Normandy Father/Son Trip
 

My son got out of the Marine Corps last summer. He has always wanted to go see Normandy being a history buff and now having his own military background. He's 26, I'm 62. Flying into Paris and then will make our way to Normandy. Maybe Rouen or Honfleur for a night or two, then to Bayeux for a couple of nights and back to Paris for a couple of nights. 7 nights total. I'd appreciate any itinerary suggestions, hotel, restaurant, etc. recommendations. I plan on picking up a car in Rouen or Honfleur. Leaving the end of June. Thanks.

Take train to Rouen and at end if works TGV Rennes to Paris - book trains early for discounted fares - especially on TGV trains - www.oui.sncf - French Railways; www.seat61.com; BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com/

Or en route to Paris hit Monet's House and Garden and return car in nearby Rouen.

Just a head's up -- this year is the 75th anniversary of D-Day so accommodations throughout Normandy will book up far in advance if they haven't already. (That is a major reason I'm putting off my next visit til Autumn).

I know you will be there after the actual commemorations but the whole early summer will be affected. So before you set on any firm plans . . . secure your hotels ASAP, then work your itinerary around the dates/places you get.

Once you get the rest sorted out, absolutely visit the Mémorial in Caen. It is spectacular.

Thanks. I've been looking and there are hotels available during the time we'll be there, but thanks for the heads up. Also planning on going to the memorial sites at the beginning of the week so hopefully less crowded than the weekend.

Last fall, we spent a brief period in Normandy and Brittany and got to many of the US sites. Here is our trip report: https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...tober-1659892/

The Memorial in Caen is well on the way out of town towards Bayeux - very easy stop and yes the best overall as there is a large relief map. You may consider renting a car in Caen and turning it in in Rouen.

Or you can rent a car in Paris and return it in Paris. There is no nightmare about driving in French cities (even Paris) and driving on the freeways or the normal highways is even easier. I am of the school that thinks that taking a train to rent a car is an additional hassle and does not really save all that much money since you had to buy train tickets. Yes, there are tolls and yes, fuel is expensive, but you have all the freedom in the world to stop wherever you want and make unexpected side trips at whim. And that is priceless as far as I am concerned.

The perception of problems is great than the problems. Try weekends I would suppose for easier driving in or out.

I agree with kerouac unless you'd be driving immediately after an overnight flight. It sounds like you only have 3-4, maybe 5, nights for the Normandy visit. If so, and if D-Day is your focus, I'd skip the Rouen/Honfleur idea (as nice as they are) and head straight to Caen and Bayeux. History buffs could spend a good part of a day at the Caen Memorial, and then there are little museums in many of the towns, some not much more than a random collection of invasion relics but preserved with pride and appreciation.

Besides the landing beaches and cemeteries, there are sights inland, like hedgerows (quickly disappearing) and German fortifications (built to last a millennia). There are also many monuments scattered around the area. You might want to take an organized tour one day for the wealth of knowledge of the guides.

St Mere l'eglise. I'd drop by their museum, see the start of the American war pillars and read the diaries of the medics who filled up the village with the dead and dying as they ran out of medical supplies. A very poignant read and very unlike "the longest day" portrayal. This action was supposed to be the distraction that defoccused the German defenders but the real distraction was due to the French and British sabateurs that kept whole tank divisions away from the coast by the expedient of cutting the telephone lines.

The first time we went to Normandy was right after my husband returned from a six month deployment. To say that trip holds a special place in his heart would be an understatement. I completely agree with some of the other suggestions so far. The memorial in Caen was excellent. St Mere Iglese was as well, but doesn't take quite as much time. We did a one day tour with Allan Bryson who runs this tour guide Tour Guide - Allan Bryson and were very impressed. When we did that tour, it was myself, my mother and my teenage daughter and we all loved it, to give you an idea.

We have had good stays at both the Churchill Hotel as well as Hotel Reine Mathilde, both in Bayeux.

The tapestry there was quite interesting as well.

All GREAT info. Thanks very much. The only problem I have getting a car in Paris is that we'll just be arriving from an overnight flight and I'm not sure I want to deal with a two hour drive right away. I saw that there's a car service (expensive, but seems worth it) that will pick us up and take us to Rouen or Honfleur. I can pick up a car in Rouen. While two full days in Bayeux are probably not enough, we live in New Orleans and my son worked at the D-Day Museum (now the National WWII Museum) one summer in high school and has studied D-Day extensively so he's very well versed in all things D-Day and prefers to see other towns while we're there. He also has a couple of friends in Paris that he trained with while in the Marines on deployment who he wants to visit so he wants to spend a couple of nights there. Unfortunately we are time limited and I'm trying to accommodate him as much as possible. If I didn't have this thing called a job, I'd spend a month.

Typically, I'd like to stay in the same place for a few days and then move on, but what I'm inclined to do is:

Day 1 - Rouen
Day 2- Pick up a car and stay in Honfleur
Days 3-4- Bayeux (stop in memorial outside of Caen)
Day 5- Drive up to St. Mere Eglise in the morning then to Caen drop the car off and catch train to Paris
Day 6 - Paris
Day 7 - home....

Too short, I know.

I agree don't drive after the flight so either train or service. Good luck. BTW cidre is the drink of the region along with calvados with lots of eggs and butter in the food.

Don't worry about it being too short. It always is:) That is why we have returned several times.

You don't need to use an expensive car service. You can hop on a train to Caen right at CDG and pick up a car there.

You can hop on a train to Caen right at CDG and pick up a car there.>

No direct trains CDG to Caen - all seems to involve taking RER from CDG to Paris Nord then another RER line to Saint-Lazare station for direct trains to Caen from there - not so simple - changing RER lines can be hectic if busy - I'd investigate a car service CDG to Saint-Lazare. But there are no trains CDG Airport to Caen, at least according to www.bahn.de/en - German Railways pan-European schedule site for all European trains.

Thanks, PalenQ. I didn't think there was direct train service to Caen. Looks like there might be to Bayeux, but if that's true it seems like it would stop in Caen? I'll keep looking. The thought of having to go to St. Lazare at morning rush hour even with a car service is unappealing to say the least. I'm inclined to splurge with a car service to Rouen.

There is a bus from CDG to Caen but it pretty much eats up the first day. You need to flip the first 5 days of your trip for it to make sense.

https://www.ouibus.com/booking?origi...5D%5Btype%5D=A

They used to go to Bayeux also but apparently have cancelled that route.