Paris, Giverny, Normandy, Brittany

My husband and I did this itinerary two years ago. For us the best part was renting the car in Paris and taking the back country roads (avoiding the tolls) along the Seine to Vernon/Giverny. It was a gorgeous drive and super peaceful. We stayed in Vernon, across the river from Giverny and got up early for Monet’s garden. We only did a few hours that afternoon in Honfleur and that was enough for us. Other friends made Honfleur their home base and loved it though! We stayed in the heart of Bayeux for 3 nights and used that as our home base to drive the D-Day sights on a self-guided route. We also did the day trip to Mont St. Michel and had a great day! We took the advice of getting to the abbey mid-afternoon and it paid off with less crowds, even on a Saturday. We took that Saturday morning to enjoy the market in la Place Saint Patrice. It’s a vibrant, bustling market and in June it was bursting with fantastic ingredients for our picnic lunch. We loved Bayeux the most out of our 12 day trip! Staying in the old town area right by the cathedral meant we could walk most anywhere even in the early morning to the tapestry museum.

How long are you going to be in France? You could take a train to Vernon (Giverny) and pick up a car there. I know they have a Hertz, we rented from them but thru AutoEurope. There are several nice B & Bs in Giverny, we enjoyed our stay there.

When we were in Normandy, we based in Arromanches, though many stay in Bayeaux. I would, however, suggest some time in Arromanches to see the remains of the artificial harbor and to visit the excellent museum right next to the beach.

We LOVED Honfleur, I think most do, especially lovers of Impressionist art. We stayed two nights there. The harbor and the boats are quite spectacular. Visiting Honfleur from Bayeaux would make for quite a drive. North of Honfleur and LaHarve is Etretat, its out of your way in a visit to the Normandy beaches, but it is a beautiful coastline with rock formations. Monet painted at Etretat. There are also some old German bunkers in the mix that are interesting to see.

It is hard to make recommendations without knowing how much time you have. If you go to MSM, one strategy that we used was to arrive late afternoon. Do some photographs and viewing from the mainland and then go to the island when its more quiet. I don't recommend eating at the MSM restaurants. They are crowded, staff seems overworked, and the food was quite frankly awful. We stayed on the mainland a couple miles from the shuttle bus parking lot. The next morning, we timed our visit to arrive at the top of MSM at the abbey entrance about 15 minutes from opening. We enjoyed MSM before the crowds started to arrive at about 10:30.

Somewhat close to MSM is Saint Malo, Dinard and Dinan. We really liked them all. You probably know of Saint Malo, Dinard is a really quaint town on the coast with a retro beachy feel. Dinan is a medieval city more inland. There were other towns we liked but they were further away, yet.

With Rick's detailed instructions in his guidebook, it was easy for us to DIY on a day trip to Giverny from Paris; we were back in Paris for dinner.

Sleeping 1 night at MSM was very atmospheric (I guess would be the word). The food that night was do-able, not fine dining. Going up to the top at night, or first thing in the morning, was a highlight.

I just got back from France, having spent 10 days between Giverny (2 nights), and two different bases in Brittany (Perros-Guirec and Saint-Malo)! All the destinations were fabulous and I hope you have an equally wonderful time on your trip.

I was carless but an interesting option for you to avoid having a car near Paris might be:
-Train from Paris to Vernon (you can get to Giverny from Vernon by bus or taxi)
-Vernon to Rouen by train
-Pick up a car in Rouen for the rest of your trip

I would heartily recommend staying overnight in Giverny at one of the lovely B&Bs (I was at Le Clos Fleuri and it was very comfortable). It means you can have an early start visiting the gardens the next morning and you get to see the village when it's quiet in the evening - an entirely different experience compared to during the day.

I think you could take an early train to Giverny so you're in line 30 minutes before it opens. You will enjoy it more if you beat the crowds. Afterward, take a train to either Honfleur or Bayeaux, whichever you want to see next. You can rent a car from there.

My route through the area started with a train from Paris to Rouen. I stayed there maybe four hours to walk the center then rented a car and drove to Etretat. After Etretat I drove to Bayeaux. My primary interest was the tapestry. I'm a fan of pre 15th century history, for whatever reason 20th century history sights aren't high on my priority list. I intentionally skipped Honfleur because I was visiting similar port towns in Brittany. I regret skipping Caen. I don't really care about the D-day museum but would like to see more of the Norman history.

