Paris or Normandy car rental recommendation?

If you are asking about the drive out of Paris, that is not too bad if you have a GPS and can follow instructions. What we did was make sure that our best navigator (me) was in the front passenger seat doing things like noting how many lights the driver would go through before a turn, etc so he could focus on the driving and we followed the GPS instructions. Most recently, we did this on a weekday morning at around 11 AM and it was not a problem, My guess is that a Sunday might have less traffic but perhaps some roads might be closed for whatever random reason. If that happens, and you cannot follow the GPS directions, it will recalculate based on what you did because there are always multiple ways to get to any point.

Thanks JHK, appreciate the feedback. I think we might take a chance and drive to Bayeux.

If anyone has done this drive, I'd love some suggestions for places to stop along the way.

ferrin,
This is more than one day, but a trip we enjoyed while introducing some relatives to the northern half of France......
Left a cousin's house in the suburbs south of Paris early and drove to Giverny, about 1 1/2 hour to get there. Spent about 3 hours at Monet's house and garden, including lunch in the cafe on site. Drove to Rouen (on the D roads), about 1 1/2 hours. Found parking and checked into the hotel near the center and spent the late afternoon and evening walking around the medieval core, visiting the cathedral, having a nice dinner and just exploring.
Next morning we began a journey along D982 toward Bayeux, following along the Seine, stopping at Villequier (where family had spent part of WWII, to locate the house where they had lived), taking the Route des Abbayes and visiting Jumieges Abbey (about an hour walking around there and not to be missed). We stopped for a bite to eat in a small town along the Seine (forget the name). It was an idyllic drive through the lovely Seine Valley.
Got to Bayeux mid to late afternoon. Checked into our lodging and walked to see the tapestry, then wandered around the town before having dinner. Next day we drove ourselves around the Day beaches area. Getting out and walking around some of the sites and visiting a museum (I forget which one we saw. It was at one of the beaches.) We had had a large breakfast and just took snacks and water for lunch that day. Went to the American cemetery for the flag-lowering ceremony, then drove to Villedieu-les-Poelles for the night. We left the next morning for Mont St Michel, a short drive, to explore the Abbey and town on the Mont. Left the Mont early afternoon for our drive to Dinan.
Lots of one-night stays on this 3 week trip, but short drives most of the time (2-3 hours max per day). It was an intro to France for family members who hadn't been before.

There were 5 of us so we had two rental cars. We had had ours for a few days. The other three people picked up their car at Orly the day before we left for Giverny. Never went to Caen at all.

Maybe a train to Rouen for the car, then a nice drive to Bayeux?

Have you checked rental car office hours in Caen? Sixt does Sunday mornings!

If you do drive from Paris, rent from Montparnasse and escape Paris via rue Alain, rue Vercingétorix to Porte de Vanves, and the Périphérique (beltway) to the A13. Driving on a Sunday morning will be a breeze, you can be in Honfleur for lunch (book lunch)!

Thank you all-esp Judy for the description of your drive-I think we will rent a car in Paris and enjoy a scenic drive to Bayeux, likely avoiding the major/toll roads. I have been reading about various places to stop along the way and there are several that sound great. I am excited for all of it-but really, really excited for Mont St Michel!

ferrin,
So glad you have decided on your plans. Amusez-vous bien!

Another suggestion is renting a car out of Orly airport. This would eliminate driving in central Paris. This is what we did when we drove out to Normandy a few years ago. This year, we rented a car out of Rouen, drove to Honfleur then Loire Valley, then dropped off the car in Orly and caught our flight to Florence.

Merci Judy!
Claudette-I have considered other places to pick up the car but we will be in Gare du Nord already so it made sense to just get it there rather than deal with making our way anywhere else with luggage, etc. Luckily, my husband loves to drive and has experience in big cities. Hopefully the traffic won't be terrible on a Sunday.

Thanks everyone!

If you're already near Gare du Nord, it makes sense to rent there. Traffic will not be a problem at all on a Sunday morning.
Just try to avoid any route taking you around Place de l'Etoile / Arc de Triomphe as it is a bit scary when you don't have the experience, and it is actually scarier when there is little traffic (people go fast). Mentioning it because one of the most natural routes from Gare du Nord to the A13 to Normandy passes by the Arc de Triomphe!

Picking up your rental at Gare du Nord is the correct decision. Paris is void completely of any traffic on Sunday mornings. It's basically a straight shot to take blvd Magenta, blvd Barbès, Blvd Ornano to Porte de Clignancourt and join the périphérique, orbiting counterclockwise to Porte d'Auteuil from where A13 to Normandy begins. You might save a few minutes by taking ave Charles de Gaule/A14 from Porte Maillot, but A14 does have a toll that you can avoid by going to Porte d'Auteuil.

When driving in Paris, know the route before you start. Concentrate on the road, not the GPS. The speed limit is 30kph unless posted at 50kph so things move slowly. The périphérique is also now 50kph.

Tocard and balso--Thank you for the Paris driving tips, I really appreciate the helpful info. We were considering a more leisurely drive on slower roads to avoid tolls (and see the countryside), but maybe its worth it to save some time getting out of the city. Still lots of time to map out a route :)

We drove in the Normandy/Brittany regions two years ago. We just drove; having no specific intentions of avoiding toll roads. Yes, there were a few; we just would tap and go. But, my feeling coming from Southern California was even the main highways were like driving on country roads. All that greenery, those rolling blooming hills; well maintained and clean highways, no traffic. Except for passing what must have been the largest Amazon warehouse in Europe, it was all countryside to us!