Bayeaux and Normandy

Yay, I get to be first to recommend BattleBus tours to you. If you check out other similar posts on the helpline, everyone will tell you this is a fabulous tour and there is no way you will get anything close to this kind of personal information driving around on your own. Please check out their website and let your husband look at it too. We did the 2 day American Experience tour and feel if we would have done anything less than that, we would have shorted ourselves. It truly is worth the money. We can't wait to go back and do the British and the Canadian Experience and possibly Band of Brothers tour. So much to see and so little time!

Bayeaux is a great location for Normandy. Car rental should not be hard, although we rented at CGG and drove up. Nice ride, and the road goes by Giverny, if you want a quick, convenient stop. Check on the web for car rental locations. We have used AutoEurpoe quite a bit. They are inexpensive and available.

We rented an apartment next the the Cathedral for 750 E for the week. It was lovely, close to everything, etc. Check the web for rentals or hotels. There are lots of hotels in that town. Bayeaux has a lovely tourist information place right on the main drag, by the windmill--you can't miss. Lots of good information there.

Lots of good places to eat in Bayeux. There was a fantastic mussel restaurant, as well as a resturant across from the Cathedral which was our favorite. If you are facing the cathedral entrance, turn right and walk across the street. Its in RS book.

We had a full week, but my husband is a military historian. We scoured everything, every where we could. And, I loved Normandy, so it was fun. We did the whole cost and visited the Canadian and English landing sights. Be sure the watch the Longest Day before you go!

Don't forget the see the tapestry, as it is amazing. I also loved Rouen which is not far away.

Forgot to post about the hotel. I had this on another posting, so forgive me those of you who have already read this!
http://www.hotel-de-sainte-croix.com

This was a perfectly lovely B & B in Bayeaux with the most fabulous breakfast I have ever had, including a yummy chocolate tart. We had the double room which had a king size bed, giant bathroom, and beautiful antique furniture thru the whole place. Located in almost the middle of Bayeaux, it was only a 10 minute walk to the center and our BattleBus tour pick-up. I highly recommend them. You can't beat 73 € for a double that includes breakfast. Even the outside of this house was beautiful, like a chateau.

Hi Judy,

Just returned from a Paris/Normandy trip. Three to four days should be fine depending upon exactly what you want to see. I agree with the other posters who recommended the Battlebus tours. We did the two day American tour and felt it was well worth the time and money. Given your husband's interest you could do the two day Battlebus tour and spend one day doing sites not covered by the tour (Arromanches for example) as well as the Caen museum. For Mont St. Michel I strongly recommend that you drive there and stay - it is about a 1 1/2 hour trip from Bayeux and the crowds (second week of August) for the Mont were horrendous. We drove to Mont St. Michel right after the end of our Battlebus tour - got to the Mont about 8pm and wandered around and stayed on the Mont. We got up grabbed croissants and then got to the Abbey about 9 am and were off the Mont by 10:30am the next morning - by that time the line of cars waiting to park was over 1 mile long!!

Thanks to all who responded. This info is very helpful. Had not planned on the Battlebus tour as we usually like to see things on our own, but we are now leaning towards doing this. Will check out Hotel-de-Sainte- Croix as it sounds lovely, the price is right and I love antiques! Sounds perfect. The info on visiting the Mont was good info to know. We will be going in Sept so the crowds may not be as heavy as in Aug, but even if the line of cars is half a mile, that is too much time. Thanks, Judy PS I love this site, don't you? (Rhetorical, no answer needed).

Thanks to all who responded. This info is very helpful. Had not planned on the Battlebus tour as we usually like to see things on our own, but we are now leaning towards doing this. Will check out Hotel-de-Sainte- Croix as it sounds lovely, the price is right and I love antiques! Sounds perfect. The info on visiting the Mont was good info to know. We will be going in Sept so the crowds may not be as heavy as in Aug, but even if the line of cars is half a mile, that is too much time. Thanks, Judy PS I love this site, don't you? (Rhetorical, no answer needed).

