Day trip to Bayeux from Paris- No, right?

I agree with those who say that Bayeux is NOT a day tripping idea.
We stayed 3 days and used 1 whole day for an 8 hour tour of the beaches, cemeteries, small towns with significant history re D-Day.
We did another whole day tour to Mount St. Michel - it is quite a ride from Bayeux.
We booked all day tours through Viator.com, they are a consolidator and they hooked us up with all day tours to these 2 places ( with overlord tours). IMHO it was great to have a knowledgeable tour guide who drove us in a nice van (each day same van, and same guide) he knew so much about the area, the history, the shortcuts, we walked on several of the famous beaches for a short bit and toured at least 3 of the famous cemeteries. (We were at the American Cemetery at 4:00pm when the flags are lowered and the US anthem is played by a military band)
For Mount St. Michel - we arrived mid morning and walked/hiked to the church at the top of the Mount. We learned all the history and had a great lunch in a small cafe about 1/2 way back down the mount. Even some time to do a bit of shopping.
I have been to both of these places in the past, but got so much more out of it with all day tours and a knowledgeable guide. You can find many tour companies and reviews of guided day tours on google.

I've done it in a day and it's completely do-able. Yes, it's a long day, but the train is an the opportunity to rest, read, relax -- so it didn't seem too taxing to me. We took one of the first trains of the day to Bayeux, leaving Paris maybe around 8AM. Arrived in Bayeux with enough time to walk around quite a bit. If we'd wanted to, there would have been enough time to view the tapestries but it was a gorgeous day and we preferred to walk around instead -- visited the cathedral and market, had a picnic lunch, and then joined a tour to the beaches/cemetery shortly after lunchtime (we used Overland). I'm normally not a big tour person, but in this case it was great because the groups were small and nimble (I think there were 6 of us). The guide was great and we had time on our own to walk around the sites and absorb. Even the ride between the sites was great -- beautiful countryside. If you're tight for time it might be worth thinking about a van tour versus renting a car just because the tours have easy access to the sites with close-in parking, etc.

Back to Bayeux for a quick snack at the station, an evening train back to Paris (maybe 6:30 or so?), and had a late dinner on arrival. It was a surgical strike but it was a great day and I'd recommend it to anyone.

Hi dag, Normandy really deserves more than a day but, if that's all the time you have, it can be done.

We visited the area as a day trip from Paris in May 2014. We took a morning train direct from Paris to Bayeaux and arrived at noon. There aren't many options for a quick lunch so we had a sandwich at the café across from the train station. We pre-booked a tour with Normandy Sightseeing Tours (http://www.normandy-sightseeing-tours.com). They picked us up at the train station at 1 p.m. and we did a half day tour that included Omaha Beach and the American Cemetery. There were about six other people on the mini bus tour. It was brief but informative. They dropped us back off at the train station at 6 p.m. and we were back in Paris by 9 p.m. Just in time for dinner and to see the Eiffel Tower illuminated.

Everything worked out perfectly and my friend said that this was one of the best days of the entire vacation. I thought the train was a good option; I don't know if I'd bother renting a car for one day.

This topic came up a few months ago. Here's the thread and responses - https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/france/day-trip-to-normandy-from-paris-da33032e-03d3-4024-a9b3-709af1dab34c.

Enjoy your trip!

This came up again recently. Here's my response to the earlier thread Donna references. BTW, the "shroud" is the Bayeux Tapestry and it's one of the most well-presented historical artifacts I've ever seen. It doesn't take long to see, but I'd absolutely encourage you to make the effort if you make the trip.

As Donna said, the D-Day beaches and other sites deserve and could well fill more time, but if you have one day and one day only, it's a totally do-able trip.
We took the RS Best of Paris tour last June and spent one extra day in order to visit Normandy. You can book train tickets direct from Gare St. Lazare to Bayeux. We arrived in Bayeux mid-morning, had enough time to quickly walk into town to see the famed Bayeux Tapestry (well worth the effort) and have a bite for lunch before our half-day tour. Many people have recommended Overlord tours and that would have been my first choice, but it and several others were booked. We reserved with Normandy Landing Tours -- http://normandy-landing-tour.com/ -- and were perfectly satisfied. I would love to go back again and spend time on a more in-depth experience, but if that never happens, I'm glad we made the effort to do it in the time we had.
After the tour, we still had a little time to stroll briefly around Bayeux, poke our heads into the lovely cathedral as a choir was singing, grab some gelatos and hoof it back to the train station with time to spare. We were back in Paris by 8 p.m. or so and had pizza and wine for our last meal at the Italian bistro near our hotel.
Was it a long day? You bet. Do I regret it? Not for a moment.

Doing the day tripping only to Bayeux from Paris by train without the Normandie beaches is very doable, have done that a couple of times, no problems for just visiting and exploring the town. Train duration does not matter.

I think it's a little far out from Paris to make a good day trip.

That said. If you study the train schedule there are occassional trains that take less than 2 hours - it might be doable with the right train schedule. I originally ruled out a train from Paris to Bayeux because it took too long, but found out later there were direct trains that were much faster. If you could get on a very early direct train, you might have time for a half day D-Day tour and an extra hour or so to see the Bayeux Tapestry (that assumes no lines/crowds) followed by a late direct train back.

It's too long of day for my planning but if it's the main thing you would like to see...?

As for the shroud, it's in Turin -- much too far for a day trip -- so you won't be missing anything! ;-)

Only 4 nights in Paris...so 3 full days. And 1 of those days you want to spend somewhere else. It really doesn't make logistical sense. You're already in Paris so why not just see more of Paris? If you want to visit Normandy then go there when you have more time to dedicate to it. It really deserves more than a few hours which is what you're going to have.

Thats for the insight everyone, I think I just needed the reassurance... I hate to skip something but I think its just cramming in a little too much. Im a huge war buff so I suppose Ill go back for a WWI/II tour someday.

If you are a huge war buff, then you will want to spend days in Normandy. There is so much to see - the beaches, the cemeteries, and the WWII museum in Caen. 3 days minimum, if you aren't planning on spending time looking at the Bayeux Tapestry (the cathedral is spectacular, and is worth seeing). But, definitely not a one day item.

Enjoy Paris - there's plenty to see if you are just doing 4 nights there. In fact, you won't be able to see all of Paris in that amount of time. So, take it easy, and return to France another day.