14 days · rail and a short rental
Follow the coast from Bayeux, give the Loire three nights, then take the train south for a day on Bordeaux’s riverfront.
13 nights in France
For travelers who want the west of France at a measured pace and are comfortable driving for the Normandy and Mont transfers.
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The daily route
If you flew overnight from the US, count the day you land as day one. Get to the hotel, leave your bags if the room is still being cleaned, and take a walk near where you’re sleeping. Save the first timed ticket for tomorrow. Check your airport and terminal before choosing the train or a car.
Pick Orsay for the late nineteenth century or the Louvre for a collection that runs much wider. Choose a few rooms, then go outside. Orsay usually closes on Monday and the Louvre on Tuesday. Move this day around the official calendar and the ticket you can actually book.
Musée d’Orsay · visit informationLouvre · visit hours and admission
Start at Saint-Germain-des-Prés and walk toward the Luxembourg Gardens. Take lunch when you find a table you want, then keep going only as far as your feet are willing. If rain changes the day, use the museum slot you moved from yesterday or keep the route short around Saint-Germain.
Get the one-way rental in writing before selecting a train. Search Paris Saint-Lazare to Caen and allow for rental paperwork and a walk to the pickup point. Drive on to Bayeux and leave the evening free.
SNCF · Paris Saint-Lazare to CaenEuropcar · Saint-Pierre-des-Corps counter
Make the Normandy American Cemetery and Omaha Beach the center of the day. With a guide, ask how much time the tour gives to each and where it leaves you afterward. With a car, set two separate destinations. Check ABMC’s current access notice, particularly if you want to visit a particular grave.
ABMC · Normandy American CemeteryABMC · current cemetery accessNormandy Tourism · D-Day beaches without a car
Visit the D-Day Museum in Arromanches to understand the artificial harbor, then take a look out over the water if conditions suit. Return to Bayeux before dinner. Check the museum calendar before fixing a ticket.
Leave your bag at the mainland hotel or follow its arrival instructions. Public visitor parking is on the mainland, with a footbridge walk or the Le Passeur shuttle. Separate the abbey visit from the time you need to reach the rock.
Mont-Saint-Michel · parking and accessAbbey · practical information
Allow 4–4½ hours on the road with a break, plus fuel and handover time. Confirm the return entrance, contract deadline and any after-hours arrangement. Take the short local train or a taxi onward to central Tours.
OSRM · Mont parking to Saint-Pierre-des-Corps areaEuropcar · Saint-Pierre-des-Corps counterSNCF · Saint-Pierre-des-Corps to Tours
Search from Tours to Chenonceaux, with an x. The estate lists a short walk from the station to its ticket office. Look up the return train first and leave time to walk back, especially if you’re staying for the gardens.
Chenonceau · station and directionsSNCF · Tours to Chenonceaux
Walk the old town around Place Plumereau, then head to the Loire if the weather suits. This is the day to slow down or recover time lost to a closure. Leave the evening open to pack for Bordeaux.
Search from Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, even if your hotel is by Tours station. Some services run direct. Add the transfer to the right station before you buy the rail ticket. In Bordeaux, check the trip from Saint-Jean to the hotel before arrival.
SNCF · Saint-Pierre-des-Corps to ToursSNCF · Saint-Pierre-des-Corps to Bordeaux Saint-Jean
Start around Saint-Pierre, then come out at Place de la Bourse and walk the Garonne quays. The architecture is worth the walk even when the water mirror is dry. Keep a second half-day in reserve for a museum or a long lunch.
Look for Bordeaux Saint-Jean to Paris Montparnasse. If the hotel is by the airport, plan the separate trip from Montparnasse. This is a transfer day, with enough room to miss a planned connection and still reach the hotel.
SNCF · Bordeaux Saint-Jean to ParisÎle-de-France Mobilités · Paris airports
Read the airport code and terminal from the airline confirmation. Plan the journey from the hotel door and use the airline’s check-in guidance. Look up any engineering work or service changes before you go to bed.
The parts to time
Before paying
Set pickup at Caen station and drop-off at Saint-Pierre-des-Corps (Tours), then read the one-way fee, the desk hours on both ends and the deposit in the quote before paying.
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Free printable
Three pages to save before you fly: passport and EES/ETIAS status, the proof the border police can ask for, cards and phones, driving rules and the bookings worth making early. Every line links an official source, checked November 9, 2026.
See what’s insideResearch desk
Checked . Rail times are examples for planning. Recheck opening days, direct trains, tour stops and rental arrangements before booking.