Tour companies in Bayeux -- any that you would NOT recommend? (who to avoid)

A few years ago, I had a D-Day tour scheduled with Bayeux Shuttle. They canceled on me the day before the tour. Fortunately, Overlord Tours had an opening and I went with them. It turned out to be one of the best day tours I have ever taken.

If you do a search, you'll see Overlord Tours are highly recommended on this forum.

Thank you Frank (Hail, Hail Freedonia :) ). Yes, I have seen Overlord referenced highly.

You definitely want a car. It's easy to drive! Here's how our itinerary went...(to give you some options to consider.)

Last spring, after a few days in Paris, we took the train to Rennes, and picked up our rental car. Stayed in Pontorson and visited MSM the next day.
(We took an afternoon train. If we'd left Paris earlier we could have done MSM same day.) Drove to Bayeux staying 3 nights in this charming town, including a wonderful Overlord Tour. Departed Bayeux, drove to Beuvron-en-Auge; strolled around then drove Honfleur where we had lunch and strolled a bit, then departed for Rouen where we stayed two nights.

Whatever you do, you're sure to enjoy it!

Thank you KD!

Just curious, how easy (or challenging) is it to go from the Pontorson station to MSM itself if one took the train?

And if I may ask, in which hotel did you stay in Bayeux?

Best regards

We took a private tour with HQCompany in Bayeau the best thing we ever did!! My son and his wife used them this June and had the same experience. Well worth the money and we have seen many good reviews about them on line and also here ..

Thank you Gail.

Did you or your son engage them for any touring other than the D-Day beaches & memorials?

Best regards,

There’s a bus from Pontorson Train Station to MSM. We took it a couple of years ago. Got off the train, walked out of the station, and got the bus right there. It might be timed to pick up people walking off the train. We took an 8:30 am train from Bayeux to Pontorson (I think).

I've only toured this area by car, including a 10 day trip last spring, and I find that works best as a lot of the D-Day beaches are really spread out and the British landing sites especially are right in the towns. But if you have a car, why stay in Bayeux? Since the tapestry is gone, I'd seriously look at other locations. Yes, they do have a good WWII museum, but I'd look for a place on the water like Pont en Bessin or closer to the American beaches like Sainte-Mère-Église. Do understand there's a very good chance it's going to rain 50% of the time in October.

I stayed at the Rhein Mathilde in their annex building. It was a mixture of older building with some modern amenities. The location was great.

Thank you Kate98, KGC, Frank

We may or may not be renting a car (I was surprised to see how high the daily rate was for a few I looked at).
I knew it could rain, although I did not realize the likelihood was that high.

We stayed at the Villa Aggarthi a year and half ago and my son did so this June. We all found it wonderful, great location, free on site parking, a truly wonderful bed and breakfast. Son had a car so only used HQ Company for Normandy. We were not there long enough to do any other tours but I think they go to MSM as well as,some other places.

Thank you Gail

Another vote for renting a car. Normandy is fairy rural so you will definitely need one. it is just question of whether you have your tour guide provide one (and only go where and when they go) or you get your own. Many sites are quite spread out and are not well served or served at all by public transportation—particularly the D-day sites.

Thank you very much PharmerPhil

We did something like that a couple of months ago and enjoyed it very much.

We took a train from Paris to Caen and rented a car in Caen. Stayed in Bayeux and used that a our base to tour Normandy.

Visited Pegasus Bridge when we first got there, that was cool.

Took an Overlord D-Day tour from Bayeux and loved it.

Got up early one day and drove to Mont St. Michel, where we had a private tour with Amelie St. James. After our tour there we drove to St. Malo for the afternoon. That day involved a lot of driving, but it was a great experience.

Visited Honfleur and Arromanches and loved both of them (the Mulberries were awesome).

Hope this helps.