Hello everyone, it's been a while since I have been on here but my wife and I are finally heading back to France. The last time was 10 years ago with our daughters but this time it's just my wife and I. We plan to spend 4 days in Paris were we will be flying in and out of. We plan on also visiting the Normandy. We've been to Paris before but this will be our first time in Normandy. We would like to do a WW2 tour as well as visit Mont Saint-Michel. We also plan on renting a car so we could visit either a chateau or 2, or 1 or 2 small towns. We were thinking 4 days in the Normandy region. Any advice on areas to stay in Paris since we used a AIRBNB last time but would like to stay in a hotel this time as well as how much time do you think we should spend in Normandy. And were would you recommend staying in Normandy as a home base and for renting a car. We have plenty of time for planning as we are going in September of 2026. Thank you for any help.
Posted by
Middletown, RI
1512 posts
Since you will be visiting MSM—which is on the other side of Normandy form the D-day sites, I recommend picking up a car in Caen and dropping it off in Rennes (or vice-versa). Both have lots of rental car offices. Bayeux is a great base for the Battle of Normandy sites, and where many tour guides pick you up. I have done this a couple of times and usually stay in Paris near Gare Saint-Lazare (for the train to Caen) or Gar Montparnasse (for the train to Rennes). In addition to your tour day, plan on at least one more full day in Normandy not counting your time at Mont Saint-Michel. I usually stay for 12 days in that area and never run out of things to see.
Posted by
USA
353 posts
We spent 6 nights in Bayeux and it was good for what we wanted to see but we still want to return.