One week in Normandy

[Chris Laing]

First of all I would just like to mention the 2 lovely Scouser funsters we met in Canterbury park and ride yesterday before we hopped on the Eurotunnel. So nice to wake up in the morning and find out they hadn't pinched our hub caps.
Only kidding

So we are in Honfleur and we couldn't have picked a worse day it's packed there is no space in the main part. We managed to squeeze into a space in the steerage after a nice Swedish couple moved over to let us in. There must be 100+ motorhomes here this weekend.
Off to Arronmanches Les brains tomorrow to see landing beaches

 

[JockandRita]

scousebird

 

[scousebird]

Lovely to meet you too. I presume the weather is good in Honfleur so the aire is busy. Did you eat at one of the restaurants in town?

 

[Chris Laing]

Lovely to meet you too. I presume the weather is good in Honfleur so the aire is busy. Did you eat at one of the restaurants in town?

Yeah we went to a Pizza place. When in France.....

 

[BillyKontiki]

First of all I would just like to mention the 2 lovely Scouser funsters we met in Canterbury park and ride yesterday before we hopped on the Eurotunnel. So nice to wake up in the morning and find out they hadn't pinched our hub caps.
Only kidding

So we are in Honfleur and we couldn't have picked a worse day it's packed there is no space in the main part. We managed to squeeze into a space in the steerage after a nice Swedish couple moved over to let us in. There must be 100+ motorhomes here this weekend.
Off to Arronmanches Les brains tomorrow to see landing beaches

Was it in the evening you arrived.

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[Chris Laing]

Was it in the evening you arrived.

We arrived around 4ish

 

[Chris Laing]

Lovely weather today temperature reaches 20 degrees. We visited the German gun battery at Merville and then onto Pegasus Bridge. I would highly recommend both if you are especially interested in how the British Airborne took part in D Day. If you are visiting the museum at Pegasus Bridge there is a nice bar/restaurant just other side of Bridge.

 

[ChrisSue]

Those pictures bring back happy memories of our first motorhome trip to France

 

[Jewellbags]

Bayeux aire is ok but small as well . Loved the museum at Pegasus bridge and arromanche was our favourite stop

 

[ChrisSue]

We loved the museum at Ste Mere Eglise too. There is a part where you walk through the fuselage of a Dakota to a soundtrack of engine and flak noise

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[Chris Laing]

We loved the museum at Ste Mere Eglise too. There is a part where you walk through the fuselage of a Dakota to a soundtrack of engine and flak noise

Going there in a couple of days and also Utah beach. But I have now promised the wife to take a run down to see the famous C4 château

 

[BillyKontiki]

We arrived around 4ish

Thanks Chris. Favourite aire of ours but we usually arrive around 1pm.
A wee bit of trivia the Pegasus bridge is a single basqual bridge in Normandy,
The White Cart bridge in Renfrew is the same design and the only one in the country.
This prompted Reo Stakis the hotel magnate to name his new hotel built next to the bridge in the 70s. the Normandy hotel. enjoy.

 

[Chris Laing]

One of the highlights of the week visiting the American cemetery at Ohama Beach and the landing beach at Arronmanches where the British troops landed on the 6th June 1944.

 

[BillyKontiki]

The whole area is so educational and would bring a tear to the eye of the toughest.
So humbling, to see on the ground,what these young men and women went through for our
Freedom.
Just love the area.

 

[stevewagner]

I recommend you visit the 360 degree cinema at Arromanche. We’ll be there from the 2nd June for the commemorations

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[GAVLAD]

Try call in at St Mere Eglise if you’re going to Utah beach.
There is an aire at Utah beach and a decent museum but I thought there was more to see around the other landing beaches. St Mere Eglise has a lot to offer.
On the way there try route via La Cambe which has a large German cemetery - it’s worth visiting after you have seen the allied cemeteries.
Have a great trip. It’s my favourite of places to visit in a motorhome and can’t wait to go back there.

 

[Chris Laing]

I recommend you visit the 360 degree cinema at Arromanche. We’ll be there from the 2nd June for the commemorations

I was there yesterday. We stayed over the Aire next door.

 

[David and Sally]

Lovely weather today temperature reaches 20 degrees. We visited the German gun battery at Merville and then onto Pegasus Bridge. I would highly recommend both if you are especially interested in how the British Airborne took part in D Day. If you are visiting the museum at Pegasus Bridge there is a nice bar/restaurant just other side of Bridge.

The cafe at the end of the bridge is where soldiers were tended to if injured. The lady (who was alive until a few years ago) who ran it until recently was a five year old child on D Day and her parents ran the cafe. Fascinating place.

