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OVERVIEW
This tour is a sample program for those who want to learn more about this pivotal event of WWII. It is designed to let you experience first hand the most famous events of the landings, and the subsequent campaign to retake the Normandy Peninsula back from the Nazis.
Then you go on to Paris, where you will visit all the prominent sites in the city related to WWII.
Overnight flight to Paris
Morning arrival Charles de Gaulle airport.
An English speaking assistant will meet the group and escort you to the coach and driver.
Your coach will be with you for the next 5 days.
Embark on a morning drive (180 miles) to Bayeux, a small town in Normandy . Check-in at the
hotel on arrival for 4 nights.
In the afternoon, meet your guide at the hotel for a tour of Bayeux .
Bayeux was the first French town liberated after D-Day and it will be our base of operations
during your visit to Normandy. First you will have an orientation talk with the guide about local
French customs, money exchange, and safety. Then you take a guided stroll through the
medieval town center of historic Old Bayeux, stop in the 13th century Bayeux Cathedral, and
visit local sites dedicated to World War II history.
● Bayeux Cathedral (closes at 12 noon on Saturdays)
● Place Charles de Gaulle
● Battle of Normandy Museum
Departure after breakfast with your coach and guide.
The day excursion will follow the coast for about 70 miles, visiting Juno Beach, Port-en-Bessin,
Arromanches, Colleville-sur-Mer, Omaha Beach, then back to Bayeux.
8:30 AM Departure to Colleville-sur-Mer (17 kms) Omaha Beach view only.
10:00 AM Visit American Cemetery of Normandy
11:00 AM Continue to Port-en-Bessin, Happain and Longues-sur-Mer: guided tour of a German Battery.
Lunch break
2:30 PM Entrance to Arromanches 360 Circular Cinema.
3:30 PM Entrance to D-Day Landing Museum
4:30 PM drive from Arromanches les Bains to Courseulles-sur-Mer
5:00 PM Juno Beach Centre
6:30 PM Leave Juno Beach to return to Bayeux
8:00 AM Departure from hotel with coach and guide for 12 hours. Return by 8:00PM
Drive to Cricqueville-en-Bessin, 2 miles, 30 minutes. View Pointe-du-Hoc Ranger Monument
9:30 AM Drive to Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, 45 minutes, 22 miles. Photo stop at the National Guard Memorial in Grandcamp-Maisy.
10:30 AM Visit Sainte-Marie-du-Mont: orientation tour and entrance to Utah Beach Landing Museum to see the exhibits.
After the museum, outside museum—hike up to the top of adjoining bluff to spot where Americans first broke through Germany’s Atlantic Wall . Area contains the remains of German gun emplacements and other relics of the fighting along with several monuments.
Time for lunch
2:15 PM Drive to Sainte-Mere-L’Eglise, 15 minutes, 7 miles. Tour the small town.
2:30 PM Visit the Airborne Museum
4:00 PM Entrance to D-Day Experience Museum – visit for 2 hours to enjoy the Museum and the simulator – (closes at 6:00 PM)
6:30 PM Return to Bayeux, 1 hour drive, 35 miles. Stop en route to visit German Military Cemetery at La Cambe.
8:00 PM Return to hotel.
This will be a day long trip to one of France’s most historic and picturesque locales, a 1,200
year old fortified Abbey and medieval pilgrimage site located on an island just off the coast of
Normandy. This site provides a perspective on the medieval and religious heritage that formed
a vital foundation for the French nationalism during the WWII era. The bus will drop us off at the
parking lot by the causeway leading to the island and we will walk to the site. If time permits,
we will take a walking tour through the tidal mudflats that surround the island. Once on the
island we will enter the fortress through the King’s Gate. During the day we will visit St. Peter’s
Church, then ascend the Pilgrim’s Stairs to the Abbey, where we will spend 1 ½ hours on a
guided tour of the Abbey itself.
On the return trip to Bayeux we will stop at the Little Chapel of Saint Michel in Mortain Bocage,
a historic battle site in the Normandy campaign situated on top of a 323 foot high rocky hill with
panoramic views across Normandy. Time for reflection on the day’s sites.
8:00 AM Departure with coach to Mont-Saint-Michel , 73 miles, 1h 45 drive.
9:45 AM Meet with local guide
10:00 AM Start a two hour guided tour
10:30 AM Entrance to the Abbey
Free time for lunch and exploring the Mont on your own.
4:00 PM Leave Mont-Saint-Michel and drive to Mortain, 34 miles, 1 hour drive.
6:30 PM Return to Bayeux.
8:00 AM departure from Bayeux to go to Caen
9:00 AM Walking city tour of Caen focussing on WWII events and including Caen Memorial Museum.
Free time at the Memorial Museum on your own and lunch
3:30 PM Transfer from Caen to Paris, 150 miles 3 1/2 hour drive
7:00 PM Check-in at your Paris hotel for 4 nights.
9:00 AM Depart from the hotel with your guide for a morning walking tour
10:00 AM Visit the Catacombs, which were the WWII headquarters for the French Resistance.
In the afternoon visit the Museum of the Liberation de Paris, including Musée du General Leclerc de Hautecloque and Museum Jean Moulin
https://en.parisinfo.com/paris-museum-monument/71086/Musee-de-la-Liberation-de-Pars-Musee-du-general-Leclerc-Musee-Jean-Moulin
Continue to the Arc de Triomphe to allow for a stroll along Champs-Elysées.
9:00 AM departure with your guide for a morning waking tour
10:00 AM Entrance to the Invalides Army Museum [Musee de l’Armee] in the Hotel des Invalides— the tour will focus on the World War II Wing and the Charles de Gaulle Exhibit. Then on to the Museum of the Order of Liberation (10 minute walk)
12:00 PM Entrance to Musée de l’Ordre de la Libération
Free time for lunch
3:00 PM Entrance to the Abbey of Saint Germain-des-Pres. Visit the Church and experience one of the 2 famous Cafe nearby: Cafe de Flore and “Les Deux Magots” which were in their day a meeting point for intellectuals and artists.
9:00 AM Depart hotel for half a day guided walking tour (service for 4 hours) Visit the historic Marais district of Paris, which includes the historic Jewish Quarter
10:00 AM Visit the Memorial de la Shoah, including the Memorial of the Unknown Jewish Martyr and the Shoah Memorial. Audioguide to visit the Documentation Center. This site includes information on the fate of French Jews during the German occupation.
11:30 AM Musee Carnavalet museum on the history of the city of Paris.
Afternoon at leisure.
Private coach for your transfer to CDG airport to take your flight back to the US.
This sample tour is just an example of a specific itinerary related to the country we just described to give you an idea of what is available in that country when you travel.
All our trips are tailor-made and we are at your disposal to plan your trip in consideration of how many people will be traveling, how many days you wish to travel, the season, the standard and the location of the hotels, the amount of meals you wish to include, the guided tours or experiences which will show you not only the “must see” landmarks but also the special interest sites and events you will love that are off the beaten track.
Francoise is the president and founder of Celestial Voyagers. She graduated with a tourism degree at Nice University in France and has worked as a tour director and operations manager in France, Australia and Mexico. Settling in New York City, she founded Celestial Voyagers with the aim of creating uniquely curated group travel for adults and Academia.