I couldn't find the exact answer in previous postings, so here goes:

if you were staying in a hotel on Mont-St-Michel (as opposed to the one on the mainland), would you have to carry your luggage up many steps? And if so, approximately how many? I would just like to have a general idea.

It depends on which hotel you are staying. We thought we walked up about 8 floors worth of stairs starting from the sea level entrance upto our room. There were hotels located lower than ours as well as others still higher up. The wheels on the luggage will not be of much help because you are moving the load steadily up the hill on a cobblestone road.

Hi sansdieu,
Although I have not syayed on Mont-St Michel I have been there a few times.
I have always thought it strange that people were struggling up the steps with suitcases.
Whilst I am sure some of the hotels must provide some kind of baggage service I am not sure that all do.
It does get extremely busy especially in high season.
Do you have any particular reason for staying on the Mt?
Its always struck me as being a bit pointless.
It is so busy, tacky and expensive.
It can be comfortably seen in half a day really.
Also there are some really beautiful places nearby to stay at.
Its just my own personal opinion, I hope someone else can give you more positive advice.
Have fun

Muck

Our friends stayed recently at hotel La Croix Blanche inside Mont Saint Michel. they had there a Baggage service for 10 Euroes carrying it for them from the Parking area.
We plan now our trip to MSM. We were highly recommended for staying inside MSM , as well as for this specific hotel.
For ourselves , we intend to stay mainland though.
Have Fun

Mucky, sadly you have missed the best of Mount St. Michel. Yes, it is crowded with people in the daytime, but those spending the night are the smart ones. They get to experience this wonderful place in the solitude of the evening and night when it becomes a whole different place. That's after all those other people have left. You say it can be "seen" in half a day. That is true, but obviously it can't be "experienced" in half a day, which is a totally different thing. Incidentally our favorite thing was a sound and light show (wandering through the monestary at night to special lighting and musical effects) -- some time around 11 PM. You certainly can't do that in the daytime. And we had a spectacular and quiet dinner by moonlight on a terrace looking out from the mount -- magical.

We stayed at Auberge St. Pierre and they offered to send someone down to the car and deliver our luggage to our room -- way up a lot of steps. But since we were only staying one night we organized our stuff and just took an overnight carryon up to our room, leaving the rest in the trunk of the car. There are all night guards and the hotel assured us they couldn't remember the last time a car was broken into at night.

I totally agree with Patrick and the others about spending the night on the mont. Going there on a tour bus or "just stopping off" on the way to another destination does not do the experience on the mont justice. The night is magical and even if you are just having dinner and walking around-the views and sounds from your bedroom windowns are incredible! I would recommend that you pack everything into a carryon bag and just take that.I actually used my airline wheels and did not have a problem even with the streets. The Auberge St. Pierre and the Le Croix Blanche are sister hotels with the Auberge using filling up first. Be sure and walk the ramparts at night-its fabulous.

We are staying at a small hotel in the Mont (La Vielle Auberge). The St Pierre and the other were already booked for the night we will be there 4 months ago when we tried.

Question: Is it difficult to take a 22 inch rolling suitcase to the hotel. I know she said that we need to get there before high tide to bring our car in, but I was not sure what she meant when I made the reservation (no email site).

Thanks for any insite!

Hi Patrick,
Night time does sound good there.
Thank you...I stand corrected.

Muck

When I stayed on the Mont this spring, I didn't take everything to my hotel, just want I wanted or thought was valuable. The rest of my things were left lucked in the trunk.

Going to the hotel is a steep walk, but I don't recall "steps."

Keith

Patrick helped me formulate my "anti-day trip" theory with his report of staying in Brugges and leaving during the days.

When it's any super-touristy place that has the word "day trip" associated with it think of doing it as an anti-day trip. Go there late in the afternoon, spend a night or two and get away during the day when all the day trippers are there. You'll see the place a lot more enjoyably than all those people who show up at 10:00am, mill around together and leave at 3:00pm.

It worked well for me in Chenonceau & Hallstat. When I make it to Brugges, MSM etc. I plan on doing it the "anti-day trip" way.

Indytravel
What a great concept and good title for a travel book!

I guess maybe I'm becoming the "anti-day trip king". Some of my favorite places I've spent the night or more are the very places many people have detested as being too crowded and touristy during the day when they only did day trips. Among those places are:

San Gimignano
Aix-en-Provence
St. Malo
Capri
Brugges
Honfleur
Mont St. Michel

Patrick-you have included on your list some of my favorite places that others have written off as a stopover-Honfleur,St. Malo,etc. To the many who have to see a town to say they saw it-I say,stop and spend the night and make a great travel memory! There really is alot that goes on in those places after the 4pm bus crowds.

I was thinking of the Auberge St. Pierre, actually. (And yes, the reason why we want to stay overnight is to miss the tourist crowds--and also it makes a nice stop on the way to Brittany.)

I am not worried about myself--I am a reasonably light packer (well, if you don't count the photo equipment). But I'll be traveling with people who are taking their entire wardrobe with them, and I just wanted to prepare myself in advance for all the whining.

How safe is it to leave things in the car overnight?

As I mentioned above, the hotel reassured us that they couldn't remember the last time a car was broken into at night. And apparently there are guards there at night who would check if anyone is "breaking" into a car. All I know for sure is that we left our luggage in the car and didn't have a problem.

Of course a good idea is always to get what you need and put in the back seat ahead of time, so when you arrive no one would see you rummaging through lots of luggage in the trunk. That way a potential thief would have no reason to suspect that your trunk contained anything worth stealing. Similarly here in Florida cars are always being broken into at our beach. But invariably it is because a thief watched the people carefully lock purses and wallets in the trunk then walk away to the beach. If they hadn't seen that happen, they'd have no reason to suspect there was anything in the trunk.