Hi there,
I'm staying in Bayeux, Normandy and would like to visit the war cemeteries and associated museums. Other than going on an organized tour, is anyone aware of any public transportation to these places? I've heard that you can rent a bike in Bayeux which may be a possibility, although I've heard it's quite far, although a nice ride.
Any info would be appreciated!
Thanks,
GF
In Bayeux? I found Bayeux very walkable. We visited the British military cemetery of Bayeux twice.. it's basically right next to the Memorial Museum of the Battle of Normandy, and very near the Reporters Memorial. I guess put into Google maps or similar and see if you can handle the distances.
Public transport from Bayeux to the beaches and associated memorials is virtually non existent. The various memorials and museums are also quite spread out. You either need a tour or a car rental.
The bike would work for the attractions in Bayeux itself.
this might depend on how specific you are. For the Canadian sites you would be better off in Caen.
French regional transport could be described as "not as good as it could be" - and the same can be said for the official websites that theoretically support it. Anyway, start with the https://nomad.normandie.fr/welcome-normandy-transport-network-nomad if you speak french changing to the main version might give more info
There are buses and trains in the region, although they are sporadic. I’d suggest that you list the specific museums and cemeteries that you want to visit and perhaps people can offer suggestions.
I often use googlemaps (choose the public transportation option) to get an idea of what might be available. For example, I plugged in Bayeux to the American Cemetery and saw a bus route (#120) between the two. Because googlemaps does not always have up-to-date schedules, I then use the googlemap info to find current schedules. It looks like you can download a transit app for this region to get schedules:
https://transitapp.com/en/region/normandie/nomad-car-r%C3%A9gion/bus-120
The city center of Bayeux is walkable. But not the area/region the beaches or cemeteries.
It's all remote and along country roads. There's no public transportation. Riding a bike to these places seem a stretch, unless you are a regular cyclist. Yes, we saw a few bikes on the narrow roads but thinking of covering large areas with sites far apart, seems much.
I met a Canadian couple in the laundromat in Bayeux. They were staying there for a week, and had a rental car and mentioned several places they'd seen such as the Canadian War Cemetery, which was at least a half an hour by car. Driving is actually very easy in Normandy, though parking in Bayeux is limited, so you would want to make sure that your accommodations has parking.
Overlord Tours was fantastic!
GF,
What Lin C said. You really need a car or a tour. We have always driven ourselves for considerably less than the tour groups, but hubby spent a few childhood years in the area just after WWII, so knows it well, and I am a history major with lots of studies for that period. A tour such as Overlord will not be cheap but is a good investment to see the sights. Buses are not frequent and don't go to a lot of places. It is almost impossible to see a lot trying to use public transportation (just as in the Dordogne).
P.S. The sights are spread out, so you would do a lot of biking. Just the beaches involved cover about 50-60 miles in length, and the associated areas cover up to 500 square miles.
It really depends on what you mean by war cemeteries and associated museums. My answer was regarding the ones within Bayeux. We were very happy with our 2 days with Overlord beyond that .
