Got a nice 3-day layover soon in Paris; doing Normandie is a "Bucket List" item. any gouge on getting there from Montparnarsse, and a hotel/Inn/B&B in Normandie?

Thanks!

FedUp

 

I've done it twice with a rental car. Would you consider that?

 

Five of us rented a car from the train station across the street (reservation recommended) and did it on a Sunday. Map it out before you go; we got lucky and got a map and directions/help at the military museum in Caen. Due to time we started at Pointe du Hoc and headed east for the highlights: Omaha beach, American cemetery, couple of intact gun emplacements and ended in town w/floating piers. Long, very enjoyable day! Wish we could have stayed the night and visited St-Mere-Eglise too.

 

Fat Tire Bike Co does a nice one day tour. All details taken care of

 

Take the Train to Bayeux from Gare St Lazarre. Trains leave almost hourly. Bayeux is a small town with a small Train station but you are very close , 15-20 minute drive to the Major sites. You can either Rent a car in Bayeux and I recommend ensuring reservations before you are on the train, or pay for a guided tour. I opted for the guided tour. There a several Guided tour outfits and they will pick you up at the Train station.

You could do it all in a Day, Early train in morning, 4 hour or 1/2 day tour for Major sites and then train back in late afternoon or early Eve. Its a long day but very doable.

In your case with a 3 day layover, I'd really recommend to take the train to Bayeux and spend the night. Many B&B's and quaint hotels. It is closer to most of the popular sites than Caen. Look and walk around Bayeux for that afternoon. See Cathedral of Bayeux, British War Museum a couple of WWII cemeteries and an Added Bonus is the Tapestry of Bayeux, Nothing to do with WWII but pretty cool if you are a history buff. You can walk to all of these attractions. Then schedule a Private or Group guided tour for the next day. They will pick you up at your Hotel. They have 1/2 day and Full day tours. Private is more expensive obviously but you have the flexibility to adjust the schedule to fit your needs and see everything "you" want at your pace. Then when you are done, they drop you off at the train station and you will be back in Paris in a little over 2 hours in time for a nice French Dinner. I used Tours, sightseeing tours, activities & things to do | Viator.com for tour. They were good but there are several others which I cannot personally attest but I am sure they are fine.

 

If you rent a car for a two day or more runabout, don't miss nearby Mont Saint Michel

http://wikitravel.org/en/Mont_Saint_Michel

http://www.inspirelifetime.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Mont-Saint-Michel-France.jpg

 

First went to Normandy around 1954-1955 as a small boy - maybe 9-10. Dad was stationed in Paris for four years.

To this day I can remember the significant number of ships still visible in the water.

Went back in 2008 with a French friend I went to school with and really enjoyed the visit. The cemetery was awesome.

Stayed at the Hotel Churchill right in Bayeux. The photographs in the hotel were awesome.

And the Tapestry of Bayeux is a definite item to see.

 

Check your PMs.

 

Stay nearby if you can, as most tours start around 7 or 7:30 AM.

I used Overlord tours and cannot say enough good things about them. Great experience.

 

I had three days to kill, so here's what I did. I took a train to Bayuex, walked into town, there's plenty of hotels which are in walking distance from station as well as meeting area for tour guide pickup. Stayed two nights, at Hotel Rheine Mathilde. I used overloardtours.com. Pick up via their van was right around the corner from hotel. Did the full day Omaha tour. We left early in the AM and got back after dinnertime. Great tour. Then stayed that night and left next day to go continue trip. I've read the usual lot of D-Day books, but luckily I read "The Dead and Those About To Die" just before going, and it prepared me well for Omaha (a MUST read). Also read "Dog Company" which covered the 2nd Rangers at du Hoc. Now I'm trying to cover all the airborne stuff, you get to see some of the drop zone targets during the full day tour, but not enough. I plan on going back for the airborne tour they have. Good luck, it's a life changing experience.