[wikolia]

has anyone from The Villages been over to Normandy?...suggestions please for what you really loved about this trip?...Merci!....

[Stu from NYC]

We did it about 5 years ago and it was a great excursion.

It was a guided tour and the guide was outstanding.

Highly recommend it.

[Jim1mack]

Been to all five on our own and Point du Hoc and St. Mare Eglaise. Stayed in Ouistreham one year with wife (loved that little town) is at Sword Beach and in Bayeau the year before with a friend. Great British cemetary there. Also some German casualties on one end. Both times we also went to Mt. St. Michel. It’s a lovely drive along the shore. We don’t do travel tour companies. We prefer the freedom of doing things on our own. Drove from Paris and stoped in Giverny which is Monet’s home town and Pegasus Bridge.

Great trip both times.

[npwalters]

We did it as a part of a cruise. We spent a little over 7 hours there. It is a very pretty area that still remembers WW2 and the US part in it. They are friendly to Americans which is not always the case in France.

The sites are interesting and sobering. They make a person stop and think about the brave men who stormed those beaches and then fought their way inland. The French have done a good job maintaining the sites and the US has done a good job at the US cemetery.

We thought a full day was adequate to see and experience the area. Others may want a second day. I would recommend a day or 2 there to anyone in the general area. I would not go for that purpose only. There are many other places within a few hours worth visiting.

[Taltarzac725]

My older brother and his wife and her father went there years back. Her father landed on Normandy a few weeks after D-Day. They seemed to talk mostly about the toilets available to the public. Sounded like few and far between.

[[email protected]]

I took my father to the 50 th anniversary of the Normandy Invasion, it was quite an experience for both of us .My father parachuted in to Normandy with the 101st at Sainte-Mere -Eglise which should be visited along with the cemetery’s or some of the other places .My father was not much for veterans group things or parades but he was touched to be there and the French were very kind to him ,he was 36 when he jumped in that night ,we also stopped in Spain to see some of the places he fought during the Spanish Civil War along with other Americans in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade ,again no matter where we went in Spain if I mentioned to a bar owner or restaurant owner he had been in the struggle it was free drinks and food lol I’m adding a little foot note to this story as a reward for fighting Germans before and during WW11 , he was kicked out of a union leadership post by a drunken blowhard senator named Joe McCarthy who saw communist everywhere, .hmmmmmmmmmm

[Remo7E]

I’ve lived in Germany the past 15 years. Every time a family member visited we went to Normandy. 1 day is plenty. Go to the peace museum in Caan. Go see Bastogne. Great museum. You can also go see the WWI sites. Belleau Wood is great if you’re a Marine like me.

[wikolia]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

We did it about 5 years ago and it was a great excursion.

It was a guided tour and the guide was outstanding.

Highly recommend it.

do you remember any details about this guided tour?....TY!

[Kenswing]

Originally Posted by wikolia

do you remember any details about this guided tour?....TY!

We used this company when we were there on a cruise. They have both excursions with pick-ups at cruise terminals and also private tours if you're already visiting the area. Overlordtour: Battlefield Tours In Normandy, D-Day Tours, Mont St Michel Abbey From Bayeux

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by Kenswing

We used this company when we were there on a cruise. They have both excursions with pick-ups at cruise terminals and also private tours if you're already visiting the area. Overlordtour: Battlefield Tours In Normandy, D-Day Tours, Mont St Michel Abbey From Bayeux

This is who we used. We had about 8 hours and had the opportunity to see three beaches and the cemetery by Omaha.

The tour guide was a fellow from England who did this as a full time job and was incredibly knowledgeable.

The bravery of those who stormed the beaches was incredible.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

This is who we used. We had about 8 hours and had the opportunity to see three beaches and the cemetery by Omaha.

The tour guide was a fellow from England who did this as a full time job and was incredibly knowledgeable.

The bravery of those who stormed the beaches was incredible.

I recall the first time I saw Saving Private Ryan in a theater in Palm Harbor, Florida on US 19. The man in the couple near me seemed to be in shock for a while after taking that in. They were talking through it but I was very interested in their reactions.


Upset me when Saving Private Ryan lost the Best Picture Oscar to Shakespeare in Love which was kind of a very forgettable film.

[kkingston57]

Originally Posted by wikolia

has anyone from The Villages been over to Normandy?...suggestions please for what you really loved about this trip?...Merci!....

Make sure you get to the American cemetery. Somber and it is meticulous

[merrymini]

We took two trips last year. One included Auschwitz. On an Azamara intensive France we stopped at Normandy beach and the American cemetery, heart wrenching. Do stop at Saint Mare Eglise, the first town liberated by American paratroopers on D Day. So much sacrifice.

[jimdecastro]

I am going in August. I cannot wait but thank you for this post because I got a lot of good information.

[NoMo50]

We were in France two years ago, and spent four days in Normandy and the surrounding areas. Yes...the Normandy beaches are stunning and sobering, but there is much more to do in the area besides the typical beaches tours. We had rented a car, so we had the freedom to do as much or as little as we liked at our own pace. In addition to spending a full day at the beaches and the American Cemetery, we visited: Giverny for the Monet home and gardens; Sainte-Mere-Eglise; Les Andelys and Chateau Gaillard; the Chalk Cliffs at Etretat; Bayeux to see the Bayeux Tapestry (amazing); a full day at Mont St. Michele; and, many other quaint villages and scenic areas. Spent one night in Rouen, and two nights in Bayeux before working our way back to Versailles and Paris.

During our visit, it was the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings. We found the people in Normandy to be very friendly, and they still love and appreciate Americans. Paris...not so much. Even the locals in Normandy dismissed the Parisians, saying they were not the "real" French people. So, if you are able, I would recommend taking more than one day to visit the area. Driving around is easy, and it is so much more fulfilling to go at your own pace and take in everything on offer in that truly special part of France.