In the heyday of Napoleon III, during the 1860s, boulevardiers (men about town) used to bring their wives and families to Trouville and stash their mistresses in Deauville. Deauville was just coming into existence; it's a planned city, with straight avenues and a sense of industrial-age orderliness. By contrast, the narrow, labyrinthine alleyways of Trouville hint at its origins as a medieval fishing port.
Our recommendation? Explore Trouville, enjoying its low-key charm, and when you tire of it, join the caravan of traffic that heads across the river to the bright lights and glamour of Deauville.
Les Planches is a stretch of seafront boardwalk dotted with concessions on one side and overlooking the sea on the other. In midsummer, expect lots of flesh sprawled on the sands in various states of undress. There's only one beach, Plage de Trouville (though when you've tired of it, you only have to cross the river to reach the Plage de Deauville). On Trouville's seafront is the Piscine de Trouville, promenade des Planches (tel. 02-31-14-48-10), an indoor freshwater pool that gets very crowded in summer. Depending on the season, bathers pay 5€ to 6€ ($7.30-$8.70) per person. Hours are July and August daily from 9:30am to 7:30pm, June and September daily from 10am to 7pm, and October through May daily from 10:30am to 7pm.
