newbie first time to France

I'd suggest not breaking up your time in Paris with a trip to Normandy so you don't have to change hotels as often. Take a taxi from CDG to Gare St-Lazare and a train to Bayeux (no need to pre-purchase tickets) for your first night. Then you have a full day for the beaches (good guided tours from Bayeux) and hopefully a partial day for the cathedral, tapestry, and maybe museum. Then back to Paris for as many nights as possible. That plan puts you in two hotels instead of three.

Three or four nights is enough to give you a sample of Paris and make you want to return. Longer would be better. Try to stay as close to the river as you can afford, to be closer to the major sights you'll want to see. I wouldn't recommend a bus tour. You can see a lot by walking, and the metro and local buses are easy. A good boat ride is Vedettes du Pont-Neuf (no need to pre-book).

The only thing i can add right now to Dick’s very good advice is, when in France always say Bonjour before you speak to anyone no matter who they are. Also, a liberal amount of Merçi thrown in and you will be received better. I think the French are wonderful people, especially friendly are the people of Normandy.

We do enjoy the Hop On Hop Off bus in Paris.

We love Hotel d’Argouges in Bayeux where we’ve stayed 6-7 times. Bayeux is a very charming town. Try to make time for the WWII museum there, our favorite one.

For Paris, check out Hotel Diana. Great location, nice rooms at a budget price. Notre Dame is the heart and center of Paris, the closer you are to ND the better.
Booking.com is a good source for hotels.

thank you both so much for your great advice. Any D day tour groups you can recommend and what is the best way to get around Bayeux? I noticed the Hotel Diana is 30 minutes from the train station-if so what would be best way to go to and from?

To be a little more self-reliant, practise using the official Paris transport search site, complete with customized routes. Enter your hotel's address and where you want to go:

https://www.ratp.fr/en

Google Maps will also outline routes and modes of transport in Paris (maybe the whole world....)

A great deal of basic information for opening questions is already here, in the Explore Europe menu, top left corner.

One address for French train travel is:

https://en.voyages-sncf.com/en/

More generally, train questions are usually answered at www.seat61.com

Bayeux is not large; it's relatively walkable, though the WWII museum and train station are not in the center of town. You can check distances on Google Maps.

I believe there are several good D-Day-tour companies. The two most frequently mentioned seem to be Overlord and Dale Booth.

The Bayeux hotel Susan recommended is an easy walk from the cathedral and tapestry, and from the Churchill Hotel where I believe the Overlord tours start. (I've been to Bayeux but didn't stay in either of these hotels or take a tour, however they have good reputations on this forum.)

If you're staying in Paris (Hotel Diana or elsewhere) before your train to Bayeux, then I'd suggest a taxi from the hotel to Gare St-Lazare since you'll have luggage. The station is on barrier-free Metro line 14, which could save you a taxi fare if your hotel is close to one of the line 14 stations, but I wouldn't pick a hotel just on that basis. (Other Metro lines have steps, sometimes many. Using them with luggage is possible but not fun.)

If, as I suggested, you travel straight from CDG to Bayeux, you'll still need to come into Paris to get the train at Gare St-Lazare. A taxi from CDG to St-Lazare will cost 50 euros but save you a lot of work bringing your luggage to the RER and transferring to Metro at Gare du Nord. The taxi fare from CDG will be the same 50 euros to any hotel on the right (north) bank of the Seine, 55 euros to the left (south) bank.

We walked everywhere in Bayeux but there are taxis if you need.

We had an amazing tour with Normandy Sightseeing Tours. What I liked about them is there were only 9 people in the van, so very small, and the guides are French so you get a bit more local commentary and cultural insight.

your comments are so helpful and useful-will definitely go straight to Bayeux-makes total sense-your hotel and tour recommendation is a great help-just now have to figure out how many days in each area as we arrive on a Friday and leave for Dublin the following Friday-we tend to like rural settings and historical sites and the dinner river cruises sound wonderful.

Dinner cruises? Who said anything about dinner cruises? ;-)

At the risk of opening up a new (to this thread) but well-worn (to this forum) topic, let me suggest not a dinner cruise. Two reasons: (1) You'll probably eat better for a comparable cost on land, and (2) You'll be dividing your attention between your plate (unremarkable but necessary) and the unfolding riverbank scenery (unique). Take a cruise in daytime, and/or in twilight, and/or at night, but don't be distracted by eating.

There are "champagne cruises" with presumably less distraction -- how hard is it to hold a glass and lift it to your mouth? -- and you might want to try one. I never have.

Dick-makes total sense-thx for the tip. To really enjoy Bayeux would 2 or 3 full days cover that?

I have to agree with Dick about the river cruises. I would not want to be focused on food, at the detriment of missing the scenery. I've only done the river cruises while it was dark. I like seeing Paris lit up. I have used the batobus (boat bus) during the daytime.

Re time in Bayeux -- given the overall length of your trip, and how little time you have for Paris, I'd suggest just two nights in Bayeux. Take the train from Paris to Bayeux on your jet-lagged arrival day, explore around your hotel a little, get your bearings, have a nice dinner, and try to sleep through the night. Next morning, take a D-Day beach tour (which you have reserved well ahead of time). I think there are all-day and half-day versions, depends on your interest level and what's available. You might have time later that day for the cathedral or tapestry or museum. Then your second night in Bayeux. Next morning, the cathedral and/or tapestry and/or museum (all three if possible), and an afternoon train back to Paris so you can get to your hotel and have your first evening in that beautiful city -- followed by as many days as possible.

There's more to see and do in and around Bayeux, especially if you rent a car, but you'd be shortchanging Paris. Three or four full days there will whet your appetite for the next visit. No disrespect to Ireland, but if you've been there numerous times, why not give France more of a chance?

With two full days (3 nights) in Bayeux, you have one for the D-Day tour, and one for the city of Bayeux (cathedral, museum, etc.). Try to fit Arromanches into that day-in-Bayeux. It is of amazing historical importance for the Normandy Invasion.

got it Dick. What would be your must sees in Paris keeping in mind we are not shoppers and the artsy type and big cities are ok kinda - that's why we when we travel to IE we stay off the beaten path and stay in rural settings.

oh and the wife is a flower garden fanatic