A perfect complement to the numerous D-Day museums in Normanide. The Memorial de Caen deals only marginally with the D-Day, but deals in detail with the course of the Second World War up to the Cold War. Many reconstructed scenes from the respective time period. Be sure to use an audio guide, otherwise you have to read a lot. One of the best museums on World War II and the Cold War.

Growing up in France, I remember visiting this museum on a school trip. With this trip and the opportunity to come back as an adult, I was able to appreciate why. The museum is well organized to learn about the battle of Normandy during World War II, especially how the world went from the end of WW1 into WW2 and how the campaigns, especially D-Day, were orchestrated. Lots of interesting artifacts (some as big as tanks and planes) and really good narrative (consider the audioguide) throughout to get the most out of the exhibits. Highly recommended for all ages.

We just wanted to get an overview about D-Day. But than we read about Caen Memorial and decided to try it and we didn't regret the entrance fee (regular 25 Euro). The museum is able to put D-Day in the big picture, not only of WWII but also of WWI, illustrates how life was in France during the occupation and how much the French cities were destroyed after D-Day. If you want to save some money, you can google for a discount voucher and buy the tickets online in advance. We saved 5 Euro/ticket.

You need to allow three hours to do it justice. Superbly laid out, and very informative. It deals not only with the Battle of Normandy and D-Day landings, but also with the events leading up to it from 1914 onwards. There are a lot of very moving first-hand accounts by the local population about life under the Nazi occupation, some of which moved me close to tears. Very highly recommended.

Excellent museum. Extremely informative covering the German occupation, life under the Nazis, D-Day and the Battle for Normandy and beyond. Some Cold War exhibits and info too. Take some good shoes and be prepared, I was there over 4 hours and walked over 3 miles.