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Loire - Normandy - Paris Itinerary Recommendations

Posted by (Florida ) on

Hi folks,
My husband and I will be in Paris for the Olympics in July 2024. The week before, we plan to visit Amboise, MSM (overnight stay) and Bayeux. We have our flights and hotels booked and now we’re trying to fill in the ‘things to do’ part of the plan. We will rent a car that we plan to pick up at the TGV station outside of Tours and drop off somewhere in Normandy before taking a train to Paris. This will be the first time we rent a car outside of our home country. We’re both really nervous about it but are embracing the adventure.

If anyone has recommendations for what to see and where to eat or for stops along the drive from Amboise to MSM, MSM to Bayeux, or anything we should see via car before dropping it off (not sure where we should return car - Bayeux/Caen/Rouen) before training it to Paris in the afternoon, we will be very grateful for your recommendations.

We know we want to see Chenenceau, Chambord, D Day beaches (not sure if a tour or self guided visit is best), Bayeux tapestry.

We are interesting in just about everything: food, history, nature, wine, photography. We want to make sure we see as much as possible without being so busy we return from vacation completely exhausted. I thought I’d ask the experts and get some advice from folks who’ve been to these places and know what to see and what to skip. Thanks in advance!!!

Posted by
9584 posts

Hi Chris - you say you already have your hotels booked — do you mind sharing how many nights you have booked in each place? That will help us understand how to help you fill in.

Posted by
8 posts

Hi Kim,
Sorry I forgot that piece of info! We are in Amboise for three nights with the first being our day of arrival from the US. Then we are in MSM for one night and two nights in Bayeux.

Posted by
4862 posts

With 3 nights in Amboise you will likely have time to visit more places than those listed. I think Rick's France guidebook describes them.

For the D Day beaches, I'd recommend going with a guided tour, unless one of you is a WW II historian. Have a look at Overlord Tours or Dale Booth.

As to the car rental, you can look at AutoEurope to see which rental agencies are located in Bayeux, Caen, and Rouen. All else being equal, I'd go with one that has offices in both St Pierre des Corps and Caen, since many of the agencies in Caen are near the train station.

Posted by
64 posts

We are doing a similar trip starting next week: We fly into CDG, take a train to Rouen for two nights. We pick up our rental car when leaving Rouen for Bayeux. 3 nights there, exploring on our own as well as a private tour. Then onto MSM for 1 night, 2 nights in Dinan and then 3 nights in the Loire Valley where we will return the car and take the train back to Paris for one night before flying home. Have made dinner reservations for at least one night in all the towns we're going to. Except Paris. We are going to be there on a Thursday night and have tickets for the Musee d' Orsay at 6 for the van Gogh exhibit. We are staying at the Residence des Arts hotel and I welcome any restaurant recommendations nearby the hotel or the museum.

Everyone on this board has been helpful in helping us plan our itinerary, and would be glad to hear any other things we should do while we have the car. We do plan to detour to St Malo after MSM on our way to Dinan. Yesterday's Washington Post had a nice article about a B&B, restaurant and brewery called Le Roger Bontemps. We won't be staying there but we go to the restaurant and pub

Posted by
874 posts

Love this trip! We just took our second one like this in June…..used Overlord on Normandy tour #1 and Dale Booth on tour #2….both amazing and loved the individual attention we got from Dale. We rented our car from Caen…..easy to return there. Make sure you see all of the chateaus……Chenonceau was our favorite…..we stayed in Amboise. People will think I am getting a stipend from this group but I would highly recommend that you get THE MOST BEAUTIFUL VILLAGES OF FRANCE book……these special villages that have won this designation are listed in the book and show a map of each location……if you are driving you don’t want to miss stopping by one and treating yourself to an eye fest of delight…….Beauvron-en-Auge in Normandy was the most charming village where we shared an apple strudel on a sidewalk cafe…….would have not known it was there without the book…… loved Rouen, Honfleur, Etratet, Gerberoy……look these up and you will see why…….have a great trip! PS……get the Michelin maps app……or rent from hippocketwifi a unit to keep 24-7 wireless on you and use your maps feature on your cell phone…..driving is not bad at all…..DM me if you need more info……

Posted by
641 posts

Chris H, Your plan sounds good, but I would not try to see ALL the chateaux. There are way too many for three days. Chenonceaux is a must, IMO. If you see too many they all blend together. It might be best to try and see three or four that are somewhat different from each other. References on this forum will give you some idea of what they are like. I really like Chambord because of the size, gardens, staircase and chimneys, but not for the furnishings/interior. I hear Villandry is best for gardens, another has the hounds (I forget which). Read up on the high points of each one and perhaps pick four to see, preferably only two a day, with a nice picnic lunch in between.
Have a fun trip!

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