What to do at Le Havre (Paris), France??

[mashisback]

Will be on royal Caribbean anthem of seas at this port in late may..

 

I was shocked how much the Eiffel tower excursions are!? close to $700 for 2 adults and 1 child.

 

is there better things or cheaper ways to do this? any experienced suggestions/ thoughts would be appreciated! Thanks

[tinkr2]

Just take the train and then buy your own tickets to The Eiffel Tower.

[mashisback]

is it worth it?

 

is there other things to do in this port? seems a lot of hassle, time and expense being at least 2 hours each way.

I haven't been the the tower before, my wife has. Im not overly fussed but i guess it would be nice for my son to say he's been there.

 

 

[TMLAalum]

3 hours ago, mashisback said:

is it worth it?

 

is there other things to do in this port? seems a lot of hassle, time and expense being at least 2 hours each way.

I haven't been the the tower before, my wife has. Im not overly fussed but i guess it would be nice for my son to say he's been there.

 

 

 

Regarding the Eiffel Tower- 

If you decide to go up into the tower, buy tickets online ASAP. They go on sale 3 month prior to the day you want to visit. Otherwise you will be in line a very long time and IMHO not worth the wait.

 

On our 3rd visit to Paris, we finally went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I got up at 2:00 am to order our tickets. The day of our visit, it was cloudy but that was not the biggest disappointment for me. I'd long anticipated a  toast with my DH from the Champagne Bar once we reached the highest level only to find it was closed!

 

Looking up the tower from the bottom is amazing in its own right. 

[CruiserBruce]

As you live in the UK, I would say take a train trip to Paris separately from your cruise, so you can give Paris more serious time to explore and enjoy. That would be the better idea.

[John Bull]

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

As you live in the UK, I would say take a train trip to Paris separately from your cruise, so you can give Paris more serious time to explore and enjoy. That would be the better idea.

 

Le Havre ain't Paris, and even though most ships don't depart til mid-evening you'll lose a great chunk of the day travelling.

Train two hours each-way plus an extra hour wiggle-room for the return ride to Le Havre plus an hour and more between ship and Le Havre station and between sights and Paris Saint Lazare station.

Best you'll get is about five hours in a city worth five days. 

 

So I couldn't agree more with Bruce 👍

Give the city the 2 / 3 / 4 days that it deserves.

Even if you lodge somewhere near a train station half an hour from the city because of the high (higher than London) hotel prices.

But depending exactly where you are in the UK, a flight may be cheaper and easier than Eurostar.

Basic airfares are low and you should be able to  pack light for those few days thereby avoiding the high checked baggage prices (or sharing just one checked bag)

 

Same applies to so many European cities.

 

For your day in Le Havre, consider

 

- Honfleur.

Quaint little fishing / tourist village about 35 minutes from the ship. Great for a lazy day. Simplest by sharing a taxi with fellow-cruisers - the bus service is very very infrequent and even impossible on some days of the week or for ships leaving by 6pm.

 

- the D-Day beaches , sights & museums.

The British sector is only an hour from the ship, you'll have more than enough time to check out Pegasus Bridge, Ouistreham, Sword Beach, Canadian Juno Beach, Gold Beach and the Mulberry Harbour at Arromanches. Mebbe even time to continue west to the American Cemetery and Omaha Beach.

 

Has to be done by tour or by car, public transport is totally inadequate.

 

Royal Caribbean ship, but sailing out of Southampton - so it might offer a ship's tour of the British sector as well as tours to the American and / or Canadian sector. But it'll be pricey.

 

Check out on your RollCall whether any of your shipmates are looking for sharers for a private minibus tour. I'm guessing your sailing is on

15th May https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2645171-anthem-of-the-seas-may-15th-2020/page/7/

or  29th May https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2609329-anthem-of-the-seas-29th-may-2020/page/5/#comments

In both cases I've linked you to the last page of the RollCalls.

 

Or rent a car. The driving is easy (generally uncrowded roads, no major cities, mainly easy parking), the navigation is pretty easy too. The sights have plenty of signage, staff, etc.

If the actual driving doesn't appeal, fix up a car and driver. A driver with a basic knowledge of the area and passable English is good enough.

 

Honfleur + Trouville / Deauville + Houlgate + Pegasus Bridge + Ouistreham. 

Again by rented car. or car + driver. Uncrowded coastal lanes & villages as far as your inclination takes you, mebbe as far as Pegasus Bridge, 45 miles / 1 hr 45 minutes from the ship. Best to make your stops at Honfleur, Trouville etc on the way back so you can shorten or skip those stops if the clock is against you.

 

Rouen

By train. It's about halfway along the Paris train line.

You could tie it in with Monet's Garden - train to Vernon then local bus or taxi to Giverny

 

Etretat and Fecamp

North/east along the coast, about 30 miles / one hour.

Some coastline similar to Dorset's Jurassic coast.

Again by rented car or car + driver

 

Because ts relatively easy for you to take a city break dedicated to Paris at some future date I'd rate any of those options better than the long haul to Paris.

 

Just MHO as always

 

JB 

 

Edited February 25, 2020 by John Bull

[mashisback]

Brilliant advice there thank you all :)

 

 

[tinkr2]

@John Bull I am coming into Le Havre from 6am until midnight. originally I was planning to skip Paris but everyone acted like I was crazy. So I have put it back on the table perhaps for a cruise, Louvre stop and Latin Quarter meal. I was under the impression Le Havre train station was about 15 minutes away from the port but you mentioned an hour.

