Le Havre Cruise Port

Le Havre, France

Le Havre is a port city in the Normandy region of northern France that is perhaps best known as been a ferry port, but it is also port of call for many cruise ships.

The port can be an incredibly confusing one for anybody not familiar with the geography of France as many cruise lines, especially American ones, often call the port Paris on itineraries.

Sometimes it will go by the name of Le Havre for Paris and whilst it is certainty a popular excursion, it is around 200km away from the French capital and even with good traffic flow, it takes around 2.5 hours.

Thankfully, there are a lot more options for those calling into the port on a cruise holiday including visiting the nearby city of Rouen or simply exploring Le Havre itself.

Cruises To Le Havre

Our Visit

We visited the city in October 2023 onboard the Norwegian Prima on a repositioning cruise between Southampton to Barcelona.

We had a full day in the Le Havre and as it was our first port of call, we were excited to get off and explore and that is exactly what we did for our visit as we would walk to the town centre, see the bulk of what is on offer and then head back to the ship in the early afternoon.

It is around a 30-minute walk from the cruise ship to the town centre although there were some shuttle buses offered for E7 when we were there.

We started off at Le Volcan, before visiting the Eglise Saint-Joseph church and then heading for the seafront.

After a stroll along the front, we took the main street back into the town centre and stopped of along the way at the cities gardens before taking the long way back to the ship, via the large Docks Vauban shopping centre.

Le Havre Cruise Guide

In this guide to the cruise port of Le Havre, we bring you all that you need to know before visiting the port on a cruise holiday.

No matter if you have booked a cruise already with a stop in the city and want to make the most of your time on shore or if you are at the research stage to see if an itinerary calling in there is right for you or not, this guide will help and is based on our own experience of visiting the port and the research that we did beforehand.

Type of Cruises Available

There are three main options available for those who want to visit the port as you can choose from round trips, repositioning cruises and mini cruises.

There is a wide range of itineraries available to those who want to sail from the UK without the need for flying, or you can head to a port such as Copenhagen or Rotterdam for more round-trip itineraries.

Repositioning options tend to be between the UK and other Northern European cruise ports although there are often some options for visiting the city on trips to the Med or even on transatlantic journeys.

If you are just looking for a few days away, or you want to try a new ship out, there are plenty of mini cruises offered that either only go to the port and then back to the UK or call into Le Havre and another nearby port such as Zeebrugge.

Every season there are a small number of cruises that start in the port, but these are usually on smaller and more luxurious cruise lines.

Le Havre Cruise Port Location

The cruise dock in Le Havre is located just to the south of the city centre and is split into two piers, the Quai Roger Meunier and the Quai Pierre Callet, which are both at the side of the main ferry terminal.

It is around and 30-minute walk from the dock to the town centre and although it is through a busy port, it is well signed posted and along well-kept pavements.

Le Havre Cruise Facilities

There are few facilities at the port aside from a pop up tourist information booth that also sells shuttle bus tickets.

Le Havre Attractions

Although it cannot be said that Le Havre is a tourist destination, there is still lots on offer for those visiting, especially on a cruise where you only have a few hours to explore.

One of the easiest to spot, as you can see it from your cruise ship, is the colourful Catene de Containers, a piece of art made up of shipping containers.

One of the highlights of a visit to le Havre is the tower of the Eglise Saint-Jospeh church which may not look to special from the outside but when you stand underneath its tower, you are in a feast for the eyes it features hundreds of stain glass windows.

The city is also home to a small cathedral, the Catehedral Notre-Dame and some smaller churches located around the city.

There is a modern art gallery on the seafront that houses many famous works of art or if you prefer seeing a bit of the history of the destination you are in, there is a museum focused on the house of a former shipowner.

If you enjoy parks and gardens, there are a few options in and around the city centre including the Parc de Roulles, the Jardins de l’Hotel de Ville and the Square Saint-Roch are all well worth visiting.

As you would expect from any city, there are a range of bars, cafes, bakeries and restaurant and lots of interesting buildings and statues to look at as you walk around the main city centre area.

Le Havre Shorex

It will come as no surprise that for a port often billed as Paris in itineraries, the main shore excursion for those visiting the city it to take the 2 hour plus journey to the French capital city.

If you have already visited Paris, or are just not interested in visiting there, there are a few other options available to visitors including the chance to explore Normandy.

The main two options for those wanting to that is to either visit a vineyard and see the regions countryside or it is to head along the coast to the D Day beaches.

Those latter trips also give the chance to visit military cemeteries in the region and see some over historic sites form both World War 1 and World War 2.

If you have a long stay in port, you can head further afield to the iconic Versailles Palace and its famous gardens.

Closer to Le Havre is the city of Rouen which offers a chance to explore its medieval streets and visit its many interesting sights, including a beautiful cathedral.

If you have already visited Le Havre and want to visit another seaside town, the nearby Honfleur is well worth visiting and can be reached on an excursion.

Best Time To Visit

It is possible to visit the port all year around and if you are heading to Paris from Le Havre, it doesn’t really matter when you visit.

If you are staying in the city itself, it is arguably best to visit during the summer months as much of your time is simply walking around and seeing what you come across.

With it not been a main tourist town, the main summer months don’t particularly get busier, so we would recommend visiting in either July or August.

Le Havre is home to a decent Christmas Market, so if you want to visit a continental Xmas market not too far from home, late November and early December is a great time to take a cruise to Le Havre.

Transport

The majority of those visiting the city won’t need to take any transportation as it is relatively straight forward to walk into the town centre and then walk around all that is on offer there.

If you have mobility issues or if you don’t want to take the 30-minute walk from the cruise dock to the city centre, there are some shuttle buses offered by the local council, which for our visit cost E7.

There are local bus services, but those are mostly to get people from residential areas to the centre.

If you want to head off and explore nearby towns or if you are in port for a decent length of time, there is a train station with semi-regular services to Paris that call into places such as Rouen along the way.

Le Havre Cruises From UK

If you want to visit the city directly from the UK, the great news is that not only is it possible, but you can do from several different UK turnaround ports. There is one of the widest ranges of itineraries of any country for visits to the city including repositioning routes, round trips and mini cruises.

Le Havre Cruises From Southampton

For the widest range of itineraries, ships and lines heading from the UK to Le Havre, it is the UK leading cruise port of Southampton that you should search for cruise holidays as it offers the widest range of all of those options.