Need Plan B for Normandy
 

I naively assumed a year would be adequate time to book a room in Bayeux for the 2014 D-Day anniversary. I was wrong!! I am awaiting a response from a few B&Bs in the area, but if they do not have vacancy as well, I need a plan B.

We planned to arrive on June 5 and sight see around Bayeux, hire a private guide for the 6th to tour the beaches and cemeteries, and leave on the 7th for Paris. It is myself, husband, and 2 school aged boys.

What other town would be a good place to stay? We can take a train from Paris, or rent a car. It is about same price either way.

I found availability at a Best Western in Honfleur. Is this too far? Thank you very much for your input.

Did you try this B&B. It is just outside Bayeux. Great place to stay.

http://www.chateaudamigny.fr/

http://www.gites-de-france-normandie.com/

this site lists zillions of gites - small homes in the countryside or smaller towns and also chambres d'hotes - bed and breakfast places - everything in Bayeux or vicinity cannot be booked up for a year from now - just cannot be or there would be an explosion of new B&Bs if the demand were that great.

Honfleur is a nice town though and right on the coast - kids make like it better than inland Bayeux, which however is much closer to the main D-Day (J-Jour in French) sites.

Another possibility: Chateau de Vouilly. It is about 20 minutes from Bayeux, if I recall correctly. Check it out on Trip Advisor, too. It gets wonderful reviews. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay there in 2007.

www.chateau-vouilly.com

There's a Best Western in Bayeux - Hotel de Brunville.

Nothing special, typical chain hotel, but I stayed there a few years ago. Free car parking was a bonus, and it was well located with easy walking distance into the town centre. We didn't use the restaurant at all, much nicer places in town. Despite it's lack of charm it was a perfectly OK place to sleep.

https://plus.google.com/104678896692...ut?gl=us&hl=en

scour the Bayeux tourist office web site as well - so so many places to stay in this comely city, one of the few not blitzed in WW2.

Ooops, I see it is booked for your dates.

But booking.com turns up several places with vacancies for your dates in Cabourg and Clecy, both 26 miles from Bayeux.

It also turns up this lovely-looking Chateau de la Pommeraye, 28 miles from Bayeux...

http://www.booking.com/hotel/fr/chac...add652ac8db0X5

Ooops, I see it is booked for your dates.

But booking.com turns up several places with vacancies for your dates in Cabourg and Clecy, both 26 miles from Bayeux.

It also turns up this lovely-looking Chateau de la Pommeraye, 28 miles from Bayeux...

http://www.chateaudelapommeraye.com/...die_Video.html

I was in Normandy on a D Day tour this June and they were already talking about the anniversary next year. This will most likely be the last huge event due to aging vets. Something to be aware of in your planning is that they expect a lot of dignitaries and Presidential types which will close access and restrict movement around the 5th and 6th. Just a heads up.

We stayed at the Aux Rives de Honfleur and were very pleased.

http://www.auxrivesdehonfleur.com/index.html

You'll see it also gets excellent reviews on trip advisor

I stayed in Caen when I went to Normandy, and it was a good base. There a good war museum there.

Caen is a big city but a rather pleasant one - good train service and yes its overview museum of Normandy Invasion is the best one in the area by most accounts - be sure to see it first to get a great orientation to the whole area.

http://gofrance.about.com/od/lownorm...n-Normandy.htm - called the Caen Memorial museum to WW2 events in the area.

Try Hotel Bayeux. I would be amazed if you could hire a private guide for those days for the anniversary. Personally, unless I had a real connection to that date I wouldn't brave the crowds that will undoubtedly be there as the post above noted.
Try the Hotel Bayeux. It is a modest hotel, squeaky clean, accessible, car park. five minutes to the Tapestry, five minutes to the cathedral.

Online they say it is booked. I would try calling some of the places.
http://www.hotellebayeux.com/

As Gretchen said, try to find a guide or tour now as it may be difficult. I just did a quick google of d-day events 2014, many entries you may want to research.

Well the anniversary - 70th could well affect things being full and booked up by groups and tour operators yes a year in advance - you could try a nice small village like Ste-Maire-Eglise (sp?) - made famous by its local cathedral where one American paratrooper got snagged on the church steeple and dangled for a while - a modern stained-glass window in the church commemorates that fact - the town is close to Bayeux and everything of interest - a neat small town.

We just stayed 3 nights in a chamber d'hotes/B and B/working farm about 30 minutes from either Bayeux or the beaches, near the town of Villers Bocage---La Ferme du Pressoir Gite and B&B, Villers-Bocage, France http://www.bandbnormandie.com/


It was absolutely fabulous! Great room, great hostess, abundant fresh wonderful breakfast (and picnic lunch, too!) Can't recommend it highly enough. Do check their availability.

Thanks everyone. Yes it seems many dignitaries and officials are coming in for the commemoration and taking the hotel rooms. We have decided to come in a day early and stay from the 4-6th. That gives us the 5th to visit the area. My birthday is D-Day, so since I was a kid I wanted to visit the beaches on that day. I guess this will have to be close enough! Thanks again.

Have you tried renting from VRBO? They have numerous places available on the dates 6/4-6/8 for small apartments. I assume you'll have a car, so this could also work for you.

I'd try Caen, it has an interesting chateau, a great war museum, and isn't that far from Bayeux by train.