PattiD

Hello.

My father, brother, sister, son (age 17) and I are planning a 2 week trip to France ~ June 30 – July 14. We are breaking this into 2 legs.

Leg 1: Arrive Paris (2 days), Normandy and area (2-3 days) then Bastogne area (2-3 days), then back to Paris for sister & brother to get back to US – they only have 1 week vacation.

Leg 2: Agen to spend the second week with our former exchange student and his family and touring all south/southwest area. Planning on taking the train from Paris to Agen.

Need input, suggestions, and recommendations to maximize Leg 1 and any other recommendations. Obviously, our primary focus is WWI & WWII. To maximize the experience, we would prefer tours. What are your thoughts? Do we take the train to Caen? Rent a car? (Read/heard horror stories) Find a tour that will pick us up in Paris? Accommodations? We have read about Battlebus, Overlord, Caen Museum tours, aetntravel (Their WWII in Europe 9 days has all the stops we like)….. and of course, your site is very helpful too!

We have previously traveled together throughout Eastern Europe and know the pros and cons of self guided vs. tours. We almost always prefer a tour the 1st time just to get our bearings.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. My dad is having a great time researching this….

Thanks

laverendrye

As you are starting in Paris, I suggest that you take the train to Caen and rent a car there, dropping it at the airport at the end of Leg 1.

If you prefer a tour, I would arrange separate tours in Normandy and the Bastogne area, rather than taking one from Paris, but if you can find one from Paris that will include everything you want to see, then that could be a viable option.

A very helpful site in planning your trip is Paul Reed's "Battlefields of WW2". Although it has a British orientation, there is lots of useful information on the US forces as well.
http://battlefieldsww2.50megs.com/

I've never taken a battlefield tour, as I prefer to organize my own, but for Belgium the Belgian tourist office has this useful site:

http://www.visitbelgium.com/worldwar.htm

While visiting the Bastogne area, you should not miss the Luxembourg National Museum of Military History in Diekirch which has an excellent gallery on the Battle of the Bulge.

http://www.luxembourg.co.uk/NMMH/

I hope that this is helpful.

Viajero2

I have to wonder about the horror stories you made reference to regarding driving in Caen? I can't even imagine trying to do the Normandy coast if not driving, at least to do it well. Pros and cons self-drive versus organized tour; it all boils down to travel style and comfort zones. If your Dad is researching this well, he may prefer to do a mix; drive the family, take tours once at the sites.

PattiD

The driving issue is mostly in and around Paris. Street signs and markings are different than in US, scooters, white nuckle, etc. We're concerned with having to take too much time driving and navigating. But also understand the value and flexibility of havng a car. The other consideration is rental expense. We would need a van for the 5 of us. (we're 5'10 - 6'4, plus luggage). We thought an organized tour may be better all around. But we are open to options.

laverendrye's tour suggestions are great as well. We are looking into everything and trying to decide the best course for us. Thank you very much!

tmh

I was at Normandy for the 60th Anniversary of DDay and had a great tour with Philippe Cornil. He has a B&B and is an avid WWII researcher. I suspect he could help with a local tour if you wanted to pepper your trip with one in this region as he has so much knowledge and contacts. He can be contacted through www.lamaisondeshotes.com

I also went on a tour of the Battle of the Bulge area in Dec 2005 with William Cavanagh - one of the local leading guides of the battle. He wrote a book which I read first called "A Tour of the Bulge Battlefield" which I got through Amazon.com. I don't think he does individual tours as he's busy with groups but a Hans Wijiers was another name we considered. He just did a wreath laying tour at several northern shoulder sites: [email protected]

I agree with laverendrye - the museum in Diekirch is not to be missed. Also the Henri Chappelle cemetery.

wijers

Hi, sorry to 'break in' here, but if you have time look at my homepage with the info on the tours I have done so far, mostly with US Military (big groups) and also family 1 - 3 persons. I have updated my tour page, so you have enough info to read it, any questions, I sure like to help you out.

http://www.germanwarmachine.com/tours/index.htm
http://home.planet.nl/~wijer037/Bulge/default.htm

Mucky

Hi Patti,
I just topped a post about Normandy that has some information about WW2 D DAY tour routes. I suggest you hire a car and follow some of these routes. They are well signposted and interesting. I have never used a tour guide,so can't give any opinion on them really.

Good luck and enjoy

Muck

BrendaJean316

I would agree that Luxembourg is worth the trip. You can't really get lost there without hitting another country's border. The American Cemetary is impressive. Patton is buried there with his men. He died in California and was flown back. There is a great wall that shows all the battle and battalions.

hardwater

Ditto to the Luxemburg info. In Dec. of 2006, I visited the Museum in Diekirch,
( huge amounts of WW II stuff), the American Cemetary in Hamm and also the German military cemetary 1 mile away in Sandweiler. All are not to be missed and all are impressive. The U.S. embassy had laid a large wreath of yellow roses at the head of the German cemetary, quite moving. The American cemetary was superb too even on a cold, windy, rainy and miserable day.

StCirq

Since no one has mentioned it yet, I will: Do not miss the Mémorial Museum in Caen, and plan to spend at least a couple of hours there.

Can't help you with tours because I've never done one, but I can definitely recommend renting a car to get the most out of your Normandy experience.

tmh

Brendajean: Patton died in Europe after his fatal car crash in Dec '45. His wife at first considered bringing him home to be buried there until someone (Bedell Smith?) reminded her he would rather be with his men...never mind Generals are buried where they fall.

kygirl59

We took the train from Paris to Caen. I believe we took the train out of the St. Lazare train station. We actually went without any tours being booked. We lucked out and found a tour guide without a full contingent so we hooked up with her. She was amazing. She knew so much. You can contact her at [email protected]. She grew up in Normandy, attended college in the states (believe a history major), and returned to Normandy. She not only gave us an excellent tour of the WWII sites but also took us alternative ways to the sites instead of the "expressways". We saw some of the local area. I would highly recommend her. She made the trip for us.

cmeyer54

Our family did a similar trip in 2003. We picked up the car at CDG and drove to Bayeux which was our base for the days in Normandy. We did hire a private guide (Michael Chilcott) for a full day tour - just us 4. That day stretched into 1.5 days but was excellent. We also drove alone to Utah beach, Mont St Michel, St Lo, St Mere Eglise, etc. Spent a day in Bayeux at the Cathedral and Tapestry. Also stopped in Caen on the way back to Paris and saw the Peace Museum/Memorial. I would definitely go with a guide thru the D-Day areas. Books cannot do justice to the personal stories that can be told. We saw the British and German cemeteries, Pointe Du Hoc, Longues Batteries, Omaha Beach, American Cemetery, Mulberries, and so on. more than worth the cost as we were able to daddle as long as we wished (which is why we added the extra half day...at no charge!). We found picking up a car at CDG was easy - routing was easy, drive was easy. Our hotel in Bayeux was Lion D'Or which had off street parking.