Wow. Thanks for the input! If I were to visit Chambered and Chenonceau in one day, how do you recommend I travel. I have never rented a car in Europe.
If youâre not doing it as part of a tour group, then it would be best to rent a car, but itâs not all that difficult to do so. If youâre starting in Paris, there are plenty of places to pick up rental cars (lots of offices bear Gare du Nord and Gare de lâEst). If you can, opt for a small car with a diesel/hybrid engine (because gas prices in Europe really are quite pricey â diesel, which is labeled âgazoleâ in France, is your best bet for fuel efficiency). Plenty of rental options â we went with Sixt. Driving in Paris can be pretty dicey, but once you get outside of the city, itâs absolutely fine, and there is plenty of parking at the chateaux. If youâre seeing Chenonceau and Chambord, you might think about exploring Blois (near Chambord) or Tours (near Chenonceau) for meals. Tours is larger, so be sure to go to Vieux Tours if youâre there â thatâs the medieval section, and it has a square with an active dining scene.
If youâre returning the rental car in Paris â gas stations are few and far between (assuming you want to return the car with a full tank), but we did find one near Gare de LâEst.
When visiting Versailles, we did it âbackwardsâ, and started with Trianon gardens, walking back through the formal gardens to the Palace. Nearly no one was in the Trianon when it opened, and by the time we returned to the Palace, crowds were also diminishing. Perfect timing.
Stay overnight in Chartres. The evening light show & walk are wonderful.
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I think someone on CC recommended the night Fat Tire bike tour in Paris. Oh my gosh, it was fabulous. Probably the best tour weâve ever taken (well, except for the two day Normandy beach tour, but thatâs different). It lasted from 6-10:15 pm. Since sunset was at 9:25, we werenât riding in the dark very long. We biked all over the city, stopped for ice cream, took a one hour boat ride on the Seine, and stopped at the Eiffel Tower for the 10 pm sparkling light show. We had two guides and felt safe the whole time. So well done. 
here are two photos from the boat.
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I think I was one of the people that recommended it. One of the most fun things I have ever done. Glad you loved it!
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I thought you had to be a hotel guest. Thatâs great if you donât!
You donât have to stay there to eat there. I second the river cruise. We went on Batteau Parisian, a mid sized boat. We also had fun finding some of the Emily in Paris filming locations.
Thatâs funny â we tracked down locations from the movie Charade. My kids posed for Audrey Hepburn/Cary Grant photos.
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Did you recreate the nightclub scene with the orange 
game? 
Ha! No, all exterior shots. But we do have some good ones of them chasing each other through the Colonnade, and we managed to find the puppet theater in les jardins de Champs-Elysées, which still exists.
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Thank you, Iâm going to make reservations. Iâve read the bar area is gorgeous.
Which restaurant did you eat in? There is the more upscale with a dress code, or one that looks a bit more informal.
La Rotonde was the Nice restaurant where we ate. No dress code. Even stopping in the bar for a drink would be a treat.
Thanks!
Just got back from Paris. We have been to Versailles in the past and this time had a wonderful visit to Fountainbleau. So easy to get to by train, no crowds. I can also recommend a day trip to Reims for a fancy lunch, visit the basilica, cathedral and +/- museum of the surrender and a champagne tour and tasting. We took a direct TGV train to Reims and it was so easy and pleasant.
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H has to go to Paris for work and he found a great deal - so I am tagging along. Iâll work from there during the week, but we are thinking of going away for the weekend. Currently, the Normandy area is my top choice.
For folks that have been, where would you suggest basing ourselves for the two-three nights? We will rent a car - I want to see Giverney, Etretat, the D-Day beaches and St Mont Michel if possible. I think we can visit Giverney on the way out of Paris on Friday or possibly on the way back on Monday. If you have specific recommendations for tours at the D-Day beaches, please let me know. Thanks.
How far do you want to drive/how much time in a day?
I will say that Bayeux was one of my favorite spots in France which is a good spot to see the D-Day beaches and parts of Normandy. But there are definitely some distances to cover between the spots on your list. Caen might be more centrally located for your interests.
Regardless, enjoy your time there!
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Might consider train travel Paris to Bayeaux/Normandyâcheap tickets for two hour ride on a high speed train. Popular route.
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If going to Giverny by train, thereâs a bus that takes you from the station to the house&gardens for âŹ15 or so. Itâs a long walk otherwise.
As far as I remember, thereâs no place to eat on the premises but I think theres a cafĂ© or small food place at the museum nearby and the small village where Monetâs house is located may have a cafĂ© too.
Thereâs a very small âmuseumâ collection of farm apparatus from the industrial revolution (âŹ2 donation) that I found interesting. You just wander around the village and thereâs a little sign.
Hopefully youâll have good weather because it makes the gardens magical.
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We did an awesome private one-day âAmericanâ tour of the D-Day beaches with First Normandy Battlefield Tours. The tours are led by a British ex-pat who lives and breathes D-Day and WWII. We found him through Rick Steves.
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