Cruise Stop in La Harve

Is this a creative way to spell Le Havre? If so, you are aware that it takes a couple of hours to get from Le Havre to Paris?

The train station in Le Havre goes directly to Paris. You would need to taxi and then take the train to Paris. This would be a very, very quick day in Paris. I would recommend either going to Honfleur (via bus) or just enjoying le Havre (which is much different than most major French cities).

There's also an excellent award winning film called LE HAVRE that I fully recommend.

It's going to take you about 2.5 to 3 hours each way, by the time you are allowed off the boat, walk to the train station, and then one or two local trains to the St. Lazare station in Paris. Use https://www.oui.sncf/ to calculate. If the river cruise company offers transportation, it might be less cumbersome.

It's an unfortunate practice that these companies dock hours away but call the port-stop by the name of a famous city that people want to visit.

If you do go ahead and travel to Paris, the Seine boat cruises are a great way to see the city. We have been on Bateux Mouches ( opposite Eiffel Tower) and
Vedettes de Pont Neuf( at this famous bridge.)
Many of Paris’ famous sites can be seen from these boat rides. Do not do a dinner cruise.
In five trips to Paris we only did Hop on Hop Off bus once and do not remember much about it.
This is a short, and, in my opinion, a terrible way to see Paris. Go to Honfleur for the day instead, explore Normandy, if you decide to go ahead with this cruise.

In case you are not aware of it: You cannot see the inside of Notre Dame; it's closed because of the 2019 fire.

You have 12 hours ( you will need to be on board by 7 pm). You will need almost 8 hours just for transportation to and from the ship if you don't take the cruise excursion. Ship to train station, wait for train, train to Paris, taxi to your start point. Then reverse sequence. That doesn't leave much time in Paris. I agree with a PP that the HOHO bus isn't much to write home about. But the seine cruise is always worthwhile. Personally, I'd look for something closer to the port.

The others above are correct. It is just too far and inconvenient for a single trip to Paris. Look on the map. If set on seeing Paris, then I only way I would do it is with a ship excursion. That way you don't have to worry about making it back to the ship on time. It will be a herd experience you will make it there and back fairly easily. There are times with the ship excursion is the best option.

I think by now you can guess that many here believe going into Paris isn't a good plan. Not only is it a 2:21 train ride one way, trains may only leave every 2 hours, so if you miss the 8:00am train, you may have to wait until 10:00am. I understand it is tempting because you are so close, but not enough time exists to really comfortably see even the major sites of Paris.

Rouen, Honfleur and Caen are alternatives which are much closer and serviced by trains that will fit your time table without rushing you. I would suggest researching those cities and build yourself a one day itinerary. Whatever you plan, always build in enough time to get back to your ship early. Sometimes, trains get cancelled. Does the cruise ship have any excursions planned?

Thank you
I appreciate all the good advice from more experienced travelers . I think I will skip Paris.. So any suggestions of what to see instead? I really want to go to France for the food. How about Normandy or are there a better choices? We will be there 12 hours. I do not like a bus ride more than an hour. Open to suggestions.

Michelle

Rouen is a city with a large, gorgeous historic area rebuilt in the old style after wartime destruction. It has some interesting sights, but you can have a wonderful time just walking around, admiring the architecture. The train trip from LeHavre would take as little as 52 minutes, but trains are not super-frequent (though it's quite likely the current schedule is significantly affected by the pandemic and will be expanded by the time you are traveling). I'm sure there are many nice restaurants in Rouen.

Honfleur is a small coastal village, beloved by artists in the past. It is popular, and the other tourists will probably be more in evidence there than in Rouen just because Honfleur is so small. Honfleur has no train station, but a company called Busverts runs buses from LeHavre (not necessarily at the moment). Travel time looks as if it would be 30 to 40 minutes, so not bad at all. I'd recommend some online research about restaurants if you head to Honfleur and want a reliable choice for a good meal. The ratio of foreigners to French visitors in Honfleur is rather high.

