Not enough hours for scheduled tour in Le Harve

[thethreeofus]

We are sailing in September and I have been researching the tours. We dock in Le Harve 8am till 5pm.  One of the tours goes to Normandy and Omaha Beach. It sounds like a great tour. The problem is the information states that it is a 10 hour tour, including 3-4 hour round trip coach trip.  The tour begins at 8:30 am.  We aren’t even in port 10 hours.  I have called numerous times and I keep getting the “don’t worry, they will get you back to the ship on time.” With that I am assuming they will get us back by 4:30 for 5pm sail. For those of you who have taken this tour, would 4 hours be enough time for this tour?  (Assuming an 8 hour tour and 4 hour travel time).  Thanks for any info and thoughts.

[5waldos]

Is it a tour offered by the cruiseline? If so, they guarantee that the ship will not leave without you. They are supposed to hold the ship until you are onboard. That is one reason they give for the upcharge. I'd go ahead and let the cruiseline worry about it. 

[thethreeofus]

2 minutes ago, 5waldos said:

Is it a tour offered by the cruiseline? If so, they guarantee that the ship will not leave without you. They are supposed to hold the ship until you are onboard. That is one reason they give for the upcharge. I'd go ahead and let the cruiseline worry about it. 

Yes it is put on by the ship.  I’m not doubting if they will get us back, I’m courteous as to whether 4 hours is enough time for that particular tour.  Thanks for your input.  

[5waldos]

Ah- so you are asking if 4 hours at Normandy and Omaha Beach is enough time. Got it. Certainly there are other excursions offered that spend about that amount of time there, if that is any indication. Beyond that- haven't been there for many many years and don't remember how long we spent there. 

[bama4cruisin]

We did a tour of Normandy from La Havre.  You will see some of the cemetery and possibly Omaha Beach; however, I think it will be a tight schedule.  Looking back at the time stamps on the photos on my IPad, we spent about 5 hours at the cemetery, Omaha Beach and Cricqueville-en-Bessin.  We had time to stop for a nice meal at a cafe in Bayeux, but we were in port for, I believe, 12 hours so we were able to take a private tour.  I think we had a group of 8 or so.  It is an amazing place!

[WonderMan3]

Just look on a map. It's 90 minutes from Le Havre to Omaha Beach. So that's 3 hours of travel time right there plus the time needed to transfer from the different sites you would visit like Omaha Beach, the D-Day museum, the American Cemetery and Pointe du Hoc (not sure if all of those are included - they were when I did a cruise ship Normandy tour years ago) plus the amount of time needed to visit each site. 4 hours should be enough time to see all those sites outside of the travel time and probably even squeeze in a lunch. Because port times can vary they always tweak these tours to allow them to fit.

[Educators2]

In the inaugural season of the Constellation, many moons ago, we took this excursion through Celebrity to Normandy. Without a doubt, it was among the very best excursions (ship or otherwise) that we ever took. The visit to the cemetery was very emotional and the stops at Normandy Beach and the visitors center were outstanding. I do not recall feeling rushed at all. It was our first cruise on Celebrity, our first Meet and Greet (very small group with cruise director who read all the posts on the forum) and I recall that excursion vividly to this day.

[CruisinNole]

19 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

Just look on a map. It's 90 minutes from Le Havre to Omaha Beach. So that's 3 hours of travel time right there plus the time needed to transfer from the different sites you would visit like Omaha Beach, the D-Day museum, the American Cemetery and Pointe du Hoc (not sure if all of those are included - they were when I did a cruise ship Normandy tour years ago) plus the amount of time needed to visit each site. 4 hours should be enough time to see all those sites outside of the travel time and probably even squeeze in a lunch. Because port times can vary they always tweak these tours to allow them to fit.

We did this exact Celebrity tour, including lunch and while there's not a lot of spare time, we didn't feel rushed at all. It was one of our most memorable tours and while we prefer private excursions, we had no regrets taking the cruise line's tour.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I have taken this tour.  Normally would do a private tour, but because of the distance involved, decided to do the ship's tour.  We did indeed arrive back to the ship late.  They were there waiting for us.  All the Normandy/Omaha Beach excursions run by the ship arrived late.  I felt we had sufficient time at each site.

[D C]

What do they say is included in the tour exactly?

 

https://goo.gl/maps/HUxg3SdrLCfRkS2H9

This is a sample round trip from Le Havre cruise terminal, along the Normandy coast with the following as waypoints: 

Bayeux Cathedral

Arromanches (remains of the British Mulberry Harbour and a nice museum)

Longues sur Mer battery (four casemates (German gun emplacements))

American Cemetery

Pointe du Hoc (a strategic gun emplacement atop the cliffs.  Army Ranger siege is featured in the movie "The Longest Day")

Per Google, it's about a 4-1/2 hour round trip of driving only, and I'd say that's reasonably accurate for the driving time.  Not sure where your stops would be, or how much time you'd have at each, but I doubt you're going past Pointe du Hoc on a tour from Le Havre.

