REGULAR readers know that Normandy is my favourite part of my beloved France, and that the French Impressionists are my all-time favourite painters.

You can imagine, therefore, my unbounded enthusiasm for the dazzling tourism initiative 'Normandie Impressionniste', the huge summer programme of events and exhibitions celebrating the region's role as the cradle of the19th Century artistic movement which included masters such as Monet, Manet, Renoir, Pissarro and Gaugin who are among the world's most revered artists.

This multi-disciplinary celebration - its title is easily translated as 'Normandy Impressionist Festival' - combines world-class exhibitions of paintings through to cinema, theatre, dance and photography, as well as nocturnal light shows, firework displays, River Seine cruises - and even family 'Déjeuner sur l'Herbe' picnics inspired by Manet's famous painting of the unclothed girl dining outdoors with fully-dressed men. There really is something to excite and entertain every visitor.

More than 200 special events will be taking taking place all over Normandy in July, August and September. This is not so much a picnic as a veritable FEAST of artistic activities, making it arguably Europe's greatest cultural event of 2010.

I can think of no better way for the growing numbers of cultural tourists from our part of the world to discover the wonderful treats in store for art-lovers during the weeks ahead in Normandy. You should combine the culture with visits to the coastline. Over the many years I have been exploring this, the closest French region to Ireland, I must have travelled every inch of its 370 miles of breathtaking beaches and bays. Gastronomy is also a big draw to this abundant larder, full of superb cheeses and seafood. Bon appetit!

Getting there is easy. Paris is on the doorstep of Normandy and Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport is well served by my favourite airline, Flybe from George Best Belfast City Airport.

Visit the dedicated festival website for information on what's on every day and to get top tips on making the most of your visit- www.impressionism-normandy.com.

I have chosen some of my own particular favourites among the cities, towns and villages which are hosting outstanding events.

Le Havre: Birthplace of Impressionism

LE HAVRE can lay claim to the title "Cradle of Impressionism" It was there, in 1874, that the young Claude Monet got out of bed before dawn and painted the canvas "Impression: Rising Sun" in the open air at the mouth of the Seine, which is what the local painter Eugene Boudin taught him to do. When it was exhibited in Paris, an art critic used the word "Impressionist" to demean the loose, urgent, brush strokes of Monet and his friends. The name stuck…and a movement was born.

Normandy's main city has a strange and fascinating beauty: it combines the attractions of a busy metropolis with architecture listed in the World Heritage Sites catalogue, the dynamism of a major European port and the charm of a seaside resort.

Focus of attention during this summer's Festival is the MALRAUX FINE ARTS MUSEUM, which already houses more impressionist paintings than any other in the world - except for the MUSEE D'ORSAY in Paris.

The Malraux Museum is hosting 'Unpublished Degas works from the Senn Donation' until September 19th. The collection is made up of 205 artworks including an exceptional group of mainly unpublished drawings and pastels by this popular Impressionist. Such is my own admiration of Edgar Degas that I sought out his grave in Montmartre Cemetery. It took ages to find it because it is mapped as De GAS, his real family name…

I first fell in love with Le Havre when it was the main gateway to France of the former Irish Continental Line. Rolling off the car-ferry for breakfast at Sainte-Addresse around the coast signified the start of three week's French Leave with my family. Happy days!

TOP TIPS IN LE HAVRE: Check out the HOTEL NOVOTEL for reliable accommodation and RESTAURANT PARFUM d'EVASION for recommended dining.

Going northwards from the Seine Estauary with the sea on your left, follow the 'canvas trail' along the Alabaster Coast which has been the inspiration of many painters since being discovered by the Impressionists.

Etretat is renowned for its stunning cliff formations, including the chalk needle and Elephant's Trunk. Monet in particular loved the latter. I have a pen with a tiny repro of it on the cap! Visit www.etretat.net

Just to prove that Normandy can organise great attractions other than Impressionist Festivals, later this month more than 400 competitors at four different golf courses (Dieppe, Etretat, Le Havre, Rouen) will be brought together over three days, July 23-25!

Rouen: Inspiration of many masterpieces

ROUEN, historic capital of Normandy, played a major role in the story of 19th century art. Although the city had attracted artists since the Renaissance, it reached the height of its popularity during the Impressionist period, thanks to its vibrant industry, spectacular location and unspoilt architectural heritage.

This city - which Pissarro found "as beautiful as Venice" quickly became an emblematic centre of modern art.

Its Cathedral was immortalised by Monet who painted its façade more than 30 times. It is also known for its connection with Joan of Arc who was condemned to death and burnt at the stake on the Old Market Square in 1431. Check out www.rouentourisme.com

The Festival's biggest exhibition is being held in the ROUEN FINE ART MUSEUM: "A City for Impressionism: Monet, Pissarro and Gauguin in Rouen".

The show comprises about 130 canvases devoted to the city "of a hundred steeples" by the greatest Impressionist masters. This is THE truly unmissable show of the whole Normandie Impressionniste Festival, bringing together an ensemble of works from public and private collections from all over the world, including many which have never been exhibited in France.

