Monrival Pier

Touques was the last village before the estuary and took advantage of this privileged location to create a port that contributed to its fame and fortune, from the 12th to the 19th century. In the Middle Ages, Touques was the recommended port of call for landing in the Kingdom of France. The village was frequented by Dukes and Kings, who frequently made the journey between England and Normandy; they disembarked at the port to stop off at the Château de Bonneville-sur-Touques, fortified at the request of the Scandinavian Viking Rollon, the first Duke of Normandy.

Touques boasted a bustling commercial port on the former Quais Saint-Pierre and Quais Saint-Thomas, now renamed Quai Monrival. At its peak, the port covered almost 12,000 m². Its trade was almost entirely focused on exports (wood, salt, apples, cider and calvados) delivered to far-flung destinations such as Brazil and Canada. Much less important was the import of materials such as tiles, slates and stone. From the 16th to the end of the 18th century, an average of 250 to 300 boats a year entered the port of Touques. In the 16th century, the flagship of the Normandy fleet was the "Saint-Pierre", a 500-ton vessel (33 containers) with a crew of 250.

The gradual silting-up of the Touques River, the rebuilding of roads, the detour of the Touques in 1863 to facilitate the construction of the railway line to Deauville, and the building of a bridge at Trouville in 1862, all upset the economic balance and led to the disappearance of the port of Touques in 1863.