We will be arriving at MSM in the late afternoon. We have accomodations on the mont. I am wondering if we should try to get a tour when we arrive for the day time visit. Should we then also take the nighttime tour. OR, should we visit the rest of the island when we arrive and just take the night time tour.
Are they enough different that we would want to do both?
We will be leaving the next morning after the tides and will not have time for a tour the next day.
I appreciated any thoughts/opinions.
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Hi Kbecjeans
I hazard a guess that you are talking about a visit to the Abbey????
This is open to visitors every day until 7pm with last entry at 6pm. When I have been, I have just wandered around, not taken any particular %26#39;tour%26#39; there are good bits of information around to read (although mostly in French). Undoubtedly there will be guided tours.
This is the website for the Mont, perhaps it will help you out:
www.ot-montsaintmichel.com/accueil_gb.htm
this one also is useful:
…monuments-nationaux.fr/en/bdd/page/visites
Certainly a night time guided tour would be very atmospheric - You will see the same things either at day, or night - so it just depends on whether you prefer VIEWS from the highest point, or are more interested in the construction and history of the Abbey
Bon Choix!
EW
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Visit the Abbey during the day because 1) the views from the church courtyard are great 2) It%26#39;s rather dark inside the monestary (plus a bit hokey) 3) You%26#39;ll want to get as close to the golden St. Micheal atop the steeple when the sun is shining on it. You don%26#39;t really need a tour here as it%26#39;s pretty self explainatory (if you%26#39;ve ever been to any old church) and the literature is good. You%26#39;ll want time to wander around and explore the nooks.
The village is very small with pubs/resturants (for watching tourists while drinking/eating) and shops (for souveniers) so just plan to spend time walking around after touring the Abbey and snapping alot of quaint medeival pictures.
After dark, take a walk far down the causeway and snap some wonderful pictures of MSM lit up. It%26#39;s still one of my favorite photographs of all time. A definate postcard shot.
Don%26#39;t spend any time on the other side of the causeway, except a possible stop at the grocery store for supplies.
Enjoy!
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I really have nothing to say about MSM.
Kbecjeans, you give out excellent advice everywhere you go on Trip Advisor. I enjoy reading your postings where ever I find them. You%26#39;ve helped out a lot people and improved their vacations.
Keep it up!
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Wow DannyS what a compliment! Thank you.
And thank you also to the other responders. It sounds like I should make an effort to give us enough time to visit the Abbey during the day we arrive.
I read somewhere there were gregorian chants during the night time visits to the Abbey? Anyone know about them?
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Where did you stay on MSM
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mj, we will not be there for a few more weeks yet. We have booked a room at Les Terrasses Poulard. I will write a review when we return.
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We were there the day before Easter this year, and just happened to stumble into a church service being held by the monks and nuns. My youngest son literally squealed %26quot;Monks!%26quot; when he heard them chanting. Then they would get up and walk over to this big rope that disappeared up into the ceiling and BONG ring the bell. Needless to say, I clamped my hand over his mouth pretty quick, but it was a neat experience. I wouldn%26#39;t know if they were Gregorian chants, but they were chanting.....robes with ropes around the waist....kneeling on the stone floor....the whole nine yards. So your best bet may be to check if a church service is going on in the chapel at the time you will be staying there????!
I would have to think the abbey would be daaaaark inside at night, which could be very spooky and/or atmospheric, or pretty squinty-running-into-walls. Of course, it doesn%26#39;t get dark at this time of year until pretty darn late, so you might want to check that too. The abbey has some really neat architectural details and views that would probably be lost at night. Those ramparts would be a lot of fun to run around at night (but those are part of the lower city and not limited to the abbey tour).
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DrDebi, I would LOVE to hear the monks service...wouldn%26#39;t that be great!. Was that in the abbey? Not one of the other churches?
Thank you for your thoughts as well about the night visits. I hadn%26#39;t thought about the fact that it will be light later, but I think the night visits don%26#39;t start till 9pm. So I am thinking after the things I%26#39;ve read on TA that we will try to get there about 4 so we can see the views.
I am looking forward to watching the tide come in the next morning. Any one have any thoughts on where the best place to watch it would be?
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Hi, just back. We were able to get to the Mont about 4 pm. We parked very close because by that time some parking was available. Then we walked up to our hotel.
We loved Les Terrasses Poulard. It was easy to find the reception just off the main street, then the building itself was up on another level. Our room was the very top one and we counted 168 steps from the main street to our room (no elevator and no one to help, we packed light for that night and were glad).
After settling in we walked up to the abbaye arriving about 5:30. We purchased the audioguide which we didn%26#39;t feel was helpful at the time, but looking back now I feel like it did give me