yellowrose477

My husband and I are in early 60's, our sister in law and our son will be traveling to France on or about May 16 and departing on 36, 37th (ball park) My husband and I have been to Paris and spent a week there, but the other two have not been there. This is what we have decided that we want to see. Paris, Rouen, Etretat (to see the cliffs), Bayeux, Omaha Beach, St Mere Eglise, Mont St. Michel. Hubby is also wondering about a day trip to Reims from Paris to see the cathedral. What we need to know is if this is doable. We have already eliminated several things such as a trip to Belgium. We want to see history of course, cathedrals, small fishing villages, etc and of course the DDay battlefields. Would appreciate your excellent advice on places to stay - we enjoy B&B's. We are in good physical condition and will be renting a car.

michele_d

Is departure the 26th and 27th of May? (not the 36th, 37th)

StuDudley

Normally I would suggest that you fly into CDG & immediately rent a car. Visit Rouen (2 nights), then drive to Veules les Roses, Etretat, & Honfleur. Stay 2-3 nights in Honfleur & visit the immediate area and the beach towns to the west. Then visit the Pays d'Auge (2 nights in Beuvron en Auge). Then head to Caen - getting there at 9AM to visit the Peace Museum. Then 2-3 nights in Bayeux for the D-Day stuff/Tapestry, etc. Then Mt St Michel - getting there very early in the am (8:30) or late in the afternoon to avoid the crowds. Perhaps stay overnight in/near MSM. Then drive to Rennes, return the car, visit, & stay the night. Next morning, take the TGV back to Paris for your remaining days.

However, if you arrive in Rouen on May 15 mid/late-day - that's a Saturday and most interesting stuff/shops in Rouen will be closed all day Sunday, & Monday morning (in Rennes also). Either arrive on May 15, or May 18, or on May 16 & visit/stay 2 nights near Etretat or some other place with interesting stuff around it - then on to Rouen. You didn't mention Monet/Giverny - so I won't suggest that - but Les Andelys has some interesting stuff around it - but not as interesting as Rouen, Etretat/Veules, Honfleur, Pays d'Auge, D-Day things, or Rennes (IMO).

I have a 20+ page itinerary that describes this Normandy visit in more detail - along with a lot of suggestions for Brittany. I've sent my various itineraries to over 5,000 people on Fodors. If you would like a copy, e-mail me at [email protected] & I'll attach one to the reply e-mail.

Stu Dudley

StuDudley

>>Is departure the 26th and 27th of May? (not the 36th, 37th)<<

Oops - my itinerary won't work if you only have 10-11 days.

Stu Dudley

yellowrose477

Oh my goodness - yes - We will arrive either May 15 or 16th and depart around May 25,26,27. We should have a full 10 days for sightseeing, not including the travel days.

Michael

Reims has become a commuting community for people working in Paris. A day trip with the TGV is definitely doable.

RonZ

This may not apply, but for people driving out of CDG after a long flight, the Chaîne d'Or in Les Andeleys is a popular first night stop.

tuscanlifeedit

We took the train direct from CDG to the Champagne Ardenne TGV station, and a quick cab into Reims. After Reims we picked up a car for the rest of our trip.

If you go to Reims, the Cathedral is great, but IMO the other cathedral in Reims, St Remi, was the real star. I can't tell you how much I loved it. Beautiful.

Michael

<i> but IMO the other cathedral in Reims</i>

Only one cathedral per diocese or episcopate.

Christina

A cathedral is the seat of the bishopric, you can't have two in a city.

I especially liked the stained glass in the Notre Dame cathedral by Chagall, so found that more special than St. Remi, which is an abbey church. It has a nice choir section, however, and both are worth visiting, of course.