I have reading prior posting and couldn't find the answer. We do not like switching hotels if we can avoid. Any suggestions for staying somewhere between Normandy beach and MSM that would be convenient or is this being to ambitious? We were planning on three days before returning to Paris and planning on a rental car out of Caen.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
8136 posts
Some people, especially with no car, stay at the Churchill in Bayeux because they run a van-daytrip to MSM. But you don't have to stay there to book it. Your question understates the time needed to see the Normandy beaches area, and understates the distance from Bayeux to MSM. In that sense, not staying in one of the two places is a mistake. You are right to have a car.
I fall on the side of sleeping in Bayeux. A daytrip to MSM (To ME, not to many others here!) is enough, because we only spent about 4 or 5 hours at jammed MSM, including a walking-lunch (pre-made sandwich, I imagine) on the tacky medieval street. Don't get me wrong, MSM is a must-do, after you drive by the alligator farm and miles of fast-food on the "strip" of Pontorson!
Now, in fact, we slept three nights in Dinard, and three nights on the edge of Bayeux, with a rental car. I'm not saying DInard is any kind of must-do, the point is that we saw things like Dinan and St. Malo, separately from our stay in Bayeux. We did not spend 3 days on World War II, we went to public gardens and other attractions during those 3 days in Bayeux. In between we made brief stops in Coutances and Vitré, which we enjoyed.
Your experience is affected by month of the year, not stated. This area is very popular, both in summer months, and at D-Day anniversaries. For example, dinner reservations are necessary in even modest restaurants in Bayeux. And parking lots for D-Day sites can be so full you drive around like Christmas At The Mall.
Posted by
OP
dallas, TX
39 posts
Thanks for the Reply. we will be traveling June.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
1613 posts
In June, esp. from the first to the tenth, be prepared to find things busy and crowded around the beaches. We usually drive ourselves to see the DDay sights, and we just take one day for that, as a person can become overwhelmed with so much WWII information. (My husband was a child in Normandy right after the war, so we have his own memories and stories and experiences to rely on.) In one day, driving from Bayeux, we can visit two beaches, two on-site museums, and the American cemetery for the flag-lowering, without feeling rushed. Another day in Bayeux for the church, museum and tapestry, plus a walk-around the town. (I should add that we did the church, etc. the day we arrived, and the DDay sights the second day, a longer day.) We stayed two nights and drove the third day to MSM. If you don't get there first thing, you can go up the back way (steeper, but no crowds) directly to the Abbey. (To the left as you approach the entrance to MSM, after the causeway). We walked back down the main street which was pretty busy (this was in April or May). You could return to Bayeux, but I would stay somewhere in the MSM area before going back to Paris the next day.
Whatever schedule you decide, I would get my hotel reservations in early, as June is the biggest month for visitors in Bayeux and nearby towns.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
1613 posts
Brad,
I just checked. We stayed in the town of Villedieu-les-Poelles between Bayeux and MSM. It was May. The town is known for its bell-making and copper cookware making and lace-making, over a few hundred years. We stayed at a real B and B...a couple's home there. I found it through Gites-de-France. Very nice and good breakfast! Short drive to MSM in the morning.
Posted by
OP
dallas, TX
39 posts
thank you for your reply
Posted by
Normandie
347 posts
Consider Coutances, near the coast. It's got a nice compact downtown, very good restaurants (consider Kalamansi or Coté Saint Pierre, though there are others), and incredibly beautiful municipal gardens for a town of its size (around 10K people). Convenient access to the west coast of the Cotentin Peninsula, with some excellent beach bars serving wonderful seafood in summer. And despite being heavily destroyed during WWII, it wasn't as badly damaged as Saint-Lô (the Wikipedia page on Operation Cobra, to clear the Nazis out of the Bocage countryside in the area, features photos of Coutances).
Driving time from Coutances to some popular sights, rounded to the nearest 10 minutes:
Mont-Saint-Michel: 70 minutes
Saint James Brittany-American Cemetery: 60 minutes (can visit on the way to or from MSM if you wish)
Utah Beach: 50 minutes
Saint Mère Eglise: 40 minutes
Omaha Beach: 60 minutes
Bayeux: 60 minutes
Colleville-sur-Mer Normandy-American Cemetery: 60 minutes
Marigny-le-Lozen. German Cemetery: 30 minutes
La Cambe German Cemetery: 50 minutes
Gold Beach: 80 minutes
Juno Beach: 80 minutes
Sword Beach: 90 minutes