CleoB

Thanks to all who have posted comments and tips about travel in Normandy - we can't wait to go! Since we (husband and I) will only have three days & nights sandwiched between Paris and Brussels on our next trip, I'd love to hear where you think we should stay and what we must see. We'll have a car and will start in Paris and finish in Brussels. For Mont St. Michel, where to stay if we want to walk out at low tide and also see it at night? We want to see WWII sites as well - where to stay? Bayeux, Caen? I'm sure I will have more questions, but thanks for getting me started down the right path now!

Sue_xx_yy

Hi CleoB.

I'm a bit confused: on your other thread, you mention returning to Paris in order to take the train to Brussels (which I agree is a good idea.) So have you changed your mind?

Even if you drive straight to Brussels from , say, Bayeux, it is going to be a full day's drive (minimum 5 hours plus stops.) You will also have a drop-off fee for the car which could be pricey.

That leaves you 2 days - half of one of which you will spend getting from Paris to Bayeux (about a 3 hour drive, minimum - plus you need to allow time for car pickup.) You could probably see the Bayeux Tapestry on this first day.

A day trip to Mont St Michel from Bayeux will consume the better part of a day, with little or no time to see WWII sites. That's your second day.

OR you do a day touring WWII sites (not enough, really: this was the biggest armada in history, and the invasion didn't end with the beach landings; there are also several museums of note to see, in both the American (west) and British/Canadian (east) sectors.

I think you should be getting the picture that your time is squeezed, and you may need to make some hard choices. Best of luck.

CleoB

Sorry for the confusion, Sue_xx_yy. You are right - we'd originally planned to do a driving loop out/back from Paris, but my husband wants to keep the car and drop it in Brussels to give us more flexibility in getting there. I've investigated the car drop fee - it's 55 euro, which is OK with us in exchange for the freedom.

As for long driving days, we are OK with that (we live in AZ). As you note, we are certainly time crunched - we have frequent flier constraints that limit our total days unfortunately. I've tried to absorb what others have posted about what they did, but what do you think of this plan:

Day 1 early AM: drive from Paris to Mont St. Michel, seeing Giverny on the way; spend the night near MSM.

Days 2-3: visit WWII sites; hotel TBD.

Day 4: Visit more sites in AM; drive to Brussels mid-afternoon to arrive in the evening. (We're OK with a later arrival)

Does that seem feasible given our limited time? Thanks so much for your advice!

cmeyer54

For WW2 sites, I'd recommend Bayeux as your base. We stayed at Lion D'Or and had a wonderful experience. They offer off-street parking which was a big plus for us. If you have two days there, I'd book a full day tour of the beaches, cemeteries, etc with Col Chilcott, assuming he is still doing this. Your time will be customized to your wishes and he is a great source of information. Its likely that the 'group' will be just you and your husband! On the second day, I'd suggest seeing the cathderal, tapestry, street market, etc in town. On the way from MSM to Bayeux, you may want to stop in St Mere Eglise to see the church, town square and small museum to the paratroopers. The stained glass windows of the church have paratroopers in them! On the way to Brussels, be sure to stop at the museum in Caen...its worth the time and and easy on/off the autostrasse

Fodorite018

Last summer we stayed in Bayeux for a couple nights and loved it. We stayed at the Hotel Churchill which was right in town so a great location. We did the one day tour with Battlebus, which was excellent. They pick you up right at the parking lot of the Churchill which was obviously really convenient for us.

CleoB

Thanks for those suggestions, cmeyer54 and mms. We like to spend more than one night in each location, if possible, so I'll check out availability at the hotels you mention. The tours sounds interesting - did you book them online before you left or once you got there?

cmeyer54

We booked Col. Chilcott in advance. He picked us up at our hotel (our family of 4) and drove us to his B/B on the outskirts of Bayeux where he has a map room with a great overview of the invasion plan, etc. We had tea, he explained a lot and then we took off. our preference was an American view so we toured: British Cemetery, German Cemetery, Longues Battery, Pointe Du Hoc, Omaha Beach and ended up at the American Cemetery. What was nice about his tour, even tho it is expensive, is that we were on no prearranged schedule. We were able to spend as much time as we wished at each site. In fact, our timing had us arriving at the American Cemetery as it was closing. He apologized...even tho we had dwaddled at several spots, and offered to pick us up the next morning and return to the cemetery at no additional charge! Our children were 12 and 14 at the time - his insights and pertinent comments are well remembered even now, 7 years later. We communicate with him via email - you can google Michael Chilcott and the info will come up. We paid a flat fee, plus petro and his lunch. All in all, an excellent investment.

Underhill

Instead of driving from Paris, why not take the TGV as far as Rennes and pick up your rental car there? From Rennes it's an easy drive to Mont St-Michel. You could stay somewhere between there and Bayeux that night and then spend the following day seeing the WWII beaches. On the third day you can see the Bayeux tapestry (actually, it's embroidery), a few sights in Caen (the Abbaye des Hommes and the Abbaye des Femmes) on your way up to Brussels.

Traveler2007Paris

We also stayed at the Hotel Churchill in Bayeux in April 2007. It was a great location. We took a one day Battlebus tour which was outstanding!

CleoB

OK, sounds like we'll want to book the private tour with Col Chilcott - I'll Google him to get the contact info - thanks for this recommendation.

I hadn't thought about taking the TGV ous of Paris - good idea. I'll need to run it by my husband, as he's in charge of ground transport.

And thanks for the additional Hotel Churchill recommendations - I will look them up, along with the Battlebus Tour. Did you book that in advance or once you got to Bayeux?

cmeyer54

here's the address i have for Col.Chilcott:
[email protected]

good luck -

Fodorite018

We booked the Battlebus tour in advance, several months if I remember correctly. The museum in Caen is excellent, so if you can fit that in I would highly recommend it.

ozgirl

Hello Cleo, we have just returned from France and a trip which included D Day beaches. Just another option for you to look at - we stayed at www.bandb-bayeux.com where the owner Francois, is also a qualified WWII tour guide. He accompanied the four of us in our car from 0900 until 1800 for a very informative day and we would highly recommend him and the B&B.

CleoB

More great ideas! I've checked out the Battlebus website, and will now also explore ozgirl's suggested hotel and talk with my husband about touring with Col Chilcott. I do think we will have time for the museum in Caen and will add that to my itinerary. What fun - thanks everyone!

Mamaw

I also highly recommend Churchill Hotel. The owners are sweethearts and do a fantastic job running a beautiful hotel. The breakfast is included with the room and it is awesome. I'd do anything to be there right now. And the Bayuex Tapestry is within walking distance. They can arrange tours of the Normandy beaches as well.

I wish I knew how to copy a pic of the hotel on this thread.

Theresa in Detroit

cmeyer54

I just received a note from Mrs Chilcott. The Col has had some health issues, is doing well now but won't be conducting any tours for a few months.

CleoB

Thanks, cmeyer54, for the note about Col. Chilcott. I hope he recovers soon. Mamaw, I contacted the Hotel Churchill and they now charge 9 euro per person per day for breakfast - it's no longer in the room rate. But I do think we will stay there as they had rooms available.