Ghent to Normandy Beach area

No suggestions for stays. Many can be found with a forum search. One caveat...returning a car in a different country from which you rented it will incur hefty drop-off fees (500-1000 euro range). You may want to rethink your plans for moving between countries.

It's only 4 1/2 hr drive (plus any sightseeing en route), so no real need for an overnight. But Amiens might fit the bill.

Just want to clarify that you are picking up a rental car in Belgium, but dropping it in Frankfurt? And you are aware of the surcharge for dropping in a different country?

Thank you for the suggestions. We are starting in Frankfurt and ending in Frankfurt.

You could stay in Rouen and then explore the abbey's and cider route on your way to Bayeux. Parking in Rouen is awful, but there are 24 hour lots.

One more car rental caveat. Be sure the rental company approves driving the car in another country. Sometimes the insurance coverage only works in the originating country.

With a foreign car be aware of the Low Emission Zones or LEZ in cities. For Ghent you need to registrate your in this case German car. In France you will need a so called Crit'Air sticker. As you don't now the number plate of your rental car, that can be a challenge to arrange this. If this is not possible you have to stay away from the zones in the cities you are going to visit. In France this is certainly the case with Lille and urban area, Rouen and Caen, think not Bayeux you have to parc your car somewhere outside these places and use public transport to visit them. Anyway get in contact ASAP with your rental agency about and read the following information as careful as possible.

https://stad.gent/en/mobility-ghent/low-emission-zone-ghent
https://www.certificat-air.gouv.fr/

As far as I know you can drive along the freeways through the urban area of Lille without that Crit'Air sticker, the rules of the LEZ requirements are usually limited to the city center. However during periods of reduced air quality the freeways will be temporarily part of the LEZ too, so that Crit'Air sticker becomes in that case mandatory. But rules can change overnight, so best is getting the most recent updated information.

Living north-west of Ghent I have driven many times via Ghent to Normandy. Worth visiting are Lille, Arras, Amiens and Rouen. In Lille you can park in the parking of the Lille Europe train station. However I always drink coffee in one of the bars at one of the two main squares. Very beautiful, special atmosphere and easy to reach and easy to park if not doing this during lunch time.

Amiens is lovely around the cathedral and to my opinion charming enough to stay a night there. However Rouen is more charming to my opinion, but not directly halfway. Or you can go first to Étretat and continue further to Honfleur and the more western parts of Normandy. You can always visit for instance Rouen on the way back to Frankfurt.

In general there is not so much to see and do between Lille and Normandy, unless WW1 is of interest.

We drove from Ghent back home to Normandie last autumn, and a few places you might find interesting are the WWII German fortification, sometimes called a blockhouse, fallen onto the beach at Sainte Marguerite sur Mer near Dieppe. Not something you see every day.

Then there's the huge La Coupole V2 rocket launch facility built by the Germans (using slave labor, of course) and mercilessly bombed by the allies, rendering it inoperable. It's a very big facility with a decent museum inside about the V2 rocket. There also are many artifacts and displays within the structure on various topics related to the area and WWII. Walking the corridors is like going through a cave.

Lastly, if you want a break on your drive, Veules-les-Roses is a very pretty little town on the way to Normandie.

Bob - Good to remark La Coupole. Together with Le Blockhaus d'Éperlecques, also a V2 launch facility that is certainly worth a visit too. Both to find in the vicinity of Saint-Omer west of Lille. You can continue further driving along the French coast and include if time allows a visit to Battery Todt, a huge gun battery near Gap Gris-Nez.

Further along the A16 toll road on the way to Normandy is Boulogne-sur-Mer worth a stop for it's historic center, still having it's medieval walls and also charming Saint-Valery-sur-Somme along the baye of the Somme. The latter has an old steam train for tourists.

Thanks for the correction, Wil. I've edited my comment to reflect the correct spelling. Posted that in a hurry before getting on the phone with a call to my son and didn't proofread.

It's always easier to find something if one is working with the correct spelling.