even with the hundreds of visitors crammed into one commercial lane of shops selling ghastly souvenirs, you can still sense the great history of the Monte Saint Michael in the sea and the land around it, in the architecture and the enormity of building the abbey. imagine a religious community living on a rock, cut off when tide is high, you have to admire their tenacity to pray, negotiate, and live together. extraordinary interiors, and what looked like gigantic fire places impressed me, i was lucky to see two monks, also there was a sad melancholy about them, i wonder how do they feel to offer prayers to their god while hundreds of people like me meander around the pews, taking snapshots. the spectacular views, the dramatic cloud formations reflected in the sea was enough for me to never forget my visit. I paid for my entry ticket on line with GetYourGuide, yet on the day I arrived it was heritage day so everything was for free, the shuttle included.

Yes, tour Mont St. Michel. If you can, spend the night on the island so you can say hello to the sunrise and experience the island when it isn't packed with tourists. But be sure to venture out onto the sands. Our GetYourGuide Ludovic was great, telling us about the tides, the marine life, and the steps that have been taken to keep Mont St. Michel an island--to prevent it, that is, from being "sanded into" joining the mainland. He also told us how to get out of quicksand! Be warned though, this tour requires lots of walking, some of it on treacherously slippery clay.

Absolutely a must see. But most of the excursion will be you sitting for hours. If I’m not mistaken, the drive is more than 4 hours one way and the tour of St Michel is only 3 hours. The guides are good. But speak up if the bus gets warm. Also they don’t announce it but there’s a bathroom in the bus. As all excursion with lunches, lower your expectations but the lunch in this one wasn’t bad.

We were more than pleased with this day trip. Every aspect was very enjoyable and interesting. Melody took us to Monet garden and lily pond before it got crowded. She gave us excellent points of information about Monet and his life, and pointed out specific views that Monet painted in his paintings. Rouen was very interesting and fun. Hit all the right spots of historical significance.

It saved time. It was easy to purchase. However when we arrived to the Abbey we could not open the site as the Internet was not getting to my telephone. However when we went inside to inform the staff the young man checking the tickets was brilliant and extremely understanding and helpful. He Thank you