Normandy

[wrfire253]

Hello everyone,

Well, I'm excited to say I'm going to Paris in October...finally. It will only be a short adventure for about a week though, but one thing I'd definitely like to do is take a side trip over to see the beaches of Normandy. Does anyone here have any info on this? Such as train routes, hostels, neighbouring towns, particular sites, etc. It would be great to hear first-hand experiences.

Thanks,

Pete

[Kim]

Hi Pete,

Wow - Paris in October should be quite beautiful!

That is one thing we regretted, not getting to see the beaches of Normandy. Next time, I guess!

Here are the hostels in that area, BUG had reviews for two of them so I'm including the link to those as well.

Family Home
39, rue Général de Dais,
14400 Bayeux
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
Reviews on BUG:
www.bugeurope.com/reviews/France/Normandy/Bayeux/fr032/index.htm

FJT - Robert Rême
68, rue Eustache Restout,
14000 Caen
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Auberge de Jeunesse
55 rue de l'Abbaye,
50100 Cherbourg
bus: 3, 5 (stop: Chantier")
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Auberge de Jeunesse
48, rue Louis Fromager, Quartier Janval de Dieppe, 76550 Saint-Aubin-sur-Scie
bus: 2 (stop: Château Michel)
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Centre des Fontaines
rue des Fontaines, BP 123,
76260 Eu
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Auberge de Jeunesse Genêts Baie du Mont St-Michel
28, rue de l'Ortillon,
50530 Genêts
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Centre Régional de Nautisme
Boulevard des Amiraux,
50400 Granville
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Centre Duguesclin
21 rue Patton,
50170 Pontorson
tel/fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]
Reviews on BUG:
www.bugeurope.com/reviews/France/Normandy/Pontorson/fr035/index.htm

Centre d'Hébergement Île de France
28, avenue de Île de France,
27200 Vernon
bus: C (stop: Folenrue)
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Auberge de Jeunesse
6, rue de la Briquetterie, 76190 Yvetot
tel: [phone]

Kim

[wrfire253]

Thanks Kim! This really helps.

[LHR02]

I visited Normandy and loved it. There are basically two 'main' centers you can use, Caen or Bayeaux. I stayed at Bayeaux, beautiful smaller city and closer to Omaha which was the main site I wanted to see. It really is not practical at all to try to visit this area using public transportation. It is just too spread out and buses are sporadic at best. There are a blue zillion tours you can take if you don't have a car. I lucked out and the day I went I was the sole person on the tour so basically had a private driver/guide. ;D Owing to the fact I was there in February my choices were limited and had to take the half day tour....full days were only running on the weekend that time of year. However, it allowed me Pont du 'hoc, Omaha Beach, the cemetary, having a brain cramp!....the artificial harbor whatever the name is....and a nice couple of stops at some of the gun emplacements up on the ridge. Price was 35 euros, 5 hours more or less and well worth it. Check for tours at the TI...do it as soon as you arrive and get it scheduled right up front. Photos on my web site, a most moving experience indeed, questions....just ask.

ging

[snorkelman]

Normandy – this is a nice area for WWII buffs. You can do a day trip from Paris but it will be a complete day because it is about 4 hours travel each way. From Paris, take a train to St. Malo. Then head to the beaches. I think that there is a travel agency from St. Malo called Westcapades www.westcapades.com/
that you might want to look into. If you try and do this as a day trip from Paris, make sure to get on an early morning train to St. Malo.
If you have more time, then consider using Bayeux as a central base but realized that the bus system they have is very inconvenient. They only run every 45 minutes - 1 hour or so and the sites really don't take too long to see.
There is a new tour company called Battlebus based in Bayeux which gets good reviews. Expect to pay them about 65 Euro for a full day tour of the landing sites (you chose whether you want to see the British/Canadian or the American landing sites.. The travel is by minibus (can go on smaller roads than larger coach buses). The website is www.battlebus.fr and I would consider this one if you want to do a day-trip from Paris.

There are a few websites that you should look at if you are thinking about visiting this area: www.Normandywebguide.com www.normandybattlefields.com/ www.ww2tours.com/