Traveling Paris to Normandy

I am a big proponent of a D-Day tour for folks who don't have a member of their travel party who's an expert on the invasion. The van tours have driver/guides who are experts and will move you around efficiently while providing historical background. I can't imagine the typical tourist who just shows up in a car gets as much out of his time along the coast as those with a good guide--and I am not a big user of tour guides in general.

You can take the train from Paris to Bayeux, which I consider by far the best base for exploring D-Day sites without a car of your own. Bayeux has nice sights of its own, the major ones being the tapestry, the cathedral, the invasion museum (newish and very good) and the historic center.

It's possible to get from Bayeux to Mont-St.-Michel by public transportation, but it isn't particularly quick or easy. You could rent a couple of cars (there's one agency in Bayeux, more in Caen a short train ride away), or you could check out the day-trip run by the Churchill Hotel in Bayeux. I understand you can take that trip even if you are not staying at the hotel. However, folks who've been to MSM recently report that it is a mobscene during day-tripping hours and highly recommend arriving late in the afternoon, spending the night either on the island or on the mainland, and departing mid-morning the next day. I am not speaking from experience because MSM has never been important enough to me to justify the hassle of getting there.

If you decide to rent a car or cars, you should make those arrangements before you leave home. Many folks recommend working through one of the consolidators (AutoEurope, Kemwel, Gemut) for possibly better rates, useful information, and support if something goes wrong. This is another thing with which I have no experience, but I know AutoEurope has been recommended by multiple guide books for decades.

I did my own tour as a solo traveler of both dday beaches and mt st Michel. If you want the commentary that comes with organized tour then that is the way to go.

acraven's advice is good; take a tour. The "peace" museum in Caen also operates tours and that city has more hotels and restaurants to choose from. Bonus: For a far earlier military perspective, the fortress castle of William the Conqueror in the centre of Caen is worth a visit. Bayeux is a short train ride away. You really don't need a car of your own unless you plan to explore outside the area.

We used the Rick Steves guidebook extensively on our June trip 12 years ago. He includes descriptions and lots of details about D-Day landing sights, for those of us doing it on our own.

But we started in Belgium, and finished in Paris. We rented a car on our way to Normandy, and turned it in in Caen (great War/Peace museum), to avoid any driving in Paris itself. Coming the other direction, you could all take a train from Paris to Caen, then pick up your rental there. The two of us only needed a small car, including our luggage. If you rent, you may want to look into a minivan - or van?

Apartments can offer a kitchen, if you want to manage any of your meals, and possibly a washing machine - if you’re running low on clean underwear and washing in the sink isn’t how you want to spend your time. Dryers are less frequent in Europe, so you’ll maybe need time for things to hang-dry, unless the place has a combo washer-dryer machine. If the price is right, you might prefer all that to a hotel.

Hi Deb,
Sounds like a great trip! In response to your questions:
1. My group of 4 adults took an organized tour (Dale Booth and the 2 day American Beaches one). MSM wasn't a priority for us, but we did rent a car for one day to go from Bayeux to Honfleur and back. For the D-Day sites we wanted someone to escort us and explain the significance of what we were seeing and didn't want to have to negotiate small roads and finding parking.
2. I prefer to book hotel rooms for stays of less than a week. I don't want to cook on vacation and in a hotel every couple has their own bathroom. Plus I like knowing there's someone at the front desk I can consult if I get into difficulties. And I like some time away from the people we're traveling with. But it is less expensive and you may find that worth the inconveniences.

1. I have done one do-it-myself tour of the D-Day sites and one organized mini-bus tour. The bus tour was way better. The one downside we had to the mini-bus tour is that we are quite tall and the mini-bus seats were not the most spacious.

2. It may be quite difficult to find an apartment in Paris that works for three couples. Three-bedroom apartments are hard to find and getting more that one bathroom can be a challenge. And the sleeping configuration could be an issue meaning that you are unlikely to find the bedrooms to be equivalent in size or bedding configuration. The three bedrooms that IMO work for three couples are generally going to cost as much as three rooms in a hotel. And if you mean early May or June of this year, you need to get on it now in terms fo looking for an apartment that will meet your needs. Have you shared a space before with both couples? Couples sharing an apartment can work in theory but often the reality is something very different.

1. The tour decision is simply based on the travelers' own preference in general, for personal research and Free and Independent Travel Versus Paid Guide To Do All The Work. Unfortunately, demand is very high for American visitors to Normandy Beaches, and priced accordingly. I also didn't care for the drill-Sergeant demeanor of the guides I overheard, but most posters here found the authentic military experience to be a plus for them. That is a personal opinion, of course.

