2nd Reality Check. 2nd longest day. Rouen to Bayeux via Etretat, please

My day started in Paris and ended in Etretat, through Rouen. I took a train to Rouen, walked around the center and had lunch, picked up a car, drove to an Airbnb in Etretat, went to see the cliffs until sunset, then got dinner.

I'd suggest Fecamp. It's a little less touristy (a working port town) than Etretat (casino and tourist oriented center) but has the same cliffs. Both towns have a church that overlooks the town just to the north. In both, you can see the church from anywhere and navigate to it. Park at the church and walk to the trail above the cliffs for great views. Both towns have a similar trail south of town. In Etretat, most of the crowd starts at the beach and hikes up to the southern trail. Afterward you can go into town to visit the beach/ocean area.

When you're done, head to Honfleur. It's also quite touristy. I skipped it because I planned to see similar but less touristy port towns in Brittany. I got up and drove to Bayeux without stopping. After you have a look around and get lunch, it's not far to Bayeux. I can't recall how long it took me to get from Etretat to Bayeux, but it wasn't long. I spent a few hours there then drove 1 1/2 hours to MSM and stayed near there. I enjoyed seeing the tapestry but I heard something about it being on loan to England (not sure if that starts this year?).

Thanks again Brad,

Not sure about the tapestry traveling (I thought it had never left Bayeux except for the short time the Nazis moved it?). But near as I can tell from the Bayeux Museum website, it is there for the viewing. We'll be spending two nights in Bayeux, then driving to Saint Malo for two nights. Will do MSM en route.

Thank you for the tip on Fecamp, I'll look into it. My husband just wants to see the cliffs so it matters not what city we see them from.

You have no worries re the Tapestry, the idea has been put forward for it to travel to the UK for a while but not till 2020. But there are alot of hoops that need to be jumped first, so who knows if it will actually happen...

Keep in mind Honfleur is a docking point for the river boats so you may get there on a day that there are quite a few in dock. This may affect how busy the restaurants are. The ships are the smaller kind with I think around 150 passengers but I was there (on a tour of course, hahaha!!) when 6 had docked and the restaurants around the harbor were teeming. I just ate a snack in the gardens away from the cute little harbor area. There was a market set up in the square in front of St Catherines the day I visited so that's also a food possibility. That church was so interesting with the double naves. If you walk toward the church there are many restaurants away from those that line the harbor that may be less busy.

I'm glad you are spending two nights in Saint-Malo. I loved it! Two nights gives you time to work with the tides to walk out to the 3 little islets that can only be reached at low tide.

Thanks Pam. No, I was not aware of the river boats. Sigh. Well we'll have to play it by ear. Really looking forward to visiting that church. My DH loves all things sailing, ships, and ocean.

Well, if it's teeming we won't stay long I suppose. Thank you for the warning so I know what to possibly expect.

Very much looking forward to Saint Malo! We'll be sure and walk to the inlets.

To get to the church it will just be a matter of threading thru those that are in the dock area altho I don't know anything about parking. You'll lose most of the crowd as you move away from there and up the street to the church.

Okay great. I read somewhere there is plenty of parking outside the main harbor area and it's easy to walk in. But I better double check that because it's been a long time since I saw that. Thanks.

I don't think you'll have any trouble covering those destinations that day. It will most likely be less hectic than the wedding day was, right? Congratulations!

I think you will find your morning to be rushed, and that you won;t have quite so much time on the ground as you think.

But maybe you'll get lucky. I hope you are. Happy anniversary.

Ha ha Dick! You're probably right about that! Thanks for the vote of confidence.

Adam, you know I've thought of that. But I figure in order to avoid that rushing thing, what we'll do is we'll prioritize Etretat and the cliffs, and if that means staying there till lunch and having to bypass Honfleur on this trip then so be it. We'll head straight to Bayeux, and wave to Honfleur this time around. But I'm hoping we'll get it all in, it's a Tuesday, in April, hopefully the crowds won't be terrible. The days are long'ish. Who knows. We'll be happy either way. and thank you!