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11 nights Paris and Normandy road trip Help.

Just starting to plan a trip for mid march or early April 2025. We are fit older couple. Husband has driven many times in Italy ( last week) Ireland and Scotland. I have been to Paris and the Champagne area before. This will be husband's first trip to France. We of course want to spend some time in Paris but our wish list involves D-Day beaches tour, Bayeux, quaint towns with easy parking, Honfleur, Etrate, cathedrals, food, scenery, history, castles, Giverny, WW2 history. Mont St Michel but willing to give that up if it is out of the way or does not make logistical sense. My husband loves oysters. He also rows and kayaks. He is not a fan of art museums which is ok because I already went to the Louvre, The Musee d'Orsay. So, my preliminary thoughts were; Arrive CDG get a car and drive to somewhere near Giverny, then onto 6 other nights in Normandy area, Ending with 4 nights in Paris. We do not want to spend all day driving from place to place or spending a lot of time looking for parking. My questions;

How do I allocate the other 6 nights to Normandy given our interests? I was thinking 3 nights in Bayeux so I have 2 full days. Then where? Where is the best place to drop the car and train into Paris for our last 4 nights before we fly home? Any recommendations to where my husband could kayak or row a bit? I think Cancale is famous for oysters. Would that be a good overnight? I am just starting to think about the logistics and would prefer to keep it simple.

Thanks for your help. All ideas are welcomed. Also, I am aware that we should not plan a long drive after landing. I think that one hour should be doable. My husband sleeps on the plane with no problem.

Posted by
2493 posts

For dropping off the car on the way back to Paris, the town of Mantes-la-Jolie could be good - it’s on the train line to Gare St. Lazare, and has lots of car rental places.

Posted by
3226 posts

Are you visiting Giverny? If not, drive from CDG to Rouen (2h) and sleep there for two nights? How many nights will you be in Normandy?
The perfect place to row is the Dordogne region.

Posted by
100 posts

My tentative plan is 7 nights in Normandy and 4 nights in Paris. We would like to end in Paris because we will fly home from there. I thought we could arrive at CDG. Get a car and drive to near Giverny and stay one night. Within about one hour drive only. We do not want to do a long drive after flying transatlantic. Any suggestions for that first night stay on the way to Giverny? I will look at Mantes la Jolie for car return. Thank you.

Posted by
1331 posts

Linda,
Your plans sound very reasonable and logical. Yes, Giverny is a good choice for stopping. Do you plan to visit Monet's gardens the next morning? If so, you could drive on to Rouen that afternoonfor an overnight stay and visit to the cathedral and the stunning medieval quarter (close to the cathedral). If you chance to see the gardens on arrival day (depending on when you land at CDG, etc.), then you could leave for Rouen in the morning and make it a stop en route to Bayeux, and not an overnight. That makes Bayeux a stay for nights 2-4.
I would go to Brittany for the next leg of my trip (oysters!). Nights5-7. You won't see all of it, of course, but it has a distinct culture that appeals to many, and which I love. I'm not sure where you would take the train from for your car drop and Paris return. We almost always drive everywhere when in France, so maybe someone else here could answer that, or if it is even feasible, given the amount of time you have.
Saving Paris for the end of the trip is very smart. Have fun!

Posted by
920 posts

We just enjoyed such a trip this past April. Take a circular route. If you make your last stop Mont St Michel, I suggest dropping the car off a Rennes train station and taking the train back to Paris. It’s a nominal fee to drop off a car in a different location in France (making pre arrangements of course.) Driving in Normandy is not difficult at all. Nicely paved roads. A few toll roads. Tap in and out with a credit card. Enjoy!

Parking isn’t easy to find in Bayeux so make sure your accommodations have parking. Rouen is probably worse but there are 24 hour parking structures.

Posted by
1155 posts

Since you will have your own car, I very highly recommend that you book Chris Emery at Visit D-Day for a tour of the D-Day areas. We have done two full days with him over two different trips. Drove from Paris for the day the last time just so our son in law could tour with him. He says it was the best day of our trip. Great guy, and you can personalize for what you are interested in.
http://www.visitdday.com/home.html
They also run a B&B that is linked from his site.