I'm trying to figure out how best to reach Bayeux on a Monday evening from Paris (rush hour, I assume):
(a) train to Bayeux, then rent car there for touring Normandy beaches on Tuesday?
or (b) train to Bayeux, then rent car?
I should mention that we'll be coming into Gare de Lyon from Avignon, so we'll have to either get a car or change trains there, and we have a fair amount of luggage.
Any help greatly appreciated!
I would go by train all the way to Bayeux. Driving from Gare de Lyon starting between 5-7pm will entail a four to five hour drive to Bayeux instead of the usual three.
You'll need to handle your luggage on the train, so you'll be able to handle it for the transfer from Gare de Lyon to Gare Saint Lazare on metro line 14 (which has escalators and elevators anyway). A cab sounds tempting but is a terrible idea on that route in the late afternoon rush. Do allow plenty of time for the connection (I'd say 90 minutes between arrival at Lyon and departure from Saint Lazare) even if you actually only need 40 minutes. A metro ticket is required for the journey.
Otherwise there is a daily direct TGV from Avignon TGV (actually starts from Marseille) to Rouen (continues to le Havre), where you could rent a car and continue to Bayeux, but you'll need to check the hours for the rental offices.
Balso is right.
That change of trains in Paris is kind of a pain but far better than renting a car in Paris to drive to Bayeux. Can you get to Paris any earlier to make this easier? Earlier in the day a taxi could make sense but at rush hour, just no. For that matter, the Paris Metro with luggage - especially a lot of luggage - is not a good plan.
Just FYI, we rented a car in Bayeux for a few days in April. We spent a couple carless days doing a D-Day tour with a small group (wonderful!) and other things by train, then got the car to expand our explorations. There is a small petrol station just outside of town that has a Hertz franchise. Very nice people. Essential to reserve in advance. We walked there but you could take a taxi.
Have you thought of driving from Avignon to Bayeux and avoiding Paris altogether? Long drive, but maybe you could do it in 2 half days and enjoy something along the way.
It's a matter of opinion, but I would jump at the TGV to Rouen idea to avoid a rush-hour change of stations in Paris. Because you have a lot of luggage, you wouldn't want to chance this, but I remember that our host, Rick, had a strategy for hiding your luggage in a still-garaged rental car in Rouen and then glancing at the town on foot before pulling the car out of the rental company garage.
Another option is to take the TGV direct from Avignon to CDG. That adds some time, but puts you in a luggage-oriented transfer place near highways. (I have returned cars at CDG but not picked up.) This probably provides a lot more time of day choices than Rouen.
Do not, under any circumstances, rent a car at Gare de Lyon or any other downtown station on the "wrong" side of Paris for Normandy. That would be crazy.
Thank you all! Looking into the Rouen option....
