Greetings all,

I just found out that the B&B in Bayeux where we were planning on staying is booked (very frustrating since we were told to e-mail 5 mos. before our stay--I first e-mailed in September). Now we're thinking of changing our itinerary. Before, we were going to stay 2 days in Honfleur and 2 days in Bayeux with a daytrip to Mont St. Michel. Now we're considering staying 1 night on MSM. I've also read here that staying close to MSM is a good idea.

So, would it be feasible to stay 2 days in Honfleur, and stay 1 day close to MSM and 1 day on MSM? Would Bayeux be doable as a day trip? That would be 3 hotels in 4 days though, not ideal... Perhaps stay 3 days in Honfleur and 1 on MSM?

Also, we're going to Provence after Normandy, and we're not sure of the best way to get there from Normandy.

Suggestions for where to stay would be appreciated too, esp. on MSM and nearby!

In Normandy, I stayed at a hotel in Arromanches right on the water. I also stayed at the top of the Mont St. Michel. It was a little spooky at night, but very nice and memorable.

Where were you supposed to stay in Bayeux? I can recommend the Logis les Remparts - www.lecornu.com. Sorry if that's the one you were going to choose...if you want more details on it, email me at [email protected]

Anyway, back to your question...depends on what you want to do where. What about 1 night Honfleur, 2 nights Bayeux and then 1 night Mont. St. Michel? Honfleur is really pretty, but if you have an evening, then a half day, you could go on to Bayeux. But if you're planning to see the D-Day sights plus the Bayeux Tapestry, you'd probably need 2 full days. I'm not sure about the idea of staying 2 nights Honfleur, then 1 night near LMSM, and 1 night on LMSM...not sure what that would gain...We stayed in Honfleur 1 night, getting in really late (Etap - very cheap, very clean and new, not atmospheric, but well-located)...I got up early the next morning to take photos in the old harbor (6AM is best for the mist), then we stayed till around 2, stopped at the Pegasus Bridge on the way to Bayeux, stayed 2 nights there (went to Arromanches, Tapestry, and the D-Day Museum the first day, then got up early for a full-day tour of the D-Day beaches with our private guide (cheaper than doing a tour bus, since there were 4 of us, and more personal...), then dropped the guide off at the Carentan train station (his idea) so we could drive on to Mont St. Michel from there, where we overnighted. It took some precise planning to pull it off, and it was hectic, but it worked.

As far as the night on LMSM, do it! From what I hear, it's really crowded and less than atmospheric during the busy part of the day when all the tour buses are there. We checked into Auberge St. Pierre around 7PM or so, had a nice dinner there in the restaurant (not too pricey, even) and had a blast running around on the ramparts. The hotel hallway opens up onto them and your key gets you back in. It was even a little rainy, but it was still great. You won't be alone - I think everyone that stays there does the same thing - but it's not too crowded. Then in the morning, get up early and see it again without crowds, then get up to the abbey before the buses get there - they start arriving just before 9AM when it opens. Ohk by the way, you can walk a short way out onto the causeway and get great night photos of the illuninated mount.

Sorry, I didn't drive straight to Southern France, but we drove to the Loire, then the Dordogne, then Languedoc, and each time it was at least 3 hours or so. Maybe dropping your car, taking a train, then getting another car in Provence would be easier. Or drive back to Paris and grab a cheap flight on Easy Jet or even Air France might not be too bad. Or check their schedules; maybe there's something direct from the Normandy area. Plane may very well be cheaper than train, especially if you're doing an overnight train with couchette.

Yeah, it's tiring to keep changing hotels, but it would be tiring to stay in Honfleur, go to D-Day sights, and then backtrack

You can check all the driving distances on viamichelin.com. If it's helpful, see my too-long trip report on TripAdvisor - same screen name...MECindylou.

Good luck and have fun!