Caen, as an important port, was bombed to death during the war. Unlike Rouen, it opted to rebuild in modern style, so it have very little in the way of historic architecture. The main reason most tourists would consider a visit is the very large Peace Museum. The museum offers an in-depth look at the period leading up to WW II, the war itself, and the Cold War. I liked it, but it is true that many folks find it too large, too crowded and too overwhelming; in addition, the entry fee is rather high. It takes just about a full day to see it, and most people don't want to spend a full day of their vacations at one historical museum. Most likely another destination would be a better choice for you, but as a city mostly visited by the French, it would be a good place to get a nice meal.

Michelle, You are already in the province/region/area of Normandy when you are in the town of Caen. You have two very good choices for traditional Norman towns to visit: Rouen, the capital of the Normandy region, with its cathedral that Monet painted numerous times, or Honfleur, a very interesting town, with an unusual wood-roofed church. Rouen is an hour by train, while the smaller Honfleur is 20 minutes by taxi. You can find information about what to see in each town on-line or in a RS guidebook. You can't go wrong with either. Caen is less traditional than the other two, having been bombed in WWII and then rebuilt.

If you want a good French meal, you can reserve in advance at a restaurant and order a full 3 or 4 course lunch. Look on Michelin.com for quality restaurants in those two cities. You can find articles about Normand specialties on line, but think cream, apples, Calvados, and more. Julia Child ate the meal that changed her life in Rouen on her way to Paris after landing in Le Havre.

Here's from a New Yorker article "One of the most significant meals of the last century occurred almost seventy years ago, on November 3, 1948, when Paul and Julia Child, two years wed, arrived in Le Havre on the S.S. America from New York. They were on their way to Paris:...."(Zorin, 12/2/17).

Do you think going to Rouen a better choice than the beaches in Normandy and the American Cemetery> I do hate a really long bus ride.

I really do thank you all/ You have so far saved me from a miserable day trying to see Paris from a bus window

Most of the invasion sites are difficult to manage via public transportation. I always recommend that folks take a full-day small-group tour to see them, because the guides are knowledgeable and know how to move you around the area efficiently. Most of the tours operate from Bayeux, which is slow to reach from Le Havre without a car. I believe most of the key sites are west of Bayeux, whereas Le Havre is east of Bayeux.

I don't think a D-Day tour would be practical during a cruise stop unless you signed up for one offered by the cruise line itself--and it would mean considerable time on a bus. If you have a special interest in WWII, I think a cruise-line tour of some of the invasion sites would be a good choice for you. Base on my experience, however, there probably wouldn't be time for a nice lunch if you took such a tour. Having to choose between seeing the Airborne Museum in St-Mere-Eglise and a sit-down lunch, I opted for a sandwich purchased from a bakery so I could go to the museum.

If there is such a thing, a cruise-line tour that just takes you to Bayeux and returns you to the ship at the end of the day wouldn't be a bad choice. You'd be able to see the Bayeux tapestry, the cathedral, the historic center and the excellent invasion museum on the outskirts of town. There's also the British Cemetery. There would be time for lunch, too, if it was an all-day stop in Bayeux. But I have no idea whether such cruise-line tours are offered.

Are you required to take cruise ship excursion due to Covid regulations?
If you are allowed to sightsee independently, then Tom's Port Guides are a helpful starting point (Caution: most of his trips are from several years ago, so make sure you do follow-up research for more up-to-date logistics!)

https://cruisetohome.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/lehavre-11-20-2013.pdf

https://cruisetohome.net/toms-port-guides/

Here's what our host has to say about Normandy, a good starting point for your research.

Honfleur would be the easiest choice, with ample time to see what's there and have a good lunch. About half an hour from LeHavre by either taxi or bus, then the day is yours.

Rouen and Bayeux are both very good cities to visit (one or the other, not both in one day), but I'd suggest booking a tour from the dock to either of them, whether sponsored by the cruise line or not. That way you won't have to deal with train or bus schedules and your time will be used most efficiently -- but maybe not enough for a long lunch in a high-end restaurant.

I'm a fan of the Peace Memorial in Caen, but I wouldn't recommend it with just one day in Normandy.

I agree with others that Paris seems like "a bridge too far" for your one day, but if your cruise line offers an excursion that would be the most efficient way to see what you can and be sure of getting back by sailing time. Better, though, to save Paris for a real visit later if you can.

Michelle, I just read your other thread about London pre and post-cruise.

