much more traditional (and expensive) at The Dorny House's main restaurant.  We remember that we started with oysters but the rest of the meal apparently wasn't memorable. Which doesn't mean it wasn't good.

       Downstairs from the restaurant is the bar, which opens onto an expansive terrace and then a lawn with more seating. The bar has a memorable drinks list, including one gin and tonic made with a saffron gin. I ordered my first one for the novelty value, but my second one was because the first was so good. Whereever we went in France, and later in Belgium and the Netherlands, we encounted bars with extensive lists of continental gins (mainly French but also German) rather than the usual suspects from the United Kingdom. And some had local tonics, too. It's rare in the U.S. to find a bar with more than a handful of mass-market gins. Or a choice of tonics.

     Etretat is more a destination for French holidaymakers than for international tourists. A large bookstore specializing in Leblanc works had none in English, and neither did the museum shop. Two things about Etretat in "Lupin" we learned were total fiction. No. 1, there is no train from Paris to Etretat. There is no train service here at all. No.2: Leblanc's birthday is not celebrated each year by hundreds of visitors dressed as Arsene Lupin in black capes and tophats. But the reality of this quirky town, its stories and its cliffs were enough for us. 

     Here are some photos: 

 

Claude Monet's "Grosse Met a Etretat," an 1868-69 work at the Musee d'Orsay in Paris.

The sea was a lot calmer when we were in the same area in May 2025, 156 years later,
but the white cliffs and their natural arches remain. This is at low tide.

Erosion has created what looks like a keyhole in this outcrop.

Erosion is also responsible for spires and other formations along Etretat's cliffs. Notice
how the striations in the cliff face resemble stonework.

Steep but manageable trails lead from the beach to the cliff tops..

Near the top, the trails are away from the edge and 
traverse gentle hills, making for pleasant walks. 

Half-timbered buildings typical of Normandy line an Etretat srreet.

A sign points the way to Maurice Leblanc House.

The home of Maurice Leblanc, author of the Lupin stories, is now a museum. We toured with
English-language audio guides using the voices of Leblanc and Lupin himself to explain the
various rooms and acting out a scene with the police banging on the door, demanding
that Lupin reveal himself. Of course, he gets away. 

Restaurants are dotted along Etretat's beachfront promenade. Where the beach meets the cliff
there's a steep trail to the top, which has a prominent church. 

Our room at Dormy House had great views of the town
and the cliffs, as well as a wrap-around terrace.

That's an old-fashioned on the left along with a glass of ice and saffron gin. Add some of the
tonic and you have a wonderful and unique drink. When I finished it, I noticed that
there were a few saffron threads clinging to pieces of ice. Cheers, Dormy House!