Day Trips to Le Mont Saint-Michel from Paris

'Best' is a matter of personal preference but one option is:

Paris Montparnasse>Rennes by high-speed train:

www.voyages-sncf.com

Takes from 2h 05, online advance discount fares for some departures.

Then the express Keolis Emeraude bus to MSM:

destination-montsaintmichel....

You'll need to check timings and railfare + bus and set it against the cost of an organised day tour to see if it's financially 'best'.

I have used the company called ParisCity Vision........have done a number of trips with them
They give an option of taking you there ( and doing your own thing) or going with the Group

Always enjoyed my trips, have a look at the website

[original link]

We drive so I'm no expert, but you would probably have more time at MSM if you did a day tour from Paris. On the other hand, it would be more of an adventure if you took the train and bus on your own. There is a lot to see at MSM, so I'd be tempted to do the tour just to have more time there. It depends on what you prefer.

Whatever you choose, have a great trip and enjoy the Mont.

I took the:
Paris Montparnasse (train) to > Dol de Bretagne (bus) to > Mont St Michel

returned:
Mont St Michel (bus) to > Rennes (train) to > Paris Montparnasse

At Paris Gare Montparnasse I purchased a train ticket that included a bus transfer to Mont St Michel. You might purchase the tickets a day in advance as TGV trains require seat reservations and are full some days.
Schedules available at [original link]
Have fun

Thanks everyone for your help

Check my post in my travel pg for Abbey St Miichel,for the travel co.On the wy they bring u to a village,Dortmond.

First, are you sure that 103 euros each is the only fare you can get from paris to rennes on tgv? No prems available? Are you familiar with the SNCF website? I don't think I paid that much going from paris to rennes when I booked my tickets a week in advance (not using the SNCF website, going to the SNCF office in the train station and speaking with a person) and this was just last month.
Then, look at the [original link] website and hit the english option to view the website in english. Look at the regular routes. From Rennes to Mont St. Michel is 10,10 euros per person one way. What time periods are you talking about - seeing Dinan and Mont St. Michel in one day and then returning to Paris? Then perhaps it is so expensive because you will be basically having someone drive you around from town to town without having to wait for public transportation.
I think Mont St. Michel as a day trip is stretching it pretty thin already. Adding Dinan makes it harder.

I think a day trip to Mt. Saint Michel is crazy. Check the times from Paris to Rennes and then you are still 90 kilometers away from MSM. We tried to see MSM driving from Bayeau and we still shorted our time at MSM.

Have you consulted a map to see the distance involved in a day trip? suggest you checked VT Travel Guides for Mont St Michel. France> Basse Normandie> Mont St Michel. The transport trips may give some answers to your question. There are heaps of other tips there including one that may help you [original link] regards p

Thank you...I will give them a try....

I opted to pay Cityrama for a daytrip to Mt. Saint Michel. For me it was less hassle than traveling by train and other transportation as I realized that getting to and from the mont would not be simple. If I were visiting Lyon, for example, it would not be any problem in taking a train as it's very straightforward.

I recommend the Cityrama trip although it is pricey. They included a brunch and dinner, but the food is awful. The brunch was held at a small hotel restaurant located in L'Aigle where they staff and food seemed to be something akin to Fawlty Towers. The dinner was at the Caen Memorial and was unmemorable!

So food was the pits but the tour itself was very much worth it.

There is the TGV from Paris to Rennes, and then the bus does take you from Rennes to Mont St Michele. The TGV takes about 2 hours to Rennes. The TGV regular fare is 63.3 euros a person one way, but you can buy a special ticket called a prem. It is a non refundable ticket you print on your printer, from the SNCF website. You need to look for them 3 months in advance, when they are gone they are gone. Look for more information on the prems on the fodors forums. I was there in June, the abbey is fantastic. Bypass the touristy shops and see the abbey first. Here is some information:
By train + bus
There are no direct train services between Paris and Mont St Michel, but rail travel to the island is nonetheless feasible. The best option is the TGV from Gare Montparnasse to Rennes, where a bus run by Les Couriers Bretons (tel. 02-99-19-70-70; [original link] ) provides a 75 minute transfer to the island (there are 2-5 departures from Rennes per day, depending on seasonal demand - most departures are timed to match to the arrival of the TGV in Rennes). The bus station is immediately outside the Rennes train station, at a bus terminal building on your right, after leaving the station by the north exit. The bus costs 10.10 Euro, with a reduction to 8.10 for people under 25. Bus tickets are sold by the driver when boarding the bus, not in advance at the bus terminal.