2. I suspect you and I are from different generations, but I avoid AirBnB type businesses because they have been proven to do so much damage to the local housing infrastructure. Everyone (who wants a dishwasher and an espresso cup machine, by the way) thinks they are the sole user of the apartment, which of course is not true. That's one reason (not just the Hotel industry lobbyists ... ) why places like Paris (and NYC, and my small suburban town in New Jersey) have drastically regulated The Disruptors of Silicon Valley. You are making a moral decision when you assert a right to save money (over three hotel rooms.)

Don't take this too personally. It is an important issue in responsible travel.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g189158-i203-k11091886-Airbnbs_Bad_for_Lisbon-Lisbon_Lisbon_District_Central_Portugal.html

https://nyti.ms/2WMTC26

https://nyti.ms/2Nm4m2D

My wife and I took a similar trip last Fall. We started with a long weekend in Paris, then took the train to Bayeux. Instead of renting a car, we took 3 different all day long tours with Bayeux Shuttle - 1 for the American sector, 1 for the British/Canadian sector, and 1 day to Mont St. Michel. We then trained back to Paris and spent the last night at a hotel next to CDG for the morning flight home.

The tours were outstanding, however, I wished that we had more time to explore some of the American sites. If you plan on taking one of these organized tours, suggest you book soon, especially with a group of 6.

For the train reservations, we booked 90 days in advance to get a discounted price for the outbound trip on OUI.sncf, but the return trip did not have any express trains on the schedule until a month or so before our trip. Then magically, the express train schedule appeared and we made reservations.

Bayeux is a beautiful town filled with tourists from the US, Canada, and the UK. We stayed at a very well run B&B named Le Clos de la Croix, which is mentioned in Rick's 2019 France book. Be sure to make restaurant reservations, as many spots will fill quickly after 7 PM and those without a reservation will be turned away at the door.

With six people, it's possible you would be able to arrange a private tour of the invasion sites with one of the tour companies, and it might not cost anything extra. Overlord is the company I used, and its one-day public tours now cost 110 euros per person.

This is such helpful advice. Thank you all.
Based on the advice here, we think we will try to find an apartment in Paris but when in Normandy we'll book hotels. We are now hoping to visit the birthplace of our eighth great-grandmother who was a Fille du Roi from Coutances, so we will be doing more traveling from Bayeux than we'd originally anticipated. MSM may have to wait for another time...or perhaps as a day trip once back in Paris? A long day...but we'd really like to see it.
Merci et bon voyages!

It's less than 50 miles from Coutances to Mont-St-Michel, so it makes a great deal more sense to include MSM with your Normandy excursion rather than trying to see it on a day-trip from Paris. Furthermore, the latter would mean being at MSM during the (reportedly) miserably-crowded midday period. Everyone who has been there recently seems to agree that's not the way to see MSM.

I would discourage a half-day tour of the invasion sites because there's a good bit of driving required from Bayeux, leaving not very much time on a half-day tour to see the places linked to the invasion. I am female, have no family connection to the invasion, and still found the full one-day tour very interesting.

The consensus is to stay in Bayeux and use tour services to see and learn about the sights. I totally agree but will add it might might be less stressful to begin your trip in Normandy and end in Paris. That way you’ll be closer to the airport and not have the trek back to Paris the day before your flights.

My husband and I are planning a similar trip in May. We will be spending 5 days in Domfront which we will use as a base for exploring Normandy (my interests are more in medieval history, tasting local specialties in French food, drinking cider/poire), then 1 night in Versaille followed by 3 nights in Paris before returning home. Are there any recommended must-see sites along those lines for folks who aren't interested in D-day tours? Should we buy tickets for Versailless and Louvre in advance or wait until we arrive?

Our flight arrives and departs from CDG airport in Paris. We like the idea of taking the train to Caen instead of driving from Paris. Where is the train station in relation to CDG airport? and how feasible would it be to go from Paris to Caen, rent a car in Caen, then on the return trip take a train to Caen to Versaille and on to Paris (Louvre area) the following afternoon?

Drdeborahshafer, I recommend starting your own thread since your questions are very different from DebTom's. That way, you'll receive email notifications when someone posts a response. As it stands, DebTom is going to be notified when people answer your questions. I'd recommend a title that mentions at least Normandy and Versailles.

I can't address your special interests, but I found the towns of Fougeres and Vitre very picturesque. The larger city of Rennes is a bit farther away but has a nice historic area. People on the forum have enjoyed St-Malo, Dinard and Dinan as well, though we vary in our favorites.

It seems you may have no interest in WWII history, but just in case I've misinterpreted, I'll mention the new and very interesting museum in Falaise. It focuses on civilian life during the war, including the Resistance. The town of Falaise was destroyed during the war, so you should not expect to historic architecture there.