Wondering whether seeing both memorials in two days is doable? Also where to stay. Any recommendations for hotels? Will be driving.
Posted by
IJzendijke, The Netherlands
1980 posts
Certainly doable to my opinion, why not? Depends ofcourse the time you arrive in Calais, but you can drive to Juno beach the same day or getting as close as possible after visiting Vimy Ridge .
Posted by
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
4049 posts
If you consult Google Maps you can get an idea of how realistic (or not) this project will be. Google estimates the drive to the Juno Beach centre at 3 1/2 hours, then onwards to Vimy at close to 4 hours. Add in something for traffic delays and you will spend much of your day on the road. You will "see" these landmarks pretty much in passing, without time to understand them.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
It is one of those cases of "if I wanted to go there I wouldn't start from here". Vimy ridge is near Calais (map here), but nowhere near the Normandy beaches (map here and here). They chose Normandy because it was nowhere near the obvious place to land - Calais.
What are you using for transport? You need a car to visit both sites. Are you intending to pick up a hire car in Calais? Calais port is no longer designed for foot passengers and probably hasn't got a car hire office, they all use the Eurostar.
One option is to get the Eurostar to Lille, pick up a car there, one day Vimy and one day Normandy beaches (really needs 2). Hand in the car say in Caen, and onward by train to Paris.
Posted by
8 posts
We were based outside Calais in a farm house for a week's stay in the region and also recommend visiting the German underground headquarters bunker in St. Pierre Park. It's small, but an interesting part of WWII history often overlooked. The famous statue by Rodin is also in the area, "Les Bourgeois de Calais". Across the street from the park and the statue is a government building, so it's hard to miss.
We drove to both Juno Beach and Vimy Ridge as well as several other WWII landmarks. I suggest, as did another commenter, that you 'google' the sites and plan accordingly. Since we were staying in a farmhouse, I have no recommendations on hotels. We were there in the month of June and had no problem getting around. Enjoy your time in the Calais area.