These two sites – Vill033 and neighbour Vill032 – stand to the east of the town of Houlgate on the mouth of the Dives rivers.
Both sites are heavily overgrown and difficult to access, with Vill032 now standing on private land where access to the once extensive undergrown tunnel system is no longer permitted.
There are elements of the Vill033 strongpoint which can be found though but are off the public path which runs through the clifftop woodland area the site is covered by.
The easiest to find is the Leitstand observation post, the most forward of the constructions here, as it is the base of a lookout platform overlooking the town and beach.
Head into the woodland during the colder months and the vegetation is lower and enables visitors to see the remains of small constructions such as personnel shelters, a water storage bunker, and two ammunition storage buildings.
The largest constructions here were two R612 casemates for 7.5cm field cannons which faced to the west.
In comparison, Vill032 was a much more powerful defensive site with three open emplacements for 15.5cm, longer-range artillery guns. These were later replaced by R679 casemates, although only two of four planned casemates were ever constructed before the site was captured by advancing Allied forces.
R679 casemates are quite squat buildings with no rear annex rooms, and the gun was mounted on a central pivot with the frontage allowing a 120 degree of movement of the guns. Both of the two remaining casemates – in a derelict but not destroyed state – faced directly towards the sea where their targets would be shipping.
In addition, there were four R134 special construction ammunition storage bunkers and around half a dozen personnel shelters. The site was linked by a series of underground concrete tunnels, but these are inaccessible due to roof collapses and safety reasons.