Normandy solo

Rent the car if it is less expensive than a tour. I managed to do it on public trans (one bus to Omaha Beach and one to Mulberry harbor from Bayeux) but if you have the budget go for the car it it is intriguing especially if you already know the history. Otherwise pay to take a tour from Bayeux if you want someone to drive and explain and tell stories of D-Day,

Mount St Michel is worth a separate day so you can see it at low and high tide.

I took a train from London to Paris then to Rouen, and spent the night there. The next day I rented a car, drove to Bayeux, where I spent 2 nights. I spent the first day touring the Normandy beaches, including the sights at Arromanches, as well as the Omaha Beach Memorial & Museum. The second day, I viewed the Bayeux Tapestry and other sights, then a few more Normandy Beach sites before driving to Mont. St Michel where I toured in the evening, after most of the tours had left. Spent the night there and drove back to Rouen the next morning.

I enjoyed my time and didn't feel rushed; there was time to explore and dawdle when I wanted to. Of course, I couldn't visit all of the D-Day sites or museums. Driving in the countryside was enjoyable.

If I did it again, I would rent the car in Caen instead of Rouen because driving back to the car rental in Rouen is tricky. Others on this board have advised that Caen is more convenient. Bayeux doesn't have as many car rental options.

I second fcraymond76 approach. Rouen is indeed not an easy and in some cases tricky town to drive through. As using my own wheels I have no experience with rental cars there, but indeed according most is Caen a better option, btw also saves you paying some toll (vs. extra costs of train travel) as the only toll road there, the A13 ends just east of Caen.

And in the evening and early morning you will avoid the crowds and will have the idea having Le Mont-Saint-Michel (almost) for yourself, what I experienced last June. With low tide you can walk almost around to the backside of it, just a bit further as the little chapel without boots, but be aware some spots can be slippery.

I have been to Normandy four times solo. Although I have never taken a tour, I cannot imagine being there for three days without a car. Normandy is a huge area, and most of the sights are not at all accessible by public transportation. It is 45 miles as the crow flies between the beaches, and the interconnecting roads are well inland from the beaches, so it would take a couple of hours just to get from Sword beach to Utah beach. Although the tours are highly recommended by some, three days of tours would be expensive, and you would only see what is on their itinerary. Many of my favorite memories are places I stumbled upon while driving through the beautiful countryside. My only recommendation if you do it alone is to read at least one good book on the Normandy battle (good to do even if you take a tour). Knowing what happened and where will greatly increase your appreciation and understanding of what you see.

Full disclosure - I've been to Normandy 3 times and have never used a 'human' tour guide.

I have read glowing reports from people that have used local guides and don't doubt that a local guide can do an excellent job - in fact based on the friendliness of the local folks that I have interacted with on my trips my guess is you would probably end up with a new friend or two if you did! It just isn't my style - I just like to do it myself.

It's very easy to drive around in Normandy - if you aren't trying to speed - things are well marked & reasonably maintained and traffic isn't an issue. There is typically parking available, even at small local memorial locations. It does help to have someone keeping their eyes open so the driver can focus on the road, but a GPS can handle most of that.

If you decide to do it yourself I highly recommend Major & Mrs Holt's Normandy guidebook and maps. The guide contains not only a good (if brief) history for each section of the campaign battlefields, but it also has turn by turn directions and photos of the locations and descriptions of virtually everything you could possibly want to visit. You can use it to decide which locations you 'must' visit and map out your day(s). Basically do the work that a guide would do. You can easily spend a day in the Utah area (American Airborne), a day in the Omaha area, a day for the British beaches and a day in the British Airborne area so you will need something to help you to cut it down to just what really has to be seen so it will fit it into 2 to 3 days.

You could actually spend weeks in Normandy so you'll need to decide whether a visit Mont Ste Michel on this trip is something that's high enough on your list to do. It is an iconic location and worth seeing at some point, just maybe not this trip. It's an hour and a half drive (if my memory is any good) from Bayeux and visiting will eat one of your days. I'm glad I visited it, but if my choice was between visiting Mont Ste Michel or adding 1 day to a 2 day visit to Normandy - I would add the day to the Normandy visit - YMMV.

It's a fantastic place to visit - have fun!

In my opinion any trip to the Normandy D-Day Beaches MUST include Point du Hoc!
No more than 20 -30 minutes outside of (south of the Beach's) depending on traffic).

Then if you haven't been - Mont St. Micheal is magical!!

Lance

I agree Point du hoc. I did not make it there my 1st time so happy to have unfinished travel business in Normandy

Pag,

I've toured Normandy using a combination of both tours and with a rental car. My suggestion would most definitely be to take one of the excellent local tours. You'll learn far more about the history and the visit will be far more interesting and rewarding. IMO, they're well worth the cost and some of the firms offer both half and full day tours. Another benefit of some of the tours is that they provide transportation. The guides know the area well so can get between sights very quickly and efficiently.

Thanks everyone, appreciate the great feedback. Lot's to consider but luckily have a little time to figure it out. Don't be surprised if I ask more questions!