mku4440

We have the opportunity to visit D-Day beaches over June 6, 2014 with our 7 and 9 yo boys. We will fly into Paris and travel to the area, probably by car, or train and rent car in Caen.

Few questions:

1) is it super crowded on D-Day? Wondering if we should make a point to be there that day, or arrive that afternoon, visit a beach, and do most of touring on 7th.

2) good town to find hotel? We would like to visit St. Mont Michel before heading back to Paris

Thank you.

indy_dad

We had close to a week in Normandy with our kids. Bayeux makes a nice base. See if my trip report / blog is of use:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...y-uk-stops.cfm

Robert2533

You'd be advised to go with a tour and not do it on your own, not if you and the children want to learn anything.

As noted, Bayeux makes the best base for the D-Day tours.

Mimar

I don't agree with Robert. The kids might find a tour tiring/boring. Must-visit: the Peace Memorial Museum at Caen, easily accessed from Bayeux. We also liked the Arromanches museum/film and the tapestry in Bayeux. (I thought kids wouldn't like this but I was wrong. It's just like a linear cartoon. Be good to prime them with a bit of history first.)

And I second Bayeux as a nice place to stay.

indy_dad

Our kids like the tapestry (and it doesn't take that long); the Peace Memorial might be a little much for the younger kids though. I guess it will vary.

Pointe du Houc was a favorite D-Day site with craters, etc. to run up and down. They also liked the American Military Cemetery; well at least it was very memorable.

Thinking back, Ste Mere Eglise was also a nice stop with the hanging parachutist and the Airborne Museum.

We went with a private guide in hopes that she would engage the kids (which she did).

BKP

indy_dad -- just read through this blog entry and really enjoyed it! We're Americans, living in the UK so we share a similar perspective. Can I hijack this thread and ask a couple of questions? We want to visit Normandy but are holding off until our son is a bit older, he's 8 this summer. How old is your son? How did your children handle the solemness of the DDay sites? The cemetery? We want to go, but we want to make sure he can appreciate it as well.

Do you have links for the private tour guide you used? And a link for the b&b with the shared table and gourmet food?

indy_dad

BKP

The chateau was in the TR (not blog):

<b>Bayeux, Chateau de Damigny (3 nights)</b>

http://www.chateaudamigny.fr/?lang=en

<i>2 rooms, €80 each including breakfast. 5 minute drive into Bayeux. Family run and very peaceful. Fairly new B&B with 5 rooms. Rooms were nice; nothing fancy about the common areas or outside but friendly. Best part was the ”table d’hotes” with the hosts and other guests. 28€ pp (half for kids) including multiple course and drinks. Vincent has trained as a chef in addition to running the B&B and the food was outstanding and spending the night with the other guests was very enjoyable. We did it two nights. Best food of the week; felt very French. Highly recommended.</i>

I'll dig out the guide link later when I'm at home.

Gretchen

That sounds like a super place to stay. I recommend Hotel Bayeux where we stayed also--squeaky clean, nice breakfast room, car park, 5 minutes from the cathedral and the Tapestry.
If you get the Green Guide to Normandy, there are detailed tours of the beaches. Then each beach museum has informative tours. I agree that a formal tour could get boring for kids--and maybe just too much.
Don't miss Arromanches. And St. Mere Eglise, while a bit up the coast is also interesting--a lot about the gliders and parachutists and a little different from the other assault beaches.
Since this isn't an anniversary year of DDay, it might not be any more crowded.

Challiman

We rode the train from Paris to Caen, stayed in a hotel there for a couple of nights, rented a car and traveled around Brittany, including MSM. We hired a guide for the invasion beaches and cemetery and it was worth every penny. An individual is much ore flexible and if you let them know in advance they can take into account the children's ages, interests, and attention span.

I have never been on June 6, would love to do that, but I would imagine it is rather busy.
Be aware that it can be very emotional for adults, seeing the beaches and the cemetery. Have to say I shed a few tears there.

mku4440

Thank you all SO much for your quick responses. I will read the trip report and look into the hotels.

Challiman, do you have information on hiring a private guide? And about how long and price? I'm torn on group tour as some said boys may lose interest. They travel well, but they are young boys and a little flexibility in schedule may be needed.

mku4440

actually 2014 will be the 70th anniversary!

Challiman

mku, I am heading out the door but when I return I will give you the name of our guide. It has been about 4 years so not sure what he charges now. He can also give you the names of other guides.
I should be home in about 4 hours.

dutyfree

As a former history teacher with kids and an international flight attendant,I can not recommend enough to take your kids to the Caen museum for a fabulous way to explain what happened in that area.This museum was so interesting that my family spent over 4 1/2 hours there as the exhibits are fascinating!Everything from the artifacts to explaining in simpler details the various operations make D-Day come alive for all ages-truly a wonderful museum and worth the time to visit.

When we went to Normandy,we spent time in Honfleur then went to Bayeaux and then a night on the mont at Mont St. Michel which was magical!!!When the tour buses leave around 4pm, the mont becomes a different place.

Challiman

I second dutyfree's recommendation of the museum in Caen.

I have written the guide we had and will get back to you as soon as I hear back.

indy_dad

BKP wrote:
<i>Do you have links for the private tour guide you used? </i>

No website for our guide, Lucie Hoffman. We got her name from a guidebook. Contact info:

luciehoffmann (at) msn.com

The guides aren't cheap. Most will be 400-450&euro; in their car and 300&euro; or so in yours.

BKP wrote:
<i>indy_dad -- How old is your son? How did your children handle the solemness of the DDay sites? The cemetery? We want to go, but we want to make sure he can appreciate it as well. </i>

It's always a balance finding the appropriate age, but then again you can't travel to all the sites at the perfect age.

My son was 10 (daughter 13). Solemness really only applied to the cemetery and they handled that fine. We tried to talk about young men storming the beach and perhaps they "got it" but maybe not. Regardless, it was a memorable and enjoyable experience.

As with a lot of our adventures, they may not "get it" now, but it does plant seeds for later.

Another neat example was going to the Battle of Hastings re-enactment (in England) and then seeing the tapestry in Bayeux.

ClanMurray

Actually, 2014 is an 'anniversary year' of sorts in that the various battles are re-enacted in 'even' years. You'll see a number of WWII era military vehicles, sometimes in 'convoys', as well as re-enactors dressed in uniforms of the various units that participated in the invasion. It's all quite incredible and definitely adds to the experience. On the night of June 5th, there will be a street party in Sainte-Mère-Église which is pretty cool, although it might not be that interesting for younger children.

BKP

indy_dad, thank you for checking your notes and getting back to me. The B&B looks amazing and I will definitely file it in our "someday trip to Normandy" folder.

I agree about planting seeds in our children through travel. We've dragged our son all over the place for years. Sometimes it clicks, sometimes it doesn't but hopefully it all sinks in at some level.

Thanks again!

Challiman

I have written my guide and he is still doing the tours in Normandy. I am on Facebook with him and forgot to ask about an email address other than FB. I am not sure he has the same email address I previously used.
In any case, he says that he would not be available until probably June 8, and wouldn't recommend a tour until then, as there are so many ceremonies and security with heads of state and other dignitaries and traffic.
If you are interested considering this information, I will provide his contact information.

Challiman

[email protected].

mku4440

thank you so much Challiman. We are actually going NEXT June (2014), so plenty of time.