Half day in Omaha Beach, American Cemetery, and Pointe du Hoc

The Tours offered by Memory Tracks are designed to allow you to discover the D-Day sites in optimal conditions, in small groups. Each tour is also preceded by a "briefing" which will allow us first to get acquainted, then to contextualize the events of June 6, 1944.

1. 1

   Stop 1

   35 min

   After about 25 minutes drive from Bayeux, we will first position ourselves at the top of the cliff, at the eastern end of Omaha Beach. You will then discover an extraordinary view on the 6 kilometers of the beach ... There, a few meters from the first German bunkers, we will evoke the plan of attack of the German defenses by the 1st and 29th Infantry Divisions of the United States on June 6, 1944, at 06:30. After this first step, we will reach the beach, at the foot of another German Fortified Point, the "Wn62", where you will discover that unfortunately nothing went as planned...

2. 2

   Widerstandsnest 62

   45 min

   Once on the beach, a few dozen meters from the infamous "Widerstandnest 62", a formidable German fortified position, we will recall the death trap into which the first waves of American assault fell due, in particular, to the failure of preliminary bombing and the tragedy experienced by the crews of the Sherman tanks amphibious "Duplex Drive". We will also see together how, after several hours of fierce fighting, small, determined groups managed - against all odds - to turn the situation around and bring down the 15 fortified positions protecting the beach.

3. 3

   Cimetiere Americain de Colleville-sur-Mer

   45 min

   The third stage of the day is a particularly moving and very symbolic place of American involvement in Europe during the Second World War: the American Military Cemetery of Colleville sur mer, where 9389 fighters killed on the day of the landing or during the "Battle of Normandy" lie today. After discussing together the history of this cemetery - the largest of the two American cemeteries of Normandy - you will have time to gather with some of the burials before taking the path to the "Pointe du Hoc"...

4. 4

   Stop 4

   50 min

   Arriving at Pointe du Hoc, on the remnants of the formidable German artillery battery that threatened Omaha and Utah, you will most likely first be seized by the landscape, still marked 82 years later by the many aerial and naval bombings of the D-Day and the weeks before it. But then you will most certainly be shocked by the account of the near-desperate battle that Lieutenant-Colonel Rudder's 225 Rangers had to fight to accomplish their dual mission: climb to the top of the cliff under enemy fire and destroy the 6 155 mm guns at Pointe du Hoc, but also hold the perimeter of the battery while waiting for reinforcements from Omaha. Again, the plan did not work as intended and, surrounded by German forces, the Rangers had to fight for two days and two nights before receiving the expected support.

• Specialized infant seats are available
• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.