We are taking a train from Paris to Normandy. I would like to hire a private guide while there for the day. We will be a group of 8 adults. I appreciate any suggestions you have.

This company offers a personalized one-day tour and got a recent very positive review by a Fodorite:

https://www.overlordtour.com/

Normandy tour reco: Overlord Tour



We toured on our own but over several days. You'll have to be very selective in what you choose to see in less than a day. The train ride to/from Bayeux is more than 2 hours each way.

FWIW, there are companies that start and end a one-day group tour in Paris, but you'd have little/no control over what you see.

https://www.viator.com/Paris-tourism...3da9650307e78a

Tours By Locals is a wonderful Canadian company. You only pay once the tour is completed. If you pay 10% more, you have free cancellation the night before (as we did in Greece for medical issue). Recommended to me by heavy-international travelling friends. Prices reasonable, esp for the 8 of you. They pick you up at port or hotel and drop you at same. There are several offered for each country and sight. You email and know who your guide will be and take care of any concerns you might have ahead of time. Explore their site. We used them in Greece. Otherwise, DH and I explore on our own, including Normandy. You should see Dieppe, Etretat, Bayoux, Caen, Honfleur and of course the Normandy beaches. See what you find......

We just did the same thing this past summer.
Stayed in Bayeux for a few nights (beautiful & great dining!) Highly rec spending a night or 2!
Overlord is a good option.
We booked thru GetYourGuide and did a private tour with Ophorus. 8 is the maximum, so it would be just your group.
Did a day trip to Mont St Michel the next day!

Meeting point is short walk from the Bayeux station (all groups meet at the same spot).
You could probably arrange pick-up at the station.

Four of us used Overlord in November 2019. We booked our own train from Paris, arriving in Bayeux around 9:30 am where our guide met us at the station. I’m a fan of using public transportation where feasible and opted not to do a tour with Paris hotel pickup.

Because we were the only ones on the tour, our guide agreed to our request to include the Bayeux tapestry at the end of the day upon our return to Bayeux. Unfortunately, we were too late for the final showing of the orientation film; we did have time for the tapestry and audio guide. In order to allow us time for the tapestry, I’m sure he tweaked the typical day’s itinerary. The guide returned for us after the tapestry viewing and took us to the station for the train back to Paris.

Since you are booking a private tour, I would expect that Overlord will work with you to design an itinerary if one of the tours on the website isn’t exactly what you want.

One day for that area is very short. I spent 5 nights between Caen and Bayeux before moving onto Mont St. Michelle and the rest of my trip. But, I was taking 7-1/2 weeks to see western France. So, you will need to carefully plan what you can see in one day. Here’s a link to my TR if you want to look at pictures to see what may interest you for your trip. The Normandy portion of my trip starts in Caen (noted on photo) around Photo # 30 or so. If you expand the pic to full screen and swipe up, there is an explanation of where I was in the field labeled ”Other.”

Western France - A TR in Pictures

Happy Planning!

Yes, Normandy needs multiple days and the trip over to MSM is another day in itself. Best to explore the tour company agendas and select from there. We had our own car in Normandy and stayed in a few converted chateaux as we made our way east-west.

It has been a few years but my husband and I did a driving tour, heading down from CDG with a first night in Rouen and then north to E'Tratat, Honfluer, Caen and then to Bayeux. We spent two nights in Bayeux and could easily have added another night. in addition to the D-Day historic sites and the Bayeux tapestry, the Cathedral rivals Notre Dame in Paris. We did have a guide for a half-day tour to the Normandy beaches and sites, but we could not book Overlord for some reason and used another company. I think there were about 8 or so in our van, one couple was Canadian they had a separate tour later int he day with the same guide to the Canadian landing sites. You do need time there and I think you would regret doing it as only a one day trip from Paris. Following Bayeux we headed to Mont St Michel. My only regret is that we did not venture further to St Malo and Dinan. We headed back to Paris where we returned out rental car and spent another four or so days, stopping in Chartres along the way.

I see that another company we used for a tour of World War I sites also offers Normandy tours. We were happy we chose Terres de Mémoire for that day’s explorations and would consider them as well as Overlord tours.

https://www.terresdememoire.com