I am planning a train trip from Paris to Mont St. Michele and would like to know what's the closest trains station to Mont St. Michele that I can rent a car. We will be touring Normandy for a few days.
I see from the Rick Steves Normandy Snapshot the closest stations are Pontorson and Rennes, which have a shuttle bus to Mont St Michel, but I am not able to see if there is easy access at the train station to rent a car.
Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Rennes is a fairly large city so you shouldn’t have trouble finding a rental car there (never been there myself however).
When looking for car rentals in Italian towns I searched Google Maps for “car rental” in the area I wanted. When I found a location from a major brand I confirmed on that brand’s website that the location was still operating and then quoted a price.
I took a train to Rennes and picked up a car right at the station. I put my luggage in the car and asked if I could leave it there while I went for lunch in the city (that way I didn't have to tote around all of my luggage). Afterwards I drove of to see sights en route to MSM. I thought it worked out perfectly. It was a little over an hour to MSM from the station, although I also stopped at the Brittany American Cemetery in St. James on the way.
The options are either Rennes or Saint Malo. There are more rental options in Rennes, the train ride is shorter, and the drive is barely longer (unless you hit Rennes traffic at PM rush hour), so Rennes would be my first choice.
