John

I will be in Paris the first week in November. I am very interested in taking a day trip to Normandy to see the D-Day beaches, cemetaries, etc. However, it seems that many of the guided tours from Paris stop on 31 October; the end of the tourist season. Has anyone ever taken a day trip on their own from Paris to Normandy...information such as trains, locations, etc., would be great.

Sherry

John: You might consider renting a car for a day to go to Caen, and the Normandy beaches. It is an easy drive from Paris on a super highway. It would give you the flexibility to stay longer at any one of the beaches or let's say the American cemetery, if you chose. Just remember the roads closest to the beaches are narrow and it takes a lot longer to travel on them then the mileage suggests. Give yourself enough time. It takes over two hours to get from Paris to Caen.

elvira

My sister and I took a train from Gare St Lazare in the morning (suggest the 7am train that arrives around 9:30; there is also a later train that gets you there about 11:30) to Bayeux. Across the street is the Hotel de la Gare; the owner's son runs guided tours of the D-Day beaches, cemeteries, etc. Jean-Marc Bacon speaks excellent English; the van is spotless and he is a storehouse of knowledge about the landings, the beaches, and just about everything else. His business is called Normandy Tours tel 31 92 10 70 fax 31 51 95 99 You will need to make a reservation; I believe he charges about $40 per person for virtually a whole day; you will be back in plenty of time to catch a train back to Paris and arrive at a reasonable hour. As far as I know, he still runs his tours all year long. We were completely delighted with our tour, and recommend it highly. Not too long ago, I saw a post from someone who has recently taken the same tour, and also gave rave reviews. <BR> <BR>Bundle up; it will be cold and windy. Suggest you wear waterproof boots, or bring another pair of shoes to change into after the tour (likely to be rainy as well). <BR> <BR>You could also stay overnight in Bayeux, then spend the next day in the city (those famous Bayeux tapestries, you know, plus a couple of good museums). <BR> <BR>Don't be discouraged; this can be done! <BR>

MED

Last year (March) I took a day trip out of Paris to Bayeux and the beaches of Normandy. We took the train from Gare St. Lazare but got off to a later start than we had hoped. We explored the town first and then stopped off the the TI to see about tours but we missed them all. However, there is a taxi tour you can take. You pick which beaches you'd like to see and the taxi delivers you to each of them. We got some info on the beaches at the TI so we knew what we were looking at. The taxi driver didn't speak much english (my french isn't the best either) and wasn't the most friendly guy in the world. He gave us about 20 mins. at each stop which was actually fairly sufficient. Don't miss Point du Hoc. I don't think I knew what it means to be truly brave until I saw that cliff. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.

patty

ditto the recommendation for the train, then the tour from bayeux. we went with the same company described. excellent guide, very informative, point du hoc museum and the american cemetary are "must sees"