Paris day trip to Caen

[archdukej]

I don't care if it's worth it or not, I really more need to know if it's possible. I want to see Juno beach and the Canadian war museum. As part of my trip, I'm really hoping to see a lot of Canadian war memorials. I will be stopping in Arras to see Vimy Ridge (or more aptly, making a day trip).

J

[Eagle]

archdukej, the trip is certainly possible as a day trip, as the ride from Gare St. Lazare to Caen is only about 1H:50M (I believe the earliest train is about 09:00?) There's a return trip leaving Caen at about 21:30. However, if you only have one day to spend there, you will need to plan VERY carefully in order to maximise your touring. Is there any possibility you could extend your time in Normandy?

I want to see Juno beach and the Canadian war museum

A lot of the historic sights in Normany are quite "spread out", so you'll have to give some thought on how you plan to get around. Juno Beach is some distance from Caen, so without a car the best option is to take an organized tour (there are LOTS of them in the area - more on that later). I'm assuming the "Canadian war museum" you mentioned is Juno Beach Centre? It does cover the D-Day battles to some extent (and Canadian involvement in the war), but it also has some displays on the "diversity of Canadian culture" (while this is a "nice" topic, I felt they should have concentrated more on the events which took place there).

Juno Beach itself is somewhat "unspectacular" (as are the other landing beaches) - one needs a bit of imagination to visualize what it must have looked like on "The Longest Day" when the beach was covered with "X" shaped metal bars, barbed wire, posts with Teller Mines on top, etc. Canada House is still there (seen in some of the photos of that day), and it is apparently still owned by the same family from Paris that lived there during the war. There are a few B&B rooms in the house, but these are apparently reserved years into the future by Veterans.

As mentioned, there are lots of companies offering tours of the Beaches. However, IMHO some of these do an excellent job while others are somewhat mediocre. If you have the opportunity, I'd highly recommend BattleBus Tours (check their web site) - a bit expensive, but well worth it! Their tours begin in Bayeux (at about 08:00 from what I recall) so unless you were going to spend at least one night there you wouldn't be able to get there from Paris in time. There's also a British D-Day Museum in Bayeux and the gun batteries at Longues sur Mer are not far from the city, but in one day you won't have time to see everything.

A visit to the Canadian Cemetary at Beny sur Mer is certainly very worthwhile! However the name is a bit misleading, as it's not actually at the beach but rather about 10 miles inland from Bernieres sur Mer.

There are so many historic sights in that area related to the battles, you'll have to decide which are most important to you, and plan carefully!

Happy travels!!!

[madamtrashheap]

archdukej, Eagle's excellent advice is spot on as usual. May I add a little about Vimy Ridge. No doubt you've done the research, but just in case you wondering, there are tours of the trenches and underground tunnels during April and November at the site. You can call ahead to book (let me know if you need the number) or you can get there at opening (10am) and go directly to the visitors centre - staffed by Canadian! There is, of course, the large milestone memorial on the other side of the site to the trenches that you can walk past the maple trees to, just keep off the grass (there are signs) as they haven't secured the entire area for unexploded bombs and still find all sorts of paraphernalia from WWI. A few years ago (2001) they had to evacuate the entire town of Vimy to a 10km radius as mustard gas canisters that had been stored there began to leak. Farmers still find bombs, grenades and other ammunition when they plow.

You can take the train from Paris (Gare du Nord) to Arras then change to the smaller train for Vimy (weekdays the connections are better than weekends). The walk from Vimy station (if you don't do a tour) is about 20mins (you'll be passed by lots of joggers on their way to the memorial) otherwise you can take a taxi from Arras to the memorial (it's about 10km). If you phone the centre they may have a better option to suggest or check the www.sncf.fr site for train times.

Hill 145 (Vimy Ridge) is an important site and I'm glad you're paying a visit. This year being the 90th anniversary of the battle is also significant. Let us know about your trip when you get back.