When returning with the bus, the driver might ask if you have a reservation for the TGV to Paris and give priority to people who have one.

Another option is to take a TGV train to the Pontorson-Mont St Michel train station, with a stopover in Rennes. The Pontorson train station is no more than 15 minutes from Mont St. Michel. Buses are available several times a day. You can get a schedule from the Pontorson train station.

It would be far stretched.

By car, it's a 400 km drive to Dinan, that should take you 3.5 hrs.
See [original link]

By train ([original link]) it's 3 to 3.5 hrs to Dinan, depending on which train you take.

This is an often asked question. If you go to Travel Guides & type "Mont Saint Michel" in the Search box at top You will be able to find under "Transport" stuff on "getting there".
Like ATLC, I would consider it too much for a day trip. Such a pity to go so far to spend a limited time at a site demanding more than a quick look. So much to see /do in Paris. Maybe a day trip to Giverny instead?? de p

You must plan 2 days fo Mont St Michel and Dinan, by road
Count 5 or 6 hours by car, if you include the lunch (on way)
So you will have the time to visit the region and enjoy the franch food.


Rennes by car is quite far , but you can try to do it (it's better to add another day and not rush on the road, but enjoy France...)

Try doing it on your own. Train from Paris to Rennes and then bus to Mt. St. Michel. You'll probably have to stay 1 night in Rennes or near the Mont though.

P.S to above,
After having a look at train, bus and hotel prices taking a tour may be the cheapest, this is about the cheapest I could find. [original link]

>they are not cheap when you convert Euros to AU$.

LOL - Nothing is cheap in France when converted to the Oz

I would suggest staying in the area the night before and then heading to Mont St. Michel in the early morning before the crowds arrive. I got there mid afternoon on a holiday weekend and it was a mob. You could not even choose where to step as you climbed the mont because you were in this huge pack of people. It would have been impossible to fall down I was packed in so tight. But I did it because it was a childhood dream. I really did enjoy it. The crowds thinned out at the top and it was pleasant with amazing views.

kathymof, That is funny. The first time we went it was also that crowded. I whined and my husband said since Mont St. Michel was a pilgrimage site that we were probably having a very authentic experience. LOL

Oddly, we returned on a rainy day in November and it was still pretty crowded, although there was breathing room. 8^)

The poster could check Tours at [original link] They have several differnt tour options and we have always found their hotel prices reasonable so perhaps their tour prices are also. Considering the current exchange rate, checking as many options as possible seems an excellent idea. The Tours link is in the blue banner on the left side of the Home Page at this web site.

Good luck! I hope you get there; Mont St. Michel is an amazing experience.

My hotels in Paris have already been booked. 4-10 July hotel in Bois de Vincennes, then, we will go to London by Eurostar and back to Paris 13-17 July at a hotel in Bois de Boulogne.
Last question, is it a bad idea to hire a car and drive to Mont St Michel from any one of the two hotel locations mentioned?

Hi Jacques,

If you did it when you got back to Paris that would mean you'd already be on the good side for getting out of town, that is on the west. If you left reasonably early in a 3-3 1/2 hour drive you could be there. From where I live near St. Malo is approx 360 kms to centre of Paris, Mont St. Michel is 30 kms before plus saving a bit more from Bois de Boulogne means roughly altogether 40/45 kms saved. So 310/320 kms.
Have a good trip

Merci beaucoup Paul.