I would definitely urge doing the Battlebus tour also. We just returned from our visit last month and did the one day tour. I am a history buff too and could have visited the sites on our own. What separates Battlebus from doing things on your own is all the individual insights and background information provided on each site. Our guide, Allan, really broke things down and talked about individual soldiers at each site. Really brought things home for my wife and I. Made it a much more meaningful experience than just visiting the sites on our own. Being on a somewhat tight budget too, I was a bit surprised at the cost of the tour (80Euro for the one day experience), but would easily pay that again, and would love to go back and do the 2 day experience or a different tour. Enjoy!

You can have a very satisfying visit in that time, in fact were you to stay longer you would probably want to explore beyond the D-Day-beaches area.

I will mention the conventional (but true) wisdom that spending a night at MSM lets you dodge the crowds and experience the place best, but you would pay a premium for a room on the island.

Judy,

I'd also like to enthusiastically suggest BattleBus tours. I took both the American and Canadian highlights tour, and the Guides (Dale & Paul) were so incredibly knowledgeable. If you plan on taking one of their tours, it's a good idea to base in Bayeux as that's where the tours depart from. There's also a WW-II Museum in Bayeux, and of course the large one in Caen.

I also rented a car in Bayeux to explore a few places that weren't covered in the tour (Longues sur Mer, which is just outside Bayeux and Pegasus Bridge).

IMO, you'll have a far more rewarding experience by taking a tour. There are memorials and monuments all over Normandy, and without a Guide it's difficult to fully appreciate the significance of them. The visit to Abbaye d'Ardenne is usually an especially moving experience for most Canadians.

I'd suggest making reservations with BattleBus well in advance, as they sometimes book up fully.

Happy travels!

Definitely Battlebus. In June we spent 4 nights in Bayeux and took 2 tours...the 2 day American Experience tour with Paul and the Band of Brothers tour with Allen. Knowing what we do now, we would add another night and take the British tour also. Loved, loved, loved these tours. Oh, the places you'll go and the stories you'll hear! We are still in awe of the experiences of those few days. Book early; these 8-passenger van tours fill quickly.

Thank you to all who responded. We are definitely going to do a Battlebus tour, probably the 2 day. We will take the train to Caen to visit the museum, and rent a car in Bayeaux to visit the area. Will drive to MSM either very early or later in the day and just scout around if time allows. Judy

We stayed at the Logis les Remparts in Bayeux. I just checked and the room we stayed in is 70E per night - breakfast included.

The bed was the most comfortable bed we had in Europe.

Oops..here is the link:

http://www.lecornu.fr/choixchambreEN.html

We stated in the large Bajocassee room. We were very impressed with the decor. It was very clean. Actually prettier than the pictures.

We stayed in the Logis de Ramparts too. We had asked for the "blue room" and got the attic room. Though very nice, it certainly did not compare with the other place we stayed. It is an interesting B&B though with their Calvados business. They do charge extra for breakfast if you want it before 0800, which will be the case if you are going on the Battlebus tours. We only had breakfast there once, and it was just coffee and croissant. The neighborhood is lovely, just 2 blocks from the cathedral and across the street from a park.

We had three days in Normandy last fall. My husband is a real WWII history buff so this was for him mainly. I absolutely loved Bayeux. We stayed at the Hotel Churchill which was very comfortable and reasonable. The day we took the tour of the beaches was the most beautiful day - everyone was saying it was the best weather they had had in weeks. The next day was more typical - drizzly and gray but with so much charm.
The one thing I would recommend above all else to see is the tapestry. It is one of the most amazing things I have seen in all my travels. The museum where it is set up is very well organized and the whole history of this tapestry is just amazing. Also I would definitely recommend a day in Caen at the WWII museum. It is a very moving experience.
Also the people of Bayeux are very friendly. They get so many tourists that almost everyone speaks English - it almost seems a little British.