Hello All,
We will be visiting friends in southern England and plan to take the ferry from South Hampton to Normandy for a visit.
We are looking at mid to late September in Normandy.
Considering the summer Olympics will be in Paris/France till late August, does any one have any input if there will still be overflow crowds in Normandy when we hope to travel there?
Also, besides the D Day beaches, we plan on visiting a few of the towns in Normandy. We plan to rent a car.
I am interested in any input and ideas for the best location/locations to use as a base. We are thinking 5-6 nights.
Thank you
Posted by
Orinda, California, United States
307 posts
We enjoyed staying in Bayeux when we visited the beaches in Normandy. We had previously stayed in Honfleur for a few days.
Book your hotel when you have your dates established; we stayed at the Churchill Hotel.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
1301 posts
mztish,
I can't speak to the ferry trip to Normandy, but once there you have lots of great places to visit. When visiting the WWII sights, try to see the flag lowering ceremony at the U.S. Cemetery one day. Bayeux cathedral, museum, tapestry and just the charming town.
Within the whole Normandy area, I recommend Rouen (at least one full day), the Abbaye de Jumieges (on the Route des Abbayes between Bayeux and Rouen), Honfleur, and the little village of Villedieu-les-Poelles. There really are lots and lots of places to see. Try a search here on the forum for Normandy sights.
Bonne chance!
Posted by
77 posts
We stayed in Arromanche in Sept 2019 for 5 days and loved it. It’s right on the beach. The summer tourist crowds were all gone, but most everything was still open. The small town is very walkable, with an amazing WWII museum (the town played a key role in the D-Day invasion). It’s close to most of the D-Day beaches and sights. We stayed at Les Villas d’Arromanche, which had easy, plentiful parking and a great breakfast. We enjoyed walking to dinner each night; all the food at the different restaurants in town was good.
Posted by
865 posts
My upcoming trip to Normandy is overflowing with ideas and suggestions from this forum. Every time someone posts, I add the suggestions to my list of towns/villages to visit. I'll never be able to get to see everything on my list. I'm so thankful for all of the ideas, and I'm not the original poster!
Posted by
CA, USA
1237 posts
The Michelin Green Guide to Normandy is invaluable. Descriptions of just about every town, sample driving itineraries, etc
Posted by
OP
California
25 posts
Wow! Thank you all for the quick snd wonderful tips!
Posted by
Normandie
302 posts
Normandie is pretty large -- besides the D-Day landing areas which part of the Region were you planning to visit?
Posted by
USA
123 posts
I highly recommend a visit to the Normandy American Cemetery. We took a free guided tour (it appears there is an English tour once a day; contact them to confirm the time), which was very worthwhile. Also schedule time to peruse the exhibits in the visitors center.