You might want to consider staying at the Chateau de Bouceel www.chateaudebouceel.com, which is only about 5 miles from le Mont St Michel. We stayed there several years ago and it was absolutely wonderful. Very friendly hosts, with a fascinating family history to share and a beautiful chateau. Rooms 125 - 185 euros/night including breakfast.

Do a search on here (I wrote about it in response to someone's query) and Tripadvisor; they get very high ratings. There's also a great restaurant nearby that they recommended.

We drove (on an easy day trip) to the Normandy beaches and Bayeux from Bouceel, with time for the local dinner that evening.

Have fun! MSM is amazing.

It was the Logis des Ramparts (www.lecornu.fr)! I am so disappointed about not being able to stay there. I actually thought about emailing them on the 1st of January, but since I was specifically told not to e-mail until 5 mos. before our arrival, I waited. Then I was told they had reserved the room on January 1st. So frustrating!

I e-mailed our in-laws (who we're traveling with) about this dilemma, and my father-in-law suggested staying in Avranches for the 3rd and 4th night. We've booked a room at the Altos. I thought for sure they would want to stay on MSM... I guess not! We're going to try and dine at a restaurant with a lovely view of MSM. It was awfully nice of my father-in-law to jump in and take over some of the planning, so I feel that we should just do as he suggests. Hopefully it will be a good choice!

Also thanks for the suggestion re: a private guide--we'll keep that in mind since we'll also be a party of 4.

Can't comment on your hotel in Avranches but we stopped there for lunch several years ago on our way to MSM. It is a pretty little town with lots of charm. There is a winding road that you drive to reach the town which is high above a valley if I remember correctly.

You might look into the Chateau de la Bellefontaine in Bayeux. We loved our stay there. I would not spend 3 days in Honfleur and 1 in le MSM - Honfleur is definitely not a good base for visting the DDay sites. Neither is Avranches. I'd actually stay in Caen or Ouistrehem or Arromanches over those, plus the 1 night at le MSM.

Forgot to add that you can take a train from Rennes to Avignon. Takes most of the day, but it's a pleasant ride.

Hi again britomart,

I hope I'm not intruding too much by offering this unsolicited advice, but in case you decide to rethink the accommodations (I agree with St. Cirq), here is another good option in Bayeux: www.hoteltardif.com - email Anthony who is totally nice and professional. He was the one who recommended Logis les Remparts to me when he was all booked. Excellent location, great value. Our guide was Jacque Perreau [email protected]

I bet your in-laws would love him, too. He was 4 at the time of the invasion and tells the best anecdotes about getting injured and helped by a German medic. We thoroughly enjoyed our day with him. When we had to book him for the day we were leaving Bayeux (he was booked the day before) it was him who came up with the idea to drop him off at the Carentan train station after our tour, so we could go on to LMSM. To do this, you have to be able to fit you all, all your luggage, and Jacques in the car, and pay for his train ticket (like 14E or something...He was very reasonable and touring with him enabled us to slip in and out of sites quickly, as well as finetune the touring to exactly what we wanted to see. If you emailed him, he could suggest how to plan your itinerary to utilize him the best, while keeping to your plan. LMSM and Avranches area is aobut 1 and 1/2 hours from the Bayeux area and D-Day sites. You'll waste a lot of time going back from Avranches.

About the stay on LMSM, if your in-laws are elderly or have trouble walking, it might not be their cup of tea to walk up to the hotel entrance in LMSM from the parking lot. It's not far to Auberge St. Pierre and some others there, but just so you know, it is a hassle for some. As far as staying there or not, you can decide how important it is to you to do that and take it up with the helpful in-laws. I tend to be "never say die" when I really want something, so maybe you're better off leaving things as they are, in terms of family relations. I got grief from my husband who thought we were moving around too much (which we were...), but he humored me, and the kids and I ended up having a blast (especially my 15-yr-old castle-loving son...), running around at night and again in the morning, and I was enchanted by both the view from my window of the abbey (not saying you'll be sure to get it, but you could request it...), the quietness of the mount when I went to sleep, the church bells in the morning, the wildness of the place in the wind and rain the next day...you get the picture...I would hate to have missed it. My husband, on the other hand, was tired from the driving all around the D-Day sites and then to LMSM, and didn't opt to have the nighttime rampart adventure, or the tour of the abbey in the a.m. I think my experience of LMSM would have been very different had we only visited it during the day. I got a taste of that as we were leaving the next morning...