It explores one of the last main themes in the history of Impressionism not to have been the focus of an exhibition until now: the Norman city as a laboratory for modern art, poised as it was between urban activity and industry, all reflected in the tranquil waters of the Seine.

In addition to presenting the scores of works on display, the exhibition catalogue demonstrates the vast amount of research carried out for the exhibition and will contain essays by experts on Impressionism from across the globe. This is a collectors' item!

TOP TIPS: I suggest that you check out the the brand new Four-star hotel, the grandly named Hotel "Bourgtheroulde Camp du Drap d'Or".

Giverny: More than Monet's Garden

ON MY latest visit to Monet's world famous garden, I bought a multi-pocket gilet jacket in the Monet Boutique with the village name embroidered on the chest - so I can genuinely claim that GIVERNY is close to my heart! I also acquired a collection of seeds from the master's garden which have resulted in a blaze of sunflowers, gazanias and other exotic blossoms flourishing at this very moment on my home patch.

The IMPRESSIONISMS MUSEUM in this charming village on the banks of the Seine is benefitting from the overflow of garden visitors. Important exhibitions are being held,dedicated to showcase the international character of the Impressionist movement, starting with a collection of around 50 Views of the Seine by the likes of Boudin, Sisley, Renoir, Matisse (and my favourite Van Gogh, a Post-Impressionist).

Claude Monet's water-lily paintings have long been synonymous with the Impressionist movement. To see the actual floating flowers that inspired this genius, you have to visit his Garden just outside the town, developed by him from 1883 until his death in 1926. By 1887, the village had become an artists' colony, with painters, writers and art students arriving daily by train and carriage from Paris. This influx of artists created a demand for cafés, convivial haunts such as Hotel Baudy and studios, thereby securing Giverny's reputation as a haven of creativity which exists to this day, evidenced by the number of little studio/galleries

TOP TIPS: Stay nearby at the Brunet family's excellent chrome-yellow B&B, LA RESERVE www.giverny.fr/LA-RESERVE

and go early in the morning to Monet's House and Garden as it gets very crowded. When I was last there, the Dalai Lama was being shown around.

Honfleur still as pretty as a picture!

ITS NATURAL setting, between the Channel and two hills, makes the mediaeval port of HONFLEUR one of the most picturesque places in France and a magnet for artists from 1820 to the present day - as my photo shows.

The EUGENE BOUDIN MUSEUM is named after the artist most famous for his little paintings of Victorian ladies with voluminous gowns and umbrellas, sitting (and presumably sweltering) in the sun on the sandy beaches of Deauville and Trouville. To celebrate the Festival, the museum has gathered together a fine collection under the title 'Honfleur: Between Tradition and Modernity 182-1900 'retracing the vastly different styles of painting the town has inspired before and after Impressionism, from Corot to Vallotton.

It is life-enhancing just to wander around the old port, stopping for a coffee or a platter of 'fruits de mer' on the quayside, while watching bus-loads of amateur artists disembark to sketch the iconic merchants' houses which are instantly recognisable from a million prints and tea-towels.

Along the Floral Coast is DEAUVILLE which has been hugely popular with holidaying Parisians plus English aristocracy and painters since the early 19th century and is still a place of inspiration for artists, more recently, the annual Festival of American Cinema attracts the likes of Robert de Niro and Woody Allen. Visit www.deauville.org

TOP TIPS: With its green half-timbering, unusual stonework and quaint turrets, the HOTEL NORMANDY BARRIERE is renowned for its charm and conviviality. Look at www.lucienbarriere.com. For fine dining, nearby CIRO'S is top-class. Across the River Toques in TROUVILLE, I urge you to stay at the family-run HOTEL FLAUBERT where we loved the first-floor room overlooking the boardwalk. Visit www.flaubert.fr for special rates. Dine at the seafood specialists LES VAPEURS; expensive, but good.

Caen: Little City of Surprises

ONE OF THE surprising venues during the Normandy Impressionist Festival is the little city of CAEN which is better known as a place of World War Two pilgrimage, thanks to LE MEMORIAL, a vast world-class Museum of Peace that has kept me enchanted and engaged for a whole day. Do not miss it! However, the Festival focus is on CAEN MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS. This is a boldly modernist concrete building which is showcasing a most unusual collection 'Impressionist Engravings: Treasures from the Bibliotheque de France.' Some Impressionists were quick to experiment with the possibilities of newly-emerging photographic techniques of the 1880s to reproduce their works, for example. Hundreds of prints from Corot onwards are fascinating for afficionados.

TOP TIP: In Caen, I heartily recommend LE CLOS SAINT MARTIN www.leclosaintmartin.com which is a superior B&B close to the city centre. Spacious rooms and great breakfast!

Sightseeing and shopping are pleasurable in a compact city where everything happens between the massive Ducal Chateau and the Hotel de Ville with its dazzling floral displays. It's hard to believe that Caen was 70 per cent destroyed in 1944 and rebuilt stone by stone.

Organising a brilliant Impressionist Festival is, therefore, easy for the hard-working, resolute and imaginative people of Normandy!