My second game plan was to head by train to Rouen and then I thought train to Givern,  You mentioned bus. Bus is better? Would it be better to go further, Giverny, and then head back for Rouen. I am normally a rent a car person but am traveling solo this time so the value is not there.

And then Cherbourg I am at a loss.

[mskaufman]

We will be in Le Havre this summer and DW says Honfleur is where she wants to be.

[John Bull]

2 hours ago, tinkr2 said:

@John Bull I am coming into Le Havre from 6am until midnight. originally I was planning to skip Paris but everyone acted like I was crazy. So I have put it back on the table perhaps for a cruise, Louvre stop and Latin Quarter meal. I was under the impression Le Havre train station was about 15 minutes away from the port but you mentioned an hour.

My second game plan was to head by train to Rouen and then I thought train to Givern,  You mentioned bus. Bus is better? Would it be better to go further, Giverny, and then head back for Rouen. I am normally a rent a car person but am traveling solo this time so the value is not there.

And then Cherbourg I am at a loss.

 

 

Poor phraseology on my part or poor reading on your part. Or let's call it  a bit of each

Ship to rail station is only ten minutes by taxi or 30 mins by Shanks's.

My "hour" is the approx total of ship to station and back, plus St Lazare station to Paris sights and back.

 

Must admit I've never been to Giverny. But I know that from Le Havre you take a Rouen / Paris- bound train and get off before Rouen, at Vernon. Taxi rank at Vernon, it's 4 to 5 miles to Monet's Garden. I've also been told there's a local bus from Vernon but I have no details, you'll have to ask that nice Mr Google.

 

Cherbourg there are two stand-out options.

Mont St Michel - iconic, but a boring simple 2-hour drive each-way.

or

D-Day sights. Needs a tour or rental car or rental car plus driver.

This is the US side of the Normandy campaign, the nearest sight is Ste Mere-Eglise, 30 minutes from Cherbourg, taken on  D-Day by 82nd Airborne. There's a good airborne museum in the town square, and an effigy of John Steele hanging from his parachute which was caught-up on the church steeple (he survived - google him).

Only 15 minutes from there is Utah beach (large museum).

If your ship is in Cherbourg  for a full day you'll also have time for Pointe du Hoc and the American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-mer overlooking Omaha beach. Mebbe even time to go as far as the British Mulberry Harbour at Arromanches. Or the German Cemetery at La Cambe (a stark contrast to he American Cemetery).

 

If neither of those options appeal, there's the ancient city of Bayeux. Hardly touched by WW2, with magnificent cathedral and the Bayeux Tapestry, an 800 (?) year-old tapestry which depicts in great detail the Battle of Hastings in 1066 - the last time anyone invaded England.

About an hour from Cherbourg by car,  or a little less by direct train service.

 

JB 

Edited February 25, 2020 by John Bull

[tinkr2]

@John Bull Thank you for the detailed answer. Yes upon reading I can see how I misinterpreted. 

I am confused about this tapestry. It is also mentioned as the sole reason for an excursion on NCL. How long would I be admiring a single tapestry? Is Bayeux good to walk around in?

[John Bull]

2 hours ago, tinkr2 said:

@John Bull Thank you for the detailed answer. Yes upon reading I can see how I misinterpreted. 

I am confused about this tapestry. It is also mentioned as the sole reason for an excursion on NCL. How long would I be admiring a single tapestry? Is Bayeux good to walk around in?

 

The tapestry (its actually embroidery) is over 200 ft long and it's effectively an accurate pictorial story of the battle, which ended with England's King Harold being killed by an arrow in the eye and William (OK Guillaume), Duke of Normandy winning the battle . Due to his illegitimate birth he was also known  as Guillaume the Bastard, but now having taken the crown of England he was "William the Conqueror", first in a long line of Norman kings of England. Of course the Battle of Hastings is an important  event in English history, but it's also of interest to North Americans, whose own history didn't get going until about 500 years later 

Bayeux town centre, particularly near the cathedral, is quite historic with cobbled streets and timber-framed houses. But the cathedral itself and the tapestry (housed in a museum a couple of streets from the cathedral) are the reasons people visit.

 

William the Conqueror lived in Falaise, about an hour south from Bayeux - his castle there is well worth visiting.

(Falaise also figured in the final WW2 battle to win the Normandy campaign - google "the Falaise Gap")

 

JB 

[CruiserBruce]

@John Bull.....we Americans call it the Falaise Pocket...the Gap was the leak, due to miscommunication between certain people...no names mentioned. 

[John Bull]

4 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

@John Bull.....we Americans call it the Falaise Pocket...the Gap was the leak, due to miscommunication between certain people...no names mentioned. 

 

 OK.

I won't mention Montgomery if you don't. 

 

JB 

[Hlitner]

On 2/28/2020 at 4:07 AM, John Bull said:

 

 OK.

I won't mention Montgomery if you don't. 

 

JB 

JB, that is one character we choose to forget.  We would assume that Eisenhower was also happy to put that man out of his thoughts.  Note that Montgomery carried a very small stick (Field Marshal Baton) which was probably the appropriate size :).

 

Hank

[shopaholic6]

On 2/24/2020 at 9:45 PM, mashisback said:

Will be on royal Caribbean anthem of seas at this port in late may..

 

I was shocked how much the Eiffel tower excursions are!? close to $700 for 2 adults and 1 child.

 

is there better things or cheaper ways to do this? any experienced suggestions/ thoughts would be appreciated! Thanks

I would 100% say to visit Honfleur - it’s a stunning little place 😊