Is it possible to Self-Navigate your own D-Day tour?

My parents, sister, and daughter did their own tour of the Normandy beaches. Of course you have to do your own research, but if it is an interest of yours, that shouldn't be difficult.

Hi Zach,

Sure you can do it - you can either drive a car around or use public transit to get between the beaches. The only thing is that you probably will not get as much information out of the visit without a guide at each place, though the museums are very good and you can get some guided tours of select beaches.

Did you just want to see sites of major US historical importance, or all of the D-day areas?

The Rick Steves France Guidebook gives excellent starter information on the major D-Day sites in Normandy. The book doesn't go into any great detail, but you could always supplement with your own research. Should you decide to tour on your own, consider using a rental car. This would give you flexibility with your timetable, and the sites are well-marked.

Yes, it's possible to do this on your own. It will take some work, however, but can definitely be done. I've done it. But I wasn't trying to do it as a day trip from Paris (I saw this in your post in another topic)--that makes it more difficult. You need a rental car from Paris (not without its problems), or train to Bayeux and then rent a car, or settle for a big bus whirlwind tour that will pick you up at your Paris hotel.

Of course you can. But arm yourself with as much information and maps as you can. When we went, roads signs were difficult and we hadn't anticipated closing hours so we missed the American Cemetery. Of course, there are more resources on the web than there were even five years ago.

Zach, You can do it as a self guided trip. I agree with the advice to rent a car. We took the train from Paris to Caan and rented a car on oaur second visit. I would not recommend that as a one day trip from Paris however. If you are limited to one day, an organized tour might be your best choice. We were told there was a battlefield bus that went from beach to beach on our first trip there. We never found the bus. We did share a taxi out to Omaha Beach, but sharing a cab out there with four people is different price wise than paying the full tab for the ride back. In my opinion, the landing areas and the American cemetery are very moving. .. I wish I had had more time. Enjoy your trip.

Yes you can and better to do it with a car. To do all the beaches is quite a long stretch so start early or allow a couple of days. Don't miss the American cemetery at Omaha beach. Just an overwhelming feeling as you walk through the immaculately maintained grounds with the markers perfectly aligned. Drive on to Point du Hoc and walk around and into some of the old bunkers. The craters from the bombs, the steep cliff that the rangers scaled and the view of the channel as you visualize the thousands of boats approaching on June 6, 1944 is a sight to see. If you have seen the mini series, Band of Brothers, and if you go on to Utah beach you can drive from there to a little community called Grand Chemin. Just out from there you will see a small monument dedicated to Easy company where they fought their first battle at Brecourt Manor taking out the huge German 105mm howitzers firing on the causeway at Utah. Becourt Manor is still owned by the same family that owned the farm in 1944. We drove down the little road and saw the house and the field where the battle took place but it is requested that you don't stop on their property and walk around. This was a problem especially right after the show came out so to respect the privacy of the family they only allow certain small guided tours to walk around. Do your research and you can do a tour of the D-Day beaches on your own and it will be a very memorable part of your trip.

Zach, last year we did an overnight trip from Paris to the Normandy region. The drive from Paris was very nice, and we went to the places we wanted.

We also drove to Mont St. Michel and stayed the night at a chateau 10 min from there.

If you rent a car, get a GPS with the car. We lucked out. We used sixti.com and their car came with one... and it was a blessing.

PM me if you want more infom.

Why not just get a guidebook that focuses on Normandy and D-Day, like this one?
http://www.longitudebooks.com/find/p/20182/mcms.html

Any guidebook that covers Normandy (like Rick Steves' France) is going to have the main sites, so if you had limited time that would suffice.

I've visited the beaches and the WWII museum at Caen, and it's very easy to find everything and to get around.

I was going to focus mostly on sights of US significance, so it's easier to narrow down exactly what would be on the itinerary. I suppose I'm also going to have to bite the bullet and get a car if I'm going to do this right...should be an experience in and of itself. :-p

Thanks for the link to that book, has anyone used it? Should it be enough?

Michlen has a map called "Michelin Battle of Normandy Map No.102" and a regular Normandy road map. You might check them out too.

I heard an ad today on NPR for the Rick Steves show that was aired today--it was all about touring D Day sites. You should be able to listen by going to the Rick on Radio tab at the top.