If you have your heart set on Paris, you could consider doing a day trip via the Eurostar train on one of your full days in London. I'd not do it the day before your flight back home so it might work better on one of the 4 days you'll have ahead of your cruise.

There is PLENTY to keep you busy in London on those days and I'm not big on just doing a day trip to Paris BUT to me it would be easier to manage than trying to do a Paris visit off the cruise ship. I'd be nervous as can be worried about getting back to the port.

hey hey michelle
glad to hear you've decided against traveling to paris. posters here have given you lots of advice with things to do and see. do some research with what you want to see and do. where does your cruise start and end at and how many days?
tripsavvy.com/normandy region of france
tripsavvy.com/visit to caen, normandy
beelehavre.com
zigzagonearth.com/things to do in le havre. what is the area known for besides the D-Day attractions if not interested in doing a tour. try some of their cider and heard about their delicious mussels.
we registered on cruisecritic.com (it's free), click boards, find cruise line, ship roll calls. follow the forum and what gets posted. on our cruises we did find people willing to share cost of a private taxi tour for the area of cruise stop. researched for a taxi co in area, correspondence for what we wanted to do, cost and how many people, or his/her recommendations. you can even email tourist kiosk/info center and get info from them. tour was planned before we got to the port and had cash euros to begin. maybe someone on board has name of taxi company or you can ask at the port when you debark, what they offer, how much, how long
when we arrived for sailing we had set up a meet and greet, either at a restaurant/cafe at port on in a place on ship to meet people. we also did a cabin crawl to see different cabin categories, slot pull with about 10-12 cruisers. we had lots of fun. hope this gives you some ideas about your cruise
aloha

Is it correct you have already booked the cruise? If it's the itinerary I am thinking of from your other posts this is a circle cruise that can start from a couple different ports. I had clients that wanted to do this same cruise as well as Paris, so I booked them departing from Le Havre, and they had several days to spend in Paris before the cruise departed. Perhaps this is an option?

We took a transatlantic cruise in April 2017. Our second port of call was Le Havre. We did have the option of taking a cruise ship excursion to Paris, which as said above, was a very long day. Instead we opted to explore Le Havre. We very much enjoyed visiting the Malraux Museum: http://www.muma-lehavre.fr/en When we finished there we just went for a nice long walk, here and there. I was silly excited to buy my very first baguette in halting French. We enjoyed lovely spring gardens, lush with happy colors, including tulips. We got back to the ship long before those busloads of people who went elsewhere. Those who took the Paris excursions looked especially exhausted. So, for what that's worth. Oh, and with respect to timing, I seem to recall that those who booked excursions were allowed off the ship before those who did not, which meant we, who are not morning people, could take our time.

Donna

After all the good advice I have received here and reading Ricks book and watching his video, I think we will take the D-day excursion from the ship. I will save Paris for another trip.

Thank you to all of you, for your great input. You helped me a lot.

Michelle

I think that is an excellent decision, Michelle.

Better to skip the long haul to Paris and do Normandy. Do a tour of the D-Day beaches, cemeteries and Bayeux with its 900 year old tapestry.

Am I the only american who doesn't feel the need to see the D-day beaches? There are plenty of reminders of WW2 all over France. I've done Normandie more times than I can count but have yet to visit them. I have, however, visited Camembert.

I would probably go with Honfleur and have a leisurely day and not have to worry about missing the boat.
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2013/12/22/honfleur-picture-perfect/
Bayeux is also a good choice if you have always wanted to see the Tapestry which is worth the trip.

Maybe one of a few, Alexander.

But it could be the difference in age. A large percentage of us are Boomers who have fathers or uncles who hit those beaches, or were stationed someplace miserable for four years with little food, or saw air and land combat. If we were lucky, we grew up hearing their stories.

But you aren't alone. My French husband grew up with different war stories from the ones I heard and came to the beaches on an Overlord Tour only to keep me happy. However, he had an enormous learning experience that day that opened his eyes. He really had had no idea the extent of what had gone on. I had been to a few American Cemeteries in Alsace and Lorraine but the one at the beach was his first. He was quite moved.
Good subject and question, Alexander.

Am I the only American who doesn't feel the need to see the D-day beaches?

