Any recommendations on cider/cheese/food tours from the Bayeux area. We have a car and are spending 3 nights. Or does anyone have experience doing this on your own? Also we plan to do the Normandy beaches on our own with the help of a RS guide.
Posted by
3122 posts
I don't know of any tours, but the food in Normandy is delicious, so enjoy!
One tip for visiting the Normandy beaches on your own: there are large parking lots near some of the popular points of interest, but make sure to park in one designed for cars -- you drive under an overhead bar that would prevent buses & other tall vehicles from entering.
If you ignore this advice and park in a bus parking lot, you may be hemmed in by buses whose drivers will pointedly refuse to let you out until they're good and ready. We unwittingly did this and got stuck. My husband had to assume a Tiananmen-Square-like stance in front of an oncoming bus to buy enough seconds for me to pull our car out of a space.
Oh, here's another tip. The American Cemetery is beautiful and very large. In addition to seeing the graves, the many works of art, and the indoor historical museum, make sure you hike down the trail at least partway to the beach; that will give you at least a bit of a sense of what it was like to fight one's way up the terrain after landing. The cemetery gives free walking tours, but if you plan to take one, allow enough time to get through the security screening before going out to the meeting point where the tour starts.
Posted by
Middletown, RI
1137 posts
Can't help you with a food tour per se, but there are a lot of Calvados distilleries near the Normandy Beaches—particularly to the West. Most of them are small, so they don't have a web site (or much of a web presence at all). But if you drive the inland route between beaches, you will occasionally see a small sign for a business. Stop quick, and go in (or do a u-turn if, as often is necessary) You'd be surprised how friendly and accommodating most of these small places are. HEre's a couple though:
ferme-de-la-sapiniere.com
A hidden gem just South of the large German Cemetery in La Cambe:
Ferme de Romilly, 14230 Saint-Germain-du-Pert, France
I've found more just driving along and keeping my eyes open though.
Touring the D-day beaches on your own is totally doable, despite what many here would post. I would just advise that you learn as much as you can about the battle and the lay of the land before you go to maximize your experience. That applies if you take an organized tour also.
Posted by
Washington DC
27111 posts
I disagree with PharmerPhil about being your own guide to the D-Day sites--assuming no one in your party is an expert on the subject of the invasion. I can't imagine driving aroulnd, looking at beaches and chunks of concrete without explanation. If you basically just want to see several of the museums, that's different. Otherwise, you'll move around a lot more efficiently and learn a lot more with an experienced driver/guide. Several companies run van-tours from Bayeux. The cost is around €100 for a full-day tour. Overlord includes admission to the Airborne Museum in St.-Mere-Eglise on its US's focused tours, but you have to buy your own lunch.