Pls critique Normany itinerary
 

I've read some very interesting posts on Fodors about Normandy and have drawn up a tentative itinerary and would love comments. We will be coming from central London and leaving from CDG. This trip is for late July/early August:
Day 1: Morning Chunnel to Calais. Rent car, drive to either Honfleur or Deauville (depending on where we stay). Sightsee in town
Day 2: Visit the other town (Honfleur or Deauville)
Day 3: Drive to Rouen and sightsee. Back to H or D for the evening.
Day 4: Drive to Bayeux, settle into hotel, sightsee in town
Day 5: Battlefield tour
Day 6: Mont St Michel
Day 7: Drive around Calvados (Lisieux, Pont Eveque, etc)
Day 8. Check out of Bayeux hotel. Make way towards CDG with stop either at Giverny or Chartes. Find a nice place to stay within 30 min of airport
Day 9: fly home

We don't like to move around to a lot of different hotels, so I will try to get away with only 2 hotels (plus one the night before the flight). Places we are considering: Honfleur either Ferme St Simeon or La Chaumiere (but they seem very overpriced based on Trip Advisor reviews. I don't mind paying the $ for quality). Deauville: either Villa Josephine one of the "grande dames", but same concerns about quality for the latter. Suggestions welcome for 3+ star places
Bayeux: Tardif or Ch. La Cheneviere (worry about some of those reviews, too).

Thanks in advance for suggestions and comments.

Seems a little light on the D-Day sights. Does the battlefield tour cover the Mémorial in Caen? I sure wouldn't miss that.

I also doubt you'll need a full day to visit either Honfleur or Deauville.

I'd opt for Honfleur over Deauville as the place to stay and I'd visit Trouville and Touques all nearby. We haven't been to Ferme St. Simeon for a long time. It was elegant and since they've added a spa and continue in Relais and Chateau Association I just have to think it must be quite lovely. The problem is, it's away from the town and if you want to walk about Honfleur, you'll have to drive in and find a parking spot. We most recently (last summer) stayed at L'Absinthe in town (facing the port) and found it very much to our liking. More modern than quaint but with lovely bathroom, a lot of space and a nice breakfast room, etc. Price was very good for what was provided. You must find your parking at one of the municipal lots but once parked, you can wander the town with no problem. We dined at La Chaumiere and found it lovely, but again, it's a distance from the actual town of Honfleur and would present the problem of parking when you wanted to go into town. If at all possible (and I recognize this will compound the parking difficulty of the town wherever you choose to stay) try to be there for the Saturday market. The whole town becomes the market and it's delightful. We love Honfleur.

While you're there or in Bayeaux, try to stop by Cabourg and Houlgate, both beautiful seaside towns with lovely flowers everywhere. And while you're in what I call "deepest cheese" country try to take in Beuvron en Auge, Cambremer, crevcourer en Auge and St. Germain de Livet, the latter having a delightful little castle/chateau and pleasant grounds.

We had a lovely lunch at Le Lion d'Or in Bayeaux. It's a hotel which Michelin rates as Bayeaux's best (in town, that is) but I can't vouch for the rooms having not seen them. It's certainly not in the R&C category, but nearby Chateau d'Audrieu definitely is--with prices to match, of course.

Enjoy your holiday in Normandy.

You're seeing the main Normandy sights, but you are moving around a lot (even though you're not changing hotels) and doing some backtracking.

I would probably stop at Rouen on the way from Calais, and I agree that Honfleur and Deauville don't need a day each. You could stop at Pont-l'Eveque on the way from Honfleur to Bayeux or Bayeux to CDG. Lisieux, although charming, can be a time-eating detour, so whether or not it fits in depends on how early you start the day and how quickly you get through the other stops.

I would devote two days to the D-Day sights (three days would be better) and probably leave Le Mont-Saint-Michel for another trip. If you do go, try to arrange your time there to see the tidal action.

http://www.ot-montsaintmichel.com/en...int-michel.htm

I'd pick Giverny over Chartres on your drive to CDG, only because it would involve fewer hours driving and Giverny does not involve navigating in and out of a city.

I think your Day 7 drive in the Pays d'Auge would be better done from your first base town rather than from Bayeux. Have you laid out this trip on a mapping site like www.viamichelin.com?

These suggestions have been very helpful. Since I posted, I've looked at La Maison de Lucie and La Petit Folie, both in Honfleur. Anyone familiar with these properties?

Jean, we were trying not to backtrack but couldn't quite figure out how to do that with staying in only 2 places, arriving in Calais from London.

Rouen is not a high priority for us and could definitely swap it for a second day visiting the battlefield sights. I would prefer driving into charming towns and sipping Calvados, visiting the places where all that wonderful cheese comes from, visiting pretty gardens, etc. but it is not clear to me what that involves or how to make the most of it. Looking for this kind of help. Thanks

If it comes down to choices, I would definitely prefer time in Lisieux over time in Rouen, although the best meal I've ever had in France was at La Couronne in Rouen.

I suggest you buy the Michelin Green Guide for Normandy. It offers several driving itineraries and provides lots of info on the small towns and culture of Normandy.

http://www.amazon.com/Michelin-Green...3350869&sr=1-1

I can recommend the Hotel d'Argouges in Bayeux for its in-town location and very reasonable rates.

Forgot the d'Argouges link:

http://www.hotel-dargouges.com/?-Welcome-to-Normandy-

hi dc...make sure you visit one of the german cemetaries.. they are unique and stark---all black marble...

thanks, jean, for that hotel recommendation. It looks lovely.

Yes, I'm intending to buy the green guide but I am out of the country and won't be back until mid May. Since I need to plan the hotels now, I really wanted a rough idea of a good itin.

Bob, I hadn't thought about the German cemetaries. Thanks for the suggestion. Battlebus is no longer in existence. The former owner only does private tours and it seems some of the tour guides have adopted the same model. Too rich for us, we will need to look for an 8 person tour group.

We found this hotel to be a nice place to stay in the town center of Bayeux. Had a very good dinner. Our room was small, but looking out at a lovely courtyard. The hotel has parking. Richard www.liondor-bayeux.fr

I'll recommend the Hotel Churchill in Bayeux. We stayed there last week and enjoyed it. They have a free parking lot in back and a Mont Saint Michel tour. We saw MSM on our own before getting to Bayeux and did our own short tour of Pointe du Hoc and the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach. The cemetery, and the French people's reverence toward it, overwhelmed me emotionally.
http://www.hotel-churchill.fr/en.php

Much appreciate the suggestions. I made a reservation at the Hotel Tardif and will report on return, since I have not seen many reviews here. We wanted a park-like setting and this B&B has one in town.
I would appreciate any comments on your recent experiences for WWII tours since Battlebus no longer exists. The owner is only doing private tours, which will be too expensive for just the 2 of us. It also looks like some of the guides are doing the same.