Probably not. I have taken an all day tour. If I were to advise anyone, I would suggest only visiting Pointe du Hoc, St. Mere Eglise and the American Cemetery. Pont du Hoc because you really can see the enormous difficulty of such a landing there with the towering cliffs. St. Mere Eglise to see the small block of space paratroopers had to land into an area filled with German soldiers and were trapped near the church. The American Cemetery to see a first class, beautiful, respectful piece of land dedicated to our soldiers who gave their lives and to discover that it is entirely administrated by the French people.

When I took a train out to Normandy from Paris I sat next to a Frenchman and we engaged in conversation. He was probably in his late 60's. He asked where I was headed and I told him Bayeux. He quickly stated, you are visiting the landings, aren't you? I said yes. He said nowhere else in France will you run into French people who appreciate Americans as much as the people of Normandy. He said to this day, the Normandy landings are required teachings in the area schools and families teach their children the significance of the invasion and the freedom the people of France enjoy, especially Normandy, owe to the Allied countries. I found the acceptance and hospitality of Americans to be quite accurate. That trip will always be a special one for me.

I don't know if you are the only one. I am sure that there are others. I think it is personal and your interest in historical events. For me it is a bit more personal as I served as a draftee in the V Nam era. When I saw the beaches my thought were how could they do it? Climb down the cargo nets, stand in a bouncing LST with 60 lb of gear on your back, and know that life is going to get very miserable in matter of a few minutes. And then visit the cemetery with the endless rows of white crosses and Stars of David. I don't know if I could have done it.

I knew I wouldn't get much out of just seeing the beaches without context, so I opted for a full-day tour. I found it very worthwhile, and if I have an opportunity to revisit that part of Normandy, I'll sign up for another tour with a different focus. For folks who are interested in the history but for whatever reason don't feel the need to stand in the spots where it happened, there area a number of very good museums in the area, most of them reachable by public transportation.

Michelle, I think you've made a great decision.

I am a boomer.. But I did not appreciate the sacrifices until I married a retired Marine. To put oneself in harms way for other ppl takes a lot. But some gave all.. We go to a dinner for Vets every year.. What moves me most is the table they set for the solider that can not be with us.. Makes me cry every year.

I think you’re right Bets, it might be an age difference. Each generation being a little more detached from it. It is not at all that I do not understand the historic impact of the events—- but i hate that when Americans hear “Normandie” that their minds go to one thing. But perhaps it’s the same with Vietnam.

Hi Alexander

I am from Viet Nam era.. It was a little different war.. But don't forget Viet Nam vets are heroes to.

Michelle

Hello
I think i can help, as i have done a lot of tours, as a tour guide, starting from Le Havre and heading to Paris on the official buses organized by the ship.
If your boat moors at 7am, it doesn't mean that you can step out at 7h01. They don't let people out immediately as they put out the gateway for people to leave the boat.
You would have to find a taxi to the station, get to the train station, take the train to Paris (2 hours) and then you arrive at St Lazare Station. THe closest hop on buses are near the Opéra, so probably it would be near 10h30 or 11h, depending if you got a train immediately. You mention Notre Dame but it can only be seen from a distance at the time. THe chruch square in front of it is closed.
As a reference, official buses were often leaving at 8 from Le Havre and a non stop drive already took 2h30, and with a toilet stop on the highway the drive was 3 hours to reach Paris. Then people saved time as we used the bus we were on to do the city tour, while you would have to walk
And then the hop on buses are not working these days, so as i cannot see what day your cruise is planned (am guessing not before spring) you would have to check on L'opentour or THe BigBustours paris if they operate on the day you plan to come.
So , doing a tour to Paris on your own would not leave much time. If it is your dream and you never plan to come back, then do it. Otherwise i would recommend a more peaceful time : the Landing Beaches are perfect (official tours are bis buses with 40 people) or smaller private companies like overlord tours have small 6-7 people so more intimate )
Or Honfleur is nice but little ( i don't like at all Le Havre which was recommended above, all grey concrete, not my thing)
Or Rouen (a one hour train from Le Havre) beautiful city well restored.

I appreciate your input.. I have decided to do the cruise ship tour of Normandy.

Thanks for all your help.. Maybe you can tell me about Dublin.. I have other posts and I love the advice I get here.

Michelle