After Bayeaux I drove to MSM (about a 1 1/2 hour drive) and stayed in Cancale (another 30 min to 1 hr depending on where). The next morning I spent in St. Malo (sandy beach and can walk to fortified islands at low tide) and stayed in Dinan (great little medieval center and port on the river). On the way west I stopped at Ft. La Latte (nice castle visit), and the light house/cliffs at Cap Frehel (especially good stop for bird watchers). I visited some of the towns with Parish Closes (Guimiliau, Lampaul-Guimiliau and St. Thegonnec) then turned south.

Locronan was a favorite town in Brittany. It's been used as a backdrop for movies and TV shows.

Other favorites in southern Brittany were Auray and Vannes (huge medieval center).

I enjoyed seeing the megaliths and dolmans around Carnac. The best ancient sight for me was Cairn de Gavrinis, a passage tomb. You can only see it by ferry from Larmor Baden. The tour is all in French but you can enjoy it even if you don't catch all the explanations. They also show you a semi submerged henge. In the Gulf of Morbihan the tides are drastic, at some points it looks almost like white water rapids in a river. The ferry has massive engines to work against the tides when needed.

I didn't see one but each town has an annual "Pardon". It's a festival with traditional dress, music, dancing, food. There seems to be at least one every weekend through the summer. These aren't massive tourist draws, they're a local festival. If you get a chance, you should plan to visit one.

Afterward I drove to Chinon (stopping at Fontevraud Abbey), traded my rental for a bicycle for the Loire before heading back to Paris. You could drop your car in Rennes and train back to Paris from there.

I second Brad's love of Locranon. I didn't mention it because it is a bit of a distance from MSM. If you have the time, it's my favorite city in France, so far. My recollection is that there is not a train to Honfluer. I like the idea of renting at Rouen, driving to Etretat, then Honfleur and then Bayeaux.

OMG!! Thank you all so much for the feedback and info! We will probably be spending about 5 nights total in Normandy/Brittany. With all the info (plus Rick Steves) I think we'll be good. Thank you again :)

A bit of a detour here, but I'm curious if Brad or jules m could explain a bit more what they found notable about Locronan. It certainly is an old village with many old stone buildings, but there are lots of those in France. I didn't find anything remarkable about it so I'm curious to learn what I may have overlooked. We're returning to Bretagne in early August to try to escape the heat, so I'm wondering if it might be worth a second visit.

Matt, I guess I would say that different vibes, ambiances appeal to different people. Locranon has been used as a movie set, its full of flowers. I was there in October and maybe that's the difference. It was quiet, for one thing. It doesn't have a great attraction, its like the whole little village is the attraction. We walked up all the side streets. My husband usually uses one or two rolls of film for a 2 week trip. He used 1 in Locranon. The little town of Douarnez with a beautiful coastline is about 10 miles away. If you were there and didn't feel the magic, you probably want to concentrate on another area.

We are doing a Paris Normandy trip in September. Many here say train to Giverny and then on to Rouen to rent a car. While visiting Giverny what do you. Do with your luggage?

A couple of thoughts: in 2016, we rented a car upon departure from Paris and drove to Giverny, then on to Honfleur for the night. I was worried about driving from Paris, but it turned out fine, we had only a few minutes (albeit scary) getting thru the big round-about to highway. I took a video :-). But it was only minutes and the rest of the drive is simple. This was an Avis car rental - very easy to get to from our hotel and exit Paris. Honfleur, for us, was certainly worth the overnight trip! We moved south from there.

Have been to Normandy 2x, (not on the trip I just referenced above though). Both times we stayed in Bayeaux and we have loved it! Most tours want you to be there, so as to avoid travel issues to delay tours. It is a longish trek to Bayeaux from Paris via train, so consider the timing. On our first visit to Normandy, we took train from Paris to Caen, got rental car, drove to Bayeaux and did D Day tour on the next morning. As a very long day trip from Bayeaux, we drove to Mont St. Michelle. I would emphasize a very long day. We also stopped at Cancale and Dinan. Both fun! On another visit, we took train to Bayeux and avoided car rental, but stayed focused on Bayeaux. The Tapestry is amazing. Have seen it twice and would do so again! Getting to MSM from Normandy, with a car, I would depart Normandy and stay closer to MSM for that visit instead of a day trip. It was very long! Sometimes, a hotel change is worth it.....