IIRC Theodore and Quentin Roosevelt are buried next to each other at the American Cemetery. Very sobering experience walking through there.

 

[Chris Laing]

We had a slight deviation to original plan we headed south for 2 hours to see the famous C4 Château. The things you do to keep the missus happy
Unfortunately Dick and Angel weren't at home.

 

[joe and sue]

Lovely weather today temperature reaches 20 degrees. We visited the German gun battery at Merville and then onto Pegasus Bridge. I would highly recommend both if you are especially interested in how the British Airborne took part in D Day. If you are visiting the museum at Pegasus Bridge there is a nice bar/restaurant just other side of Bridge.

Are you doing the whole tour. following the brown signs?? seems to double back at times but you do get to see all tghe small private museums as well, and all of the cemeteries, sounds morbid but a very informative trip,
enjoy it
Joe

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[SmithsInFrance]

Do take a look at the British War Cemetery at Bayeux. Not massive like the American one, but very moving in its own way. Each grave has the name, age of the deceased (so many so young) and an engraving chosen by the family. Couldn't decide which was the more moving - the ones with no message (why?), or the one that said "If love could have saved him, he wouldn't have died" (still brings tears to my eyes).
Have a chat with one of the gardeners if you can as well.
MrsS

 

[Chris Laing]

Are you doing the whole tour. following the brown signs?? seems to double back at times but you do get to see all tghe small private museums as well, and all of the cemeteries, sounds morbid but a very informative trip,
enjoy it
Joe

Hi Joe we only have a week so really doing the well known museums and landmarks.
Arronmanches
Omaha
Carentan
Saint mere egliese
Utah
I think we will be back in August to do some more.
We are big fans of Band of Brothers and we've already done Belgium, Germany and Austria following in the footsteps. We are filling in the gaps.

 

[Chris Laing]

Try call in at St Mere Eglise if you’re going to Utah beach.
There is an aire at Utah beach and a decent museum but I thought there was more to see around the other landing beaches. St Mere Eglise has a lot to offer.
On the way there try route via La Cambe which has a large German cemetery - it’s worth visiting after you have seen the allied cemeteries.
Have a great trip. It’s my favourite of places to visit in a motorhome and can’t wait to go back there.

Passed the German cemetery yesterday and will stop on way back. It's similar to the one in Luxembourg.

 

[joe and sue]

Hi Joe we only have a week so really doing the well known museums and landmarks.
Arronmanches
Omaha
Carentan
Saint mere egliese
Utah
I think we will be back in August to do some more.
We are big fans of Band of Brothers and we've already done Belgium, Germany and Austria following in the footsteps. We are filling in the gaps.

Please try to include Bayeaux cemetery, museum and Cathedral, we spent a whole day there !!

 

[dash300]

Hi Joe we only have a week so really doing the well known museums and landmarks.
Arronmanches
Omaha
Carentan
Saint mere egliese
Utah
I think we will be back in August to do some more.
We are big fans of Band of Brothers and we've already done Belgium, Germany and Austria following in the footsteps. We are filling in the gaps.

If you haven't already you might like to visit https://www.southwestairfields.co.uk/page17.html
Lovely little museum and you can sit on the runway where the 101st Airborne set off from.

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[Chris Laing]

Last of the landing beaches today at Utah. Also visited the 101st airborne museum at Saint mere egliese.
Just by chance we came across the new statue of Captain Richard Winters and the Easy Company memorial at Brecourt manor.

 

[Jenben]

The D Day 75 gardens Chris Laing that you have shown the photos of above features a statue of Bill Pendell as an old and a young man.

This was a garden from Chelsea which then was moved to Normandy , Bill Pendell is my friends dad. She has yet to see it in Normandy due to COVID but is hoping to visit it this summer.

 

[Chris-n-Leeka]

What a great thread this is!

We are just planning a 2 week trip for mid May and have based ourselves in St Mere Eglise, then Bayeux and now looking for somewhere for the last 5 nights before getting ferry back from a port TBD.

Any suggestions - preferably to keep the other half happy as we'll have been doing WW2 for the past 10 days!

 

[Chris Laing]

The D Day 75 gardens Chris Laing that you have shown the photos of above features a statue of Bill Pendell as an old and a young man.

This was a garden from Chelsea which then was moved to Normandy , Bill Pendell is my friends dad. She has yet to see it in Normandy due to COVID but is hoping to visit it this summer.

That's right mate my wife was at Chelsea the year it was featured so she was pleased to see it again.

 

[monzer]

Great photos and great thread. Following with interest as I'll be visiting a lot of these places when I finally find time for my Band of Brothers themed trip.

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