Hi, we are vacationing in Normany/Brittany in July. I would love suggestions. We have 5 full days with travel days on each end. I have a few questions. 1. We need to pair down our towns. Here is my list and please suggest which to drop: Rouen, Hontfleur, Bayeux, Mont St Michelle, Dinan. I am thinking 2 days in Bayeaux for history and town. Leave in the pm for St Michelle and one day there. The rest, I am up in the air. 2. Should we take the train to our first destination and rent a car there, returning it the last town? Or drive from Paris? In Paris, we need to end up near the Sacre Cour. 3. If we venture into Dinan, is there a great cheese maker, cider farm, etc we should visit? (Here is some background: our travel days our Monday and Sunday. So we are in the region Tuesday through Saturday. We love history, local and WW2, and take the walking tours of the town. walking, markets, and we tend to cram to much into one trip and always feel we are leaving a city sooner than we should. Seaside towns for the sea are not needed. history and local flavor is key.)
Thanks! Kelly
Posted by
Gig Harbor, Washington, USA
1850 posts
Rick's book over-hypes Dinan. It's entertaining for about two hours; very sleepy place, Rue Jezebel walk to the river is interesting, but we didn't find much else. If you have been to York, Dinan is like having a Miller Lite after a micro-brew!...... We really liked St. Malo - it's full of shops and restaurants, has an energetic vibe, good city walls for a walk, an interesting harbor....The most interesting place in Brittany is Carnac, row after row of neolithic stone alignments....Quimper is a good town for walking....Rouen is interesting, takes about 3-4 hours including lunch near Monet's cathedral.....We enjoyed Honfleur, it might be a good overnight spot....If you don't want to move every day, consider overnights in Honfleur, Bayeux, St. Malo if you don't want to drive as far as Carnac and Quimper, although those two towns would be highlights.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Exactly what Cynthia said, down to the commas and periods. The only addition might be to swing through Dol for the tallest megalithic I've ever seen. And maybe Fougeres if you like walled cities, which would save you a trip to crappy Carcassonne some other time.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, US
1005 posts
I just got back a few weeks ago. I would take a train from Paris to Caen and rent a car therethe rental offices are across the street from the train station. I wouldn't stay in Caen, however. I'd stay in Honfleur, Bayeux, and maybe a B&B near Mont St-Michel. I'd probably skip Rouen myself and concentrate on central Normandy. The D-Day sights could easily take two days of sightseeing. Also, don't skip Utah Beachthe new museum there is one of the best I've seen covering the landing and Battle of Normandy.
Posted by
OP
Orlando, Florida, USA
15 posts
Thank you Cynthia, Ed and T. !!!
Ok, Dinan is out and I will start looking at the other cities! Thanks again.
Posted by
New York, NY, 10025
392 posts
I agree that St. Malo is great. We also followed Rick's advice of driving from there to Mont Saint-Michel and making a couple of stops along the way, and it was lovely. I would go back to both placed Ina heartbeat. The amount was particularly spectacular at sunset. I will never forget that experience.