Hello, we are doing a RS My Way tour of France in October. We want to do a tour of the Normandy beaches and Mont Saint Michel before our tour begins. Transportation and touring on our own is looking complicated. Any recommendations? Has anyone used a tour company and/or taken train from Paris to visit Normandy? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
Posted by
915 posts
We're renting a car and traveling on our own, but will take an all day Normandy battlefield tour with Overlord Tours. They also do tours to Mt. St. Michel. And they have been highly recommended on this forum. With that said, there have been many, many conversations on this travel forum on all the options of how to get to Normandy, etc. via tour company or train. You can probably find some of them using the search magnifier if you want to read beyond the responses you'll receive here.
Posted by
NorCal
419 posts
Hi Nancy,
We're joining a My Way France group this year, and visiting Mont Saint-Michel in one of the run-up days to tour. Likewise, we're not comfortable in a 'DIY' type run to Normandy, so after reviewing multiple tour operators, we selected an all-inclusive tour from City Wonders:
https://citywonders.com/paris-tours/mont-saint-michel-day-trip-from-paris-tour
Given the time and distance between Paris and Normandy, the CW tour is a full-day commitment, leaving at 07:00 and returning at 21:00. It does not include D-Day sites/beaches, but when you realize how much time is required to have a worthwhile visit to MSM -- the village, the ramparts and the abbey -- it's understandable. Estimates of 3-1/2 hours' travel time (each direction) puts around seven hours at the venue, within the hours of 10:30 and 17:30. You factor in the walk (or bus) from parking lot, and the day reduces even further. If D-Day beaches are a 'must' then you're likely better off doing an overnight in Normandy and breaking up the sites. Good travels!
Posted by
Downingtown, USA
2449 posts
We took train from Paris to Bayeau very easy. Stayed two nights.. One day a.private tour of Normandy and.one.day saw the tapestry. Was well worth it.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7884 posts
Do you understand they are both far from Paris, and are not adjacent?
For that reason, a commercial tour would require an overnight, and an additional long bus ride. Such a tour product will be hard to find.
There is considerable weekly posting on this board about taking a Paris train to the D-Day beach area, but local transport requires a car rental or a day-tour. I'm saying the sites are diffuse! MSM is not well-served by public transportation, but there is an inter- town bus from the train.
When you read the past posts you will find some discussion of the Churchill Hotel's daytrip to MSM from Bayeux, available to non- hotel guests.
Posted by
Normandie
302 posts
I'm curious how many days you would have to commit to touring Normandy and the D-Day sights.