Normandy planning help
 

Planning first trip to France--25 days.
One part of trip will be 4 nights in Normandy. Plan to use Bayeux as a base.
Probably will stay at Hotel Tardif. Can anyone recommend it or another small place to stay?
In addition to exploring the town, over the 3.5 days we will be there we are planning these excursions
for the three days
Day 1--all day guided tour of American sector of Dday landing
Day 2--day to Mont St Michel
Day 3--probably visit British sector of Normandy, Caen DDay museum and/or ??
Day 1 and 2 are set for personal reasons. Any suggestions for Day 3, especially interesting
DDay places appreciated.

We are driving from and back to Paris. Thinking a stop in Giverny for sure and maybe
Honfleur on the way back. Is it worth a short side trip?

As always, any suggestions about things to see or restaurants in any of these towns is greatly appreciated.

We were in Normandy for three days a week and half ago and did MSM and guided tour of D-Day landing on Days 1 and 2. We stayed in Caen and on the third day, we took the afternoon train to Bayeux to see the tapestry. Was going go walk around Caen ducal castle in the morning but got a cold from the D-Day tour and decided to sleep in. Didn't go to the Caen Memorial (D-Day) Museum because I spent a day earlier this year at the WW2 Museum in New Orleans and my traveling companion (Mom) is not into museums, however our D-Day tour guide highly recommends the Caen museum (said he used to work there). There is a British (Commonwealth) cemetery in Bayeux (within walking distance to center of town) if you want to check that out.

You could visit Giverney on the way to Bayeux and then spend a night in Honfleur. Then go to Bayeux, if you can add that day to your Normandy trip. Then on the way back to Paris consider going to Chartres and return the car at Orly.
Hotel Bayeux is a very very reasonable and pleasant hotel in Bayeux with secure car park. It is squeaky clean. near the cathedral and the tapestry (don't forget to see the tapestry).

Stop by Saint-Mere Eglise where an American paratrooper famously got tangled in the church tower and remained there during German firing. stained-glass window in the church is testament to this.

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this is a quiet untouristed village - have a nice lunch in a local cafe.

Personal opinion, but I would see the Peace Memorial/Museum in Caen before the D-Day tour. I would hope the tour includes Arromanches and the remains of the floating harbor. If not, I would try to see that on your own.

And I wouldn't miss the Bayeux Tapestry, but again that's personal opinion.

Whether you have/make time for Honfleur is your choice. Rouen is also a nice stop.

"day to Mont St Michel"

I must admit that I found Mont St. Michel much, much more enjoyable after day-trippers had left, and frankly quite unpleasant while they were there. Things could easily have changed with the elimination of the former causeway (which was still there when I visited), but something to consider....

"Honfleur .... Is it worth a short side trip?"

I thought so! Actually, I was glad to spend a night there -- the views of the lights reflecting off the harbor were magnificent, and there are several interesting things to visit there. :-)

"Any suggestions for Day 3, especially interesting D-Day places"

Well, they aren't D-Day places, but I loved Rouen, Les Andelys, Jumièges Abbey, etc., and of course, you can't possibly see them all in just one day.

Do you have a copy of the Michelin Green Guide to the area? I strongly recommend it, as it provides excellent coverage of your options, as well as information about how to prioritize and time your sightseeing.

Hope that helps!

We did 2 nights in Normandy 2 years ago. We did the D-Day beaches--fabulous museums at both Omaha and Utah beaches. And Mont Saint Michel--in March, so it wasn't crowded. We stayed outside Caen in a rural town--a wonderful little place: Auberge de la Mue, Thaon, France. The restaurant had the best food! We ate there both nights. The place used to be a farm house and stable. There is nothing else for a tourist in the village--but it is quiet and a good base for this area. Loved this part of our Paris trip.

Caen was in the centre of the post-D-Day fighting and has the scars of history to show for it. But going much further back, it was the home of William the Conqueror, before he set out to civilize England. His fortress in the centre of the city is worth a visit. The city offers a wider choice of accommodations if you wanted to use it as your base.

You have castles and churches from the last 2000 years all over, museums similar MTM might be a bit far but as you get into Brittany you can visit other castles etc.

So Honfleur is worth a walk around and coffeewith loads of photos. The coast road and other little ports are also worth a visit as is Pegasus bridge (important for the brits esp).

You might also like Falaise (the famous gap) was the most important battle once the landing was over.

Cidre (alcoholic), Cheese and mussels are the principal things you should eat, though cream and pork comes in a good second. Avoid a trou normande unless you will be sleeping later.

If you look at the map you'll see a tiny estuary in the bottom left corner, this is a large bird sanctuary and it can be visited on a boat, worth it just to enjoy the weather and of course worth looking at the small fields which had to be battled through hedge by hedge (NB hedges do not stop bullets but stop you seeing what is happening)

Arromanches, pont du Hoc, the American cemetery, Omaha Beach are the "musts", IMO. Ste Mere Eglise is also a good visit because its museum has the gliders that were used in this invasion. Amazing to see in this day and age--built from plywood and canvas in my hometown in Ohio.
Normandy is a wonderful visit--cheese, cider, half timber abbeys and houses.

Is the car just for this segment? If so I'd recommend taking the train to a town in the Bayeux vicinity to pick up and drop off the car. Faster than driving from Paris, and probably less stressful.

Another vote here for the Bayeux Tapestry, well worth seeing! We stayed at Hotel Tardif. Very nice people run the place, great location and a historic building, but wifi does not work in the rooms. Also a bit pricy compared to other options; if we go back to Bayeux someday we'll look elsewhere.

I agree with the earlier poster that MSM can be crowded during the day. We followed the Rick Steves suggestion of arriving late in the afternoon and staying at a local hotel, seeing it again lit up at night and a last visit in the morning. So one possible itinerary is take the train to Rennes, get car and visit St. Malo and Cancale during the day (or other locations you prefer as mentioned in the Michelin book), then drive to MSM in late afternoon. Next day go to Bayeux. This leaves out Honfleur, also a great town, but with 3 days you can't see everything ;-)

Driving TO Bayeux is also very nice--Giverney, etc.--as I mentioned in another post.
The Green Guide to Normandy, as also suggested, is REALLY great. You can do your own tour of the beaches using it among many other things it points out.

I can't imagine missing the Bayeux Tapestry.

And so you know, the Mémorial in Caen is not a D-Day museum. It has some D-Day exhibits, but it's far more than that.

Wow. Lots of great advice. Wish we could spend more time in Normandy.
Thanks to all.