Mount St Michel - inside or outside ?

you can stay outside and enjoy the inside till pretty late. with a car you can find good place to stay nearby at farm houses, b&bs, etc. also makes transportation in the area easy to manage. i think if you want to do more with less time, you should rent a car.

Sriram, I can't comment on staying outside of Mont Saint Michel but I just stayed inside for two nights. It was great. I did not have a view room but I still enjoyed staying on the island. The crowds leave and the place is very quiet. If you have the chance and they are doing night tours you should do it. It was amazing. They have classical musicians playing and all different kinds of visual arts. They will be doing the nocturnal spectacle until August 31st. I did get some good pictures of the Abbey by walking out on the causway. I went to Bayeaux from Pontorson on the TGV train. If you go to their website you can see when the train runs. Do be aware that the train station in Pontorson is closed in the middle of the day. There is a direct train at 10:01am and at 3:39pm. It takes 1hr 47minutes. The bus schedule from Mont Saint Michel to Pontorson is posted at the stop at the entrance to the Mont. Whatever you decide I hope you and your wife enjoy it. I had a wonderful time!

"I read that view of michel is really breathtaking from outside. Would I not get the same view from inside?" The classic view of Mont St Michel is from the outside, from some distance on the other side of the river/causeway; and you will not get that view from inside the walls. From inside the walls, you'll get a lot of great views, especially from the viewing areas higher up, on top of the walls. But you won't get the postcard view of the exterior, except from outside. However, this is not a problem, because in order to get into the Mont, you will have to approach from the causeway and there you will get the postcard view. And you'll be able to see the tides better from inside, higher up on the viewing balconies, than you will from outside, because you're up higher. So, you'll get all the views, from inside and outside.

Thanks guys for the great inputs. Essentially, we want to cover the following :- 1) view of mt. st. michel under floodlight or early morning. I guess this is best from the causeway. 2) Stroll around the village and bay after dark or early morning. 3) View the tide. On 14 sept, this will happen at 21:30. This is how we have planned so far. We will reach MSM at 18:00 ( from Paris ). Hang around the causeway and catch the view for 1-1.5 hrs and then enter the island. We can then view the tide from a good height in the island. Next day early morning we can stroll around the village. Limitations with this plan is that we will not be able to get the view of MSM early in the morning from the causeway. I dont think we will get to tour the abbey at late evening. I think in sept it closes by 18:00. Anyways, i have written to the authorities to get the info. sriram

Hello, I am trying to get a booking for a hotel on the island. Have tried all the places mentioned in the book. But they are full. If anyone knows of any more hotels (on the island) then Please share the details. Everything else is covered and I am really looking to be there in september. regards
sriram

We stayed inside in May 2009 and enjoyed it very much. I do not know when and if they actually close the gates. I was taking photos of the Abbey until shortly after midnight and when finished walked inside to my room. I was up before 6:30 a.m. the next morning and the gate was open permitting me to walk outside and take early morning photos. Your late arrival and early departure will help you to avoid the horde of tourists. By 11 a.m. it is beginning to really get crowded so you will be leaving at a good time. The view from the causeway at night is beautiful and those staying outside can take advantage of the beauty of MSM but even by staying inside you can walk outside as far as you wish or drive and enjoy those views as well. Concerning finding a place to stay inside the walls we also found most of the places filled but we did find a place at a decent price. We stayed at Hotel Mont Saint Michel but I don't know if you will find a web site under that name. Rentals for Hotel Mont Saint Michel goes through Terrasses-Poulard at this link: http://www.terrasses-poulard.com/fr e mail address is: [email protected] Phone number: +33 2 33 89 02 02 Our room was a twin bedded room overlooking the bay and was 85 euros per night. They had a room without a view of the bay for 75 eruos. I would think the rates are higher now.

We stayed at the Terrace Poulard. Just wanted to warn you that it quite a climb. You will be right under the Abbey so if you or your wife have any health issues, you might want to take that into consideration. Breakfast is not at the hotel, but down at Mere Poulard, which is all the way down the Mount. If you are in great physical, it should be no problem.