 

Edited February 21, 2022 by D C

[thethreeofus]

53 minutes ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

I have taken this tour.  Normally would do a private tour, but because of the distance involved, decided to do the ship's tour.  We did indeed arrive back to the ship late.  They were there waiting for us.  All the Normandy/Omaha Beach excursions run by the ship arrived late.  I felt we had sufficient time at each site.

 

37 minutes ago, D C said:

What do they say is included in the tour exactly?

 

https://goo.gl/maps/HUxg3SdrLCfRkS2H9

This is a sample round trip from Le Havre cruise terminal, along the Normandy coast with the following as waypoints: 

Bayeux Cathedral

Arromanches (remains of the British Mulberry Harbour and a nice museum)

Longues sur Mer battery (four casemates (German gun emplacements))

American Cemetery

Pointe du Hoc (a strategic gun emplacement atop the cliffs.  Army Ranger siege is featured in the movie "The Longest Day")

Per Google, it's about a 4-1/2 hour round trip of driving only, and I'd say that's reasonably accurate for the driving time.  Not sure where your stops would be, or how much time you'd have at each, but I doubt you're going past Pointe du Hoc on a tour from Le Havre.

 

Thank you for the information. That is exactly what I was looking for.

[thethreeofus]

55 minutes ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

I have taken this tour.  Normally would do a private tour, but because of the distance involved, decided to do the ship's tour.  We did indeed arrive back to the ship late.  They were there waiting for us.  All the Normandy/Omaha Beach excursions run by the ship arrived late.  I felt we had sufficient time at each site.

Thank you so much. I appreciate your input.

[vickykay]

We did this tour with the private company that goes there.  Without a doubt do this tour even with the ship.  It’s incredible to visit.

[vickykay]

oh and our tour at the time included visits to two small towns on the way back so four hours at the beaches, cemetery , etc is plenty of time.  

[markeb]

General philosophy:

 

If you've never been and have the interest, take the tour that's offered. It's going to be rushed. I seriously doubt you're going to Pointe du Hoc, for instance, and it's likely a drive by of Omaha Beach and a far too brief stop at the American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer. It takes exactly 30 seconds looking down at the sea from the American Cemetery to impress on you just how difficult that day was. And then you turn around and see the cost of the Battle of Normandy in total. Four hours is going to be really short, but it's much better than not doing it.

 

And then find a time to go back and explore Normandy and Brittany. We did this years ago for a long weekend while stationed in Germany and it's a visit I'll never forget.

[Turtles06]

1 hour ago, D C said:

Pointe du Hoc (a strategic gun emplacement atop the cliffs.  Army Ranger siege is featured in the movie "The Longest Day")

 

I'll add that whether a tour of the Normandy D-Day sites gets to Pointe du Hoc or not (although I hope it would), I strongly recommend watching (or re-watching) "The Longest Day."  While a somewhat cheesy film by today's production standards, the history is spot-on and you'll appreciate your visit even more.  (Not to mention that the film had just about every male star and soon-to-be star of the 1960s.  🙂 )

 

We did a private shore excursion from Le Havre with Overlord Tours some years ago, and it was fabulous.  But for folks who aren't able to book a private tour, I would definitely take a ship's tour.   

[Turtles06]

3 minutes ago, markeb said:

It takes exactly 30 seconds looking down at the sea from the American Cemetery to impress on you just how difficult that day was.

 

Not to mention walking out on Omaha Beach as far as the water, turning around, and trying to imagine the courage it took to get out of the landing boats and attempt to wade ashore in the middle of all the cross-fire, the chaotic noise of battle, the underwater obstacles. . . It was unimaginable.    

 

Ironically, on the flight home from Europe on the trip during which we visited Normandy, one of the film choices was "Saving Private Ryan," which I had seen.  But having just been to Normandy, I re-watched those first 20 minutes; I was in tears.  

[markeb]

8 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

Ironically, on the flight home from Europe on the trip during which we visited Normandy, one of the film choices was "Saving Private Ryan," which I had seen.  But having just been to Normandy, I re-watched those first 20 minutes; I was in tears. 

 

It's rough the first time you see it. But having seen the ending, you're in tears the second time for the opening in the cemetery...

 

And that's before the landing scenes.

[Turtles06]

3 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

It's rough the first time you see it. But having seen the ending, you're in tears the second time for the opening in the cemetery...

 

And that's before the landing scenes.

 

Yes.  All of that.  

[D C]

A pic of a good friend's dad back then when he was an LCT pilot (LCT = landing craft tank).  This was on one of the subsequent trips to the beaches.   Dropped the ramp onto a mine on D-Day, deployed the tanks, and went back for troops (while being shot at, of course)