We're planning a 2 week trip in June or July 2008. We'd like to visit the Normandy Beaches and spend a week in that area and spend another week in Ger. and Austria - in both areas we would be staying at a time-share resort, using them as a base and travel to sites daily.
My question - would it be easier and less expensive taking trains and tour buses or renting a car for the entire 2 weeks? There's 4 of us, children are age 13 and 15. Also,
any suggestions on airline savings?
i'd rent a car since you have 4 people, but depending on the distance you want to drive. normandy is pretty close to paris so definitely rent car.
Rent a car. Since you say you will be staying in one place but want to do day trips from your base, a car would give you the most flexibility and I'd be surprised if it wasn't at least comparable to 2 weeks of daily transportation for 4 people. I'm basing this though on the cost of a manual drive car - if you need automatic it might be more costly.
We have driven with our 2 kids many times in Europe. We had a car while we stayed in the Normandy region and it was easy to drive around the small towns in order to see the D-Day beaches, museums, etc. Not sure where you will be in Germany and Austria but if it is not right in one of the big cities then again the driving is very easy. We loved driving in Germany - it seemed that everyone follows the rules of the road and we felt very safe going at high speeds - it was fun!
Normandy is kind of hard to explore by anything but daytour buses or car. If you accustomed to the Jersey shore (being from Huntingdon Valley...), settlements and populated areas in Normandy are much smaller, much less densely peopled, and are spread much farther apart. This is one area of Western Europe where train travel isn't convenient. And while you're there, don't miss Mont St. Michel.
As for Germany and Austria, I would have to ask where you plan to visit before making a suggestion.
Thanks to all that have given me your suggestions.
Some have asked a question about our second destination. As far as where we might stay in Ger. or Austria, it would either be Vienna or Salzburg -- if in Germany, it would be in or near Munich.
Thanks again
I have traveled to all the beaches in Normandy and have toured the major WWII sites there so I can assure you that a car is the only efficient way to see the beaches. They are further apart than they may at first appear. I have traveled to Europe with kids in the past and the car seems to work out best when exploring a variety of sites especially in the countryside. Also while in Germany your kids will love driving the autobahns - I know mine did. If travelng in Germany near Munich you can see Rothenburg, Hohenschwangau and many other sites that are easy by car - there of course trains but my preference is to drive in the countryside use subways/buses in cities
If you stay in or near Munich, you can take advantage of the Bayern Ticket (Bavaria Ticket) offer. Up to five people can travel all day on regional trains (no fast trains) and on local transport in Munich for €27. See here: http://tinyurl.com/29mh69.
There is also a Happy Weekend ticket (€35 if bought online, otherwise €37) which covers all of Germany.
Be aware that if you pick up a car in one country and drop it off in another, you will pay a hefty fee. After touring Normandy by car, I suggest that you drop the car in Paris. Then either take the train or fly to Munich. Or fly to either Salzburg or Vienna. Pick up a new rental car in one of those cities if you want to do your touring that way.
For budget alrlines that fly between Paris and Munich/Salzburg/Vienna, see www.whichbudget.com. Booked far enough in advance (up to 90 days) at www.bahn.de, you can get discount train fares for Paris-Munich for either day routes or the direct night train.
"Be aware that if you pick up a car in one country and drop it off in another, you will pay a hefty fee." Not necessarily. I went through a European car rental agency and paid no premium for picking up the car in Munich and dropping it off at CDG. And I really wish I could remember the name of the agency.
If you base yourself in Munich, a car will probably be more of a hassle than an advantage. A car is great for leaving Munich, but the city itself is difficult to navigate by automobile (even with a GPS) and parking is hard to find and expensive. Most of the sites in the city are within walking distance of each other (except the Oktoberfest grounds), and even if you don't want to walk, bike rentals are cheap and readily available (very friendly city for biking).
