We are planning our first trip to France in August. We want to spend a few days in the Normandy area after we visit Paris. Our thoughts would be to rent a car in Paris and head to Honfleur... We would like to visit Giverny and maybe Rouen during our travels. The next day we would head to see some of the some D-Day sites and hopefully make it to Mont. St. Michel in the evening. We are thinking of staying in Bayeux that night. The next day we need to get head back to Paris, which we have time to some more exploring in Normandy or Paris... It's our flex day... we don't fly out until the following morning. I know I cannot give the D-Day sights the attention the deserve, but we just want to have a taste... Is this doable?
Posted by
Olympia, WA, USA
6713 posts
So, Paris to Giverny to Rouen to Honfleur the first day. D-Day beaches to MSM and back to Bayeux the second day. Right so far? I'm not clear about the third day -- do you have to do something in Paris itself that day or evening, or can you make your way straight to the airport and spend the night in an airport hotel before your flight?
This is a busy two or three days with a lot of road time between destinations. Vic Michelin shows about 3 1/2 hours' driving from Honfleur to MSM via Bayeux, and another 2 1/2 hour back to Bayeux -- and those are probably low-end estimates. So you're spending six hours on the road, plus whatever time you spend at the beaches (which will mean longer driving time too) and the Mont.
Seems to me like something ought to give: (1) Skip Honfleur and drive to Bayeux the first day, then beaches and MSM the second and overnight in Bayeux, or (2) Skip MSM, spend the whole second day on the beaches and in Bayeux (cathedral, tapestry, WWII museum).
If you can go straight from Normandy to CDG airport, you can see more. We did that a few years ago, starting and Bayeux and with a stop at Honfleur for a couple of hours. We spent the night at the airport before our morning flight.
Posted by
OP
37 posts
I figured the 2nd day would be pushing it. Our third day was basically a free day... we could push Mont St. Michel to the morning and see a few things on the way back to the airport. I want to be flexible. We are trying to get hotels arranged so we are trying to get a rough itinerary put together. So, is Honfleur worth seeing? It feels like if I am driving by these beautiful town that I need to stop and see them. What about Giverny?
Posted by
Middletown, RI
1227 posts
Doable, kinda. But Mont-Saint-Michelle will definitely add significantly to your driving time. Going to Bayeux via Giverny or Rouen isn't too bad, but if you try to insert the Mont into your itinerary, you will miss so many sights around Bayeux (including most of the WWII area). Don't get me wrong, MSM is a wonderful place to see. But you will probably spend less time actually being there than getting there and back from the rest of Normandy. And if you insert it in the middle of a day, you are sure to be there during the crush of the "day-trippers" who can clog the main road. If it were me, I would put that in a future trip to France. The "D-Day sights" cover a huge area. It is 45 miles as the crow fly between the Eastern most and Western most beaches, and you won't be flying between them. The beaches themselves are about 15–20 minutes each from the main road that connects them. I don't know where you are from, but if you're American, you'll probably be interested in Omaha beach, and hopefully Utah Beach (half-hour plus between them, but the Utah beach area is the site of the airborne landings and two wonderful museums). And Bayeux itself is a wonderful town and very central. It is a rare medieval small city that wasn't destroyed during the battle for Normandy. Lots of restaurants, beautiful cathedral, and of course the Bayeux tapestry. Enjoy whatever you decide. FWIW, I'll be in Normandy this June for the D-day anniversary, and Normandy including MSM this September.