If you will have a car, then there is one lodging option in that area that you might want to look at.

We stayed one night in a 'chateux' outside of Caen. A two bedroom B&B built appx 600 years ago. Moat and all and resonable cost.

That location is a member of a network, www.bienvenue-au-chateau.com. The network has over 130 locations in that area. For the most part, these not inside the city areas.

Another option someone on here had stayed at is Chateau de Sully near Bayeau but even nearer the D-Day beaches. Probably would cost more than a b&b but maybe less stressful than a lot of driving from a further town.

If you can get to the Rennes train station by 9:00 (better yet - stay overnight), the TGV that St Cirq suggested will have you in Avignon at 2:45 pm with 0 tain changes.

Stu Dudley

We did a Normandy trip last June. We also stayed at the Chateau Bouceel. It is truly a wonderful experience!

Also, outside of Bayeux is a B & B called Chateau Vouilly. We enjoyed this chateau also! It is about 20 minutes from Bayeux, but charming and lovely owners. I think this B and B is not very well known. I would be surprised if you were not able to get reservations here.

Because of indexing problems last summer, my report may not come up easily. You can try to click on my name. If this does not work, try putting in Chateau Vouilly and it should come up.

Have a wonderful trip.

I tried Hotel Tardif (Cindy Lou, we must have the exact same taste in hotels!) and their rooms in our price range are booked. We already made our reservations for Avranches, and I don't have the time to change it/find another place. Hopefully it will work out okay! Thanks for the suggestion on the early train, we will definitely shoot for that. I really wish we were staying one night on MSM, but 3 hotels in 4 days just doesn't sound like fun.

Have you tried to get reservations at MSM? There are not a lot of rooms there and at least one big tour company spends one night per week there during touring season. It is a great experience staying there. I had one of the high rooms, room 202. It would be a great room to ask for!

Cindy Lou-
I went to the Saint-Pierre website and can't seem to switch it to English. We're interested in staying there.

Thanks,
Amy

Big Red, do you know the specific name of the chateau?

Chateau Fontaine Etoufore.
I butchered the spelling but am close. The owners (wonderful people) spend their winters in Paris. Those old stone houses are tough to heat.

This particular chateau is probably doable with a taxi from Caen but a car would still be more convenient.

Big Red, one more question. When I go to the site and put in the Normandy area there are not any names that are similar to what you gave. Do you mind looking at this page and seeing if I am in the right place?
http://www.bienvenue-au-chateau.com/...e.php#resultat

Thanks!

Littlehouse (Amy):

I just tried to get to the Auberge St. Pierre's English page and couldn't either. Email me if you want more information or if you want me to email you my candid hotel photos, or look for my review of the Auberge St. Pierre on TripAdvisor (same screen name). My email is [email protected]

I liked it a lot - great location and nice restaurant. Not the Ritz, but perfectly fine for me!

Britomart - it does seem like we're on the same hotel wavelength! Sorry Hotel Tardif was booked, too. When I booked our trip, I had to make compromises throughout the itineray. Some things work out well, others don't - it would be amazing if it all fit together perfectly like a jigsaw puzzle. And when you think about it, it's often the things you don't plan or ocunt on that are most memorable anyway. Who knows what fabulous things will come about because of how your trip planning works out? Oh, and I meant to mention that there is major construction either happening now, or going to happen around the causeway anyway, so maybe your overnight stay would be impacted by that...when we were there, there was a big tower crane at the far end of the causeway (on the mainland), but that was it for construction. Littlehouse, you may want to ask the hotel about it. I faxed them through their web site, and thereafter was able to email back and forth easily. They speak English, too, if you want to call directly.