D day and Mont St. Michel which one needs a tour guide more

Definitely need a guide for the D day stuff. If you're going to get a rental car, I recommend a private tour with Chris, visitdday.com. He will tailor the tour to your preferences, esp with kids I think a private tour would be so much better than a group tour. We've toured twice with Chris and he's fantastic. Go read his bio on his site.

I agree D day sites with a guide. I would also watch a few D day movies in advance.

Can't imagine why anyone would need a tour guide for Mont St Michel -- It is fairly easy to visit the D-day sites on your own but also nice to turn over the transport and guidance to a guide. We did an Overlord all day tour of AMerican sites (they also do British/Canadian tours). and really liked not having to do it ourselves.

Le Mont-Saint-Michel was quite enjoyable and easy to get around without assistance. I found that it was perfect having a tour guide for the D-Day sites. It made getting to them faster. The history lessons during the rides and while there were great also.

That’s what I suspected regarding MSM and not needing a tour so much there. Thank you so much for the replies; that really helps!

I concur with the above - one needs a guide or lots and lots of study and good knowledge of landmarks, and one doesn't.

No consideration. Get a good guide for the Normandy beaches

If you do your homework (which is a small task compared to planning a complete France vacation) neither need a tour guide. But I can't imagine having one at MSM. The excellent audio guide tells you all you need to tour the abbey, and the rest of the island is somewhat self-explanatory. Others have touted tour guides for the Normandy Beaches, and I am sure they are just fine. But I have never used one, and think that whether you use a tour guide or not, a little research, movies, books, etc., ahead of time will pay off in spades in increasing your knowledge and appreciation of what you see there. Taking a train to Bayeux (or Caen) and renting a car from there for a few days is an excellent plan.

For kids, educate them ahead of time so they know what they are looking at and the context. And I recommend not only beaches, but some of the inland fortifications like Longues-Sur-Mer, and Pointe-du-hoc, and the newly re-opened Mulberry D-day Harbor Museum in Arromanches. An excellent artillery battery that has an equally excellent audio guide that describes those who manned it and the battle to succumb it, is the Azeville battery NW of Utah Beach. And of course, visit as many cemeteries as you have time for. Not just the Normandy American Cemetery, which is a must see (and overlooks Omaha Beach), but others for British, German and Canadian fallen. I know, it's a little sobering for kids, but put in context with a little education will give your kids a memorable experience they will not forget.

DDay Beaches/Area were on my bucket list - I am a retired history teacher and I had to visit. We had planned on renting a car and going on our own but at the last minute that fell through and we had to go with a tour. It was a small group - just seven of us - and I am so glad we did that. Far better than if we had gone on our own. It is sacred ground and our guide had such reverence for the place and the men who fought there. HIGHLY recommend taking a tour for DDay sites.

Bayeaux is a quaint and lovely town in which to stay. Charming.

I would highly recommend a guide for the D-Day sites as there's a lot to see and the sites are spread out over a fairly wide area so transportation is an issue. One tour firm that's received good ratings is Overlord Tours and the cost is quite reasonable (depending on which tours you choose). Which guides have you considered so far?

Bayeux makes a great "home base" location for the tours and while there you could visit the WW-II museum as well as the famous Bayeux Tapestry. There are some nice hotels and restaurants there. IMO you'll learn far more about the history with an expert guide than by renting a car and driving aimlessly about the area.

I'm not sure a guide would be of much value for Mont St. Michel. It might be helpful to do some research with the RS France guidebook before going there.

I'm trying to make it a bit less expensive so I thought that maybe I could tour one place on my own and have a guide for the other

It sounds like you are thinking of hiring a private guide who will pick you up in Paris and drive you to these sites each day. A less expensive way to do this would be to go to stay in the Normandy area. For example take a train to Caen, rent a car there and stay in Bayeux. See the beautiful tapestry that day, next day take a guided tour from Overlords or another tour company in their van. Next day go a little past MSM and visit a town such as Dinan or St. Malo, then arrive at MSM in the later afternoon as the day-trippers are leaving. You don't need to hire a guide at MSM. Stay either on the island or across the bridge (latter is my preference), then return the car to Caen the next day and go back to Paris.

Put me in the Pharmer Phil camp. Tour guide for D-Day beaches is not necessary if you are renting a car. We visited all the sites mentioned on our own. However, I had done my homework ahead of time. The Visitor Center at the Cemetary gives an excellent overview and I cannot imagine being rushed through it (As Tours sometimes do).

Definitely take the kids to Pointe Du Hoc. At their age I would have been fascinated by the battlements and craters. Definitely be sure they know the story of what it took to attack the cliffs. The American Monuments people have an App for touring the Pointe. I did not use it so I can't vouch for it, but you should look into it. Tour or Not.

One note, my daughter was Age 20 and had never expressed an interest in WWII. Yet, she really took to visiting the Invasion sites.

We also managed Mont St Michel without a tour guide. We did not use it so we can't speak to it's quality, but there is an app for MSM too.

All great suggestions! Thanks again! I think I’ll take the train to Caen and rent a car from there and drive in the area. It sounds like it can be a bit stressful driving around Paris. Someone suggested a guide named Chris who will ride around in your car with you, so that might be a good option. It sounds like the food on MSM is mostly not so great /touristy. Any suggestions on places to stop for good food on the way to MSM from Bayeux? Or are there any places between Bayeux and MSM that would be interesting to stop in? Thanks again for all the great suggestions!

I had a fine meal at Le Mouton Blanc, which is where I was staying on the Mont. To be clear, you are there for the view and the ambiance, not the fine cuisine, but there are perfectly fine meals on the island that aren't just the overpriced, theatrically-prepared omelettes on the main drag. Unfortunately, almost all hotels and restaurants on the island are owned by the same conglomerate (The Poulard Group), and most tourists do not return, so they don't really have competition, and a vested interest in return customers or word of mouth.

OP,

Can't tell you much about the food. We just took our chances and did fine. Keep this in mind ... many, many restaurants are closed on Sundays or Mondays, especially outside of bigger cities. Plan for that. Carry some picnic food in your car.

Keeping 3 teens happy will be tough. Many will poo-poo this, but there is a small chain call "Buffalo Grill" in a few areas of Normandy. It is hamburgers, not real French, but the food was good enough that your kids should be happy. And, it was open on Sunday.

A thing about driving ... when we left Paris I rented a car at the Gare Du Nord. Didn't have any trouble getting out of Paris. But I am an adventure finder.

"Any suggestions on places to stop for good food on the way to MSM from Bayeux?"

If you hire Chris to guide you around the D-Day sites, he will know the best restaurants and be able to organize an Itinerary that includes a convenient lunch stop. You might touch base with him to get further information - http://www.visitdday.com/ . He will be able to "make the history come alive" an I'm sure it will be a memorable trip for all of you.

As you're planning to rent a car in France, an International Driver's Permit for each driver would be advisable.

I just wanted to thank the person who recommended Chris for our Dday tour. It was absolutely wonderful. My kids said it was the best tour they’d ever been on. Chris also recommended I take the free walking tour of the abbey on Mont St. Michel which was also excellent, Also thank you also to those who steered me away from full day guided tour of Mont St. Michel.

glad you had a great time! Especially for your teens. I'm wondering, what were your thoughts about the museum at the Cemetary.

And did your kids have a feeling for the bombardment of Pont du Hoc?