Close-up of a blue rope coiled around a post on a dock
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A peaceful dock with boats and colorful ropes.

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Estelle Hertault Cdt50

Nooks and crannies of La Manche

Port racine, the smallest port in France

Port Racine: the most picturesque harbour in La Hague, but also the smallest working harbour in France!

Welcome to “Little Ireland”, one of the most charming anchorages on the Cotentin peninsula. You have to go there because it’s at the end of our département, but the scenery is well worth the trip!

What’s Port Racine?

Discover this place of rare beauty: one of Jacques Prévert’s favourite spots, where he owned a house in nearby Omonville la Petite.

It’s a small but beautiful corner of paradise at the westernmost tip of the Cotentin peninsula, in Saint-Germain-des-Vaux.

With a surface area of 800 m² and an opening between the 2 piers of 11 metres,this harbour is reputed to be the smallest in France. Only boats 5.50 m long and 2 m wide can access it. This Lilliputian haven is nestled in a landscape that irresistibly evokes Celtic scenery, hence its nickname of “Little Ireland”.

Today it is home to around twenty much more peaceful craft. These are the modest boats of pleasure fishermen and holidaymakers who are endlessly seduced by the gentle way of life here. These colourful canoes are moored to ropes running from one jetty to the next.

If you haven’t been here before, come and soak up the light and the sea spray as you venture out to this cove, with its views of some of the finest Normandy has to offer. You’ll glimpse vast, green natural spaces plunging into a sea of changing colours, unspoilt cliffs and timeless calm. Authentic charm, pure bliss for lovers of natural beauty.

An essential stop-off on the Douaniers trail!

Want to see the countryside in a different way? It’s so easy, why not take a walk along the coast? Leave your car behind and take the coastal path, the GR223. This will take you to Port Racine, where you can continue your walk or hike along the cliffs to discover the coastline of La Hague.

Discovering Port Racine after walking along the Douaniers path plunges you into a dreamlike setting, a little corner of paradise conducive to imagination and daydreaming. It was one of Jacques Prévert’s favourite walks. It’s not unusual to come across a painter or photographer trying to immortalise the exceptional charm and originality of this place.

    • The Maison Jacques Prévert in Omonville-la-Petite: Jacques Prévert (1900-1977) fell under the spell of the Hague and bought this house in “this corner of paradise”, where he spent the last years of his life. The atmosphere here is that of the family and their many friends. A collection of original works illustrates the writer’s life.
    • The Ludiver planetarium in Tonneville: this tourist and educational site invites you and your family to discover astronomy, the conquest of space and our planet’s environment in a fun and interactive way.
    • Vauville Botanical Garden: also known as “the traveller’s garden”. Covering 4.5 hectares, it is home to more than 1,000 species of plant from the southern hemisphere.
    • The nose of Jobourg: a long, craggy promontory with high cliffs. This is a site of rare beauty and offers a grandiose spectacle, especially when the sea is raging and the waves are crashing against the rocks.
    • The port and lighthouse of Goury: at the end of the world, Goury is an extraordinary place. Here you can see the port, the lighthouse, the lifeboat station and the famous “Raz Blanchard”, one of the strongest currents in the world. You can also discover the semaphore and its low stone walls typical of La Hague.

Other ideas for visits

near Port Racine

Complete your visit!

Did you know? Where does the name Port Racine come from?

This little harbour owes its name to one of the last privateers, Captain François-Médard Racine (1774-1817), who under NapoleonI established his base in this isolated, almost hidden spot. He wanted to shelter his ship “L’Embuscade”: an ideal base from which to attack English ships.

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