Normandy area without car?
Jul 21st, 2008, 09:24 AM
#2
No trains, and the bus services are more likely oriented to commuting than touring. Without a car, I think you'd need to join a tour group in order to see multiple sights in one day.
Driving in Normandy is very easy, but the costs of a tour also include a guide.
Driving in Normandy is very easy, but the costs of a tour also include a guide.
Jul 21st, 2008, 09:36 AM
#4
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 3,085
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I have often travelled the D Day and wider areas by car.
I have often imagined that it would be near on impossible to do it under your own steam. That is of course unless you did a tour.
Of course if your in Caen then there is the obvious to see, but to get out into the country side and vsrious beaches climbing into gun casemates and underground bunkers is very difficult if your not driving.
Also the totem pole tours that are clearly visible are a great way to tour the area and to get some understanding of what went on. However without some mode of transport I guess this is near impossible too.
I think Jean is spot on about the trains and busses and the ease of driving too.
Good luck
Muck
I have often imagined that it would be near on impossible to do it under your own steam. That is of course unless you did a tour.
Of course if your in Caen then there is the obvious to see, but to get out into the country side and vsrious beaches climbing into gun casemates and underground bunkers is very difficult if your not driving.
Also the totem pole tours that are clearly visible are a great way to tour the area and to get some understanding of what went on. However without some mode of transport I guess this is near impossible too.
I think Jean is spot on about the trains and busses and the ease of driving too.
Good luck
Muck
Jul 21st, 2008, 09:55 AM
#5
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 6,629
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I have been looking into this for my September trip to Paris where I'm meeting up with several friends. Some of us may do one of the three tour options offered by the Memorial Museum in Caen (www.memorial-caen.fr). I have been to the beaches and the American cemetery but not to the museum.
We may opt for the package which includes meeting the train from Paris (about a two-hour journey) at just before 9:00 am and returns you back to the station at 7:15 pm. A long day but I think worth it. If you are already in the area, they have tours which start at and include the museum as well as the beaches and the cemetery. The museum uses mini-buses.
Our package, which includes lunch and a museum tour is not cheap, around 99 euros but I think worth it. Train from Paris not included. This is obviously a high cost, low hassle option. If I were in Normandy for several days, I would DIY as before but we had a car.
We may opt for the package which includes meeting the train from Paris (about a two-hour journey) at just before 9:00 am and returns you back to the station at 7:15 pm. A long day but I think worth it. If you are already in the area, they have tours which start at and include the museum as well as the beaches and the cemetery. The museum uses mini-buses.
Our package, which includes lunch and a museum tour is not cheap, around 99 euros but I think worth it. Train from Paris not included. This is obviously a high cost, low hassle option. If I were in Normandy for several days, I would DIY as before but we had a car.
Jul 21st, 2008, 05:45 PM
#6
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,490
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I haven't done this, but I have looked into to it, and the way to do it is to book some kind of tour. There are several day-long (or even multi-day) tours that leave from Bayeux every day, so if you take the train to Bayeux, you can see all the D-Day sites using a tour, which, frankly, appears to be the best way to see the D-Day sites even if you have a car (although having your own car leaves open the possibility of a private guide rather than a tour).
With an overnight stay in Bayeux, assuming you are coming from Paris, you could take a train to Bayeux and see the tapestry one day, then be ready to meet a tour early the next morning for a full day tour of the beaches.
With an overnight stay in Bayeux, assuming you are coming from Paris, you could take a train to Bayeux and see the tapestry one day, then be ready to meet a tour early the next morning for a full day tour of the beaches.
Jul 21st, 2008, 06:13 PM
#7
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 4,258
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
twk - could you suggest some tour companies from Bayeux? Battlebus was going to be our choice, but they are on vacation while we are there, so we have to come up with an alternate...
sorry, michelle1018, did not mean to hijack your thread...
sorry, michelle1018, did not mean to hijack your thread...
Aug 17th, 2008, 06:05 AM
#8
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 41
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
There used to be a d day bus service that called in on the main sites.I think it's been stopped.
You can get to Caen or Bayeux by train from paris. Bayeux is the better place to start. It's better to be in a hotel the night before rather than coming up from Paris on the same day. That looses time and makes a very tiring day.
In effect you can't visit the beaches which cover 50 miles of coast unless you have a vehicle or take a tour. For tours there are Normandy Travel
Normandy siteseeing
Battle bus
The other option is to rent a car which you can do for 90€ and have an d day audio guide.
Many peole recommend The Memorial museum at Caen. It's a good museum but unless you have 2 or more days in the area just visit the beaches. That's the most important thing to do. They can only be appreciated in situ and with a guide, or you're just floundering around. On a full day tour you will get a good apprecaitin of the beaches but you still won't see averything. (in a week you couldn't see everything) Information found in museums can be gleaned from the internet and the history channel.
You can get to Caen or Bayeux by train from paris. Bayeux is the better place to start. It's better to be in a hotel the night before rather than coming up from Paris on the same day. That looses time and makes a very tiring day.
In effect you can't visit the beaches which cover 50 miles of coast unless you have a vehicle or take a tour. For tours there are Normandy Travel
Normandy siteseeing
Battle bus
The other option is to rent a car which you can do for 90€ and have an d day audio guide.
Many peole recommend The Memorial museum at Caen. It's a good museum but unless you have 2 or more days in the area just visit the beaches. That's the most important thing to do. They can only be appreciated in situ and with a guide, or you're just floundering around. On a full day tour you will get a good apprecaitin of the beaches but you still won't see averything. (in a week you couldn't see everything) Information found in museums can be gleaned from the internet and the history channel.
Aug 17th, 2008, 07:53 AM
#9
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,000
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Battlebus - 80€ per <font color="red">person</font>. They set the itinerary and how long you have at each site.
Driver/guide - 80€ per <font color="blue">carload</font> (1-7 persons). You tell the driver where you want to go and when.
Driver/guide - 80€ per <font color="blue">carload</font> (1-7 persons). You tell the driver where you want to go and when.
Aug 23rd, 2008, 07:34 AM
#10
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 41
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You're right for the minibus price at 80€ per person but a driver guide at 80€ per car load? I wouldn't like to see the state of the vehicle and the knowledge level of the driver.
A guide costs around 260€ in your vehicle. A driver guide around 400€ (depending on the number of people/ size of vehicle and the itinerary). For three people a private guide comes at around the same price per person and gives you much more fexibilty.
I don't see any point in travelling to Normandy just to see the peace museum. A complete waste of time if you don't see the the d-day beaches.
A guide costs around 260€ in your vehicle. A driver guide around 400€ (depending on the number of people/ size of vehicle and the itinerary). For three people a private guide comes at around the same price per person and gives you much more fexibilty.
I don't see any point in travelling to Normandy just to see the peace museum. A complete waste of time if you don't see the the d-day beaches.
Aug 23rd, 2008, 08:05 AM
#11
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 49,560
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Like Mucky, I have made many trips to Normandy by car and have always thought how difficult, or at least how limiting, it would be to try to get much out of the trip without one. I just cannot imagine not being able to linger in certain places where the sense of history just hits you in the gut, or to spend hours in the Mémorial in Caen, or to take a break from the intensity of it all whenever I wanted to and just have a coffee and gaze at the water.
That said, you can do it, if you're willing to accept that it's a compromise.
That said, you can do it, if you're willing to accept that it's a compromise.
Aug 23rd, 2008, 10:29 AM
#12
Dear Michelle,
Can I refer you to my trip report? Search for:
WWI and Holocaust Journey Gruezi and Teens.
We were in Normandy a few weeks ago and did not have a car.
We visited Caen, stayed in Bayeux and saw the tapestry, and then had a wonderful and comprehensive (for us) 1/2 day tour of the beaches.
We also took the train to Mont Ste Michel - but that I do not recommend.
gruezi
Can I refer you to my trip report? Search for:
WWI and Holocaust Journey Gruezi and Teens.
We were in Normandy a few weeks ago and did not have a car.
We visited Caen, stayed in Bayeux and saw the tapestry, and then had a wonderful and comprehensive (for us) 1/2 day tour of the beaches.
We also took the train to Mont Ste Michel - but that I do not recommend.
gruezi
Nov 12th, 2008, 05:30 AM
#15
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,129
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Most places on the coast can be reached by regular buses from Caen or Bayeux. A map and schedules are on www.busverts.fr/_hiver/plan.asp
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
PattiD
Europe
12
Apr 17th, 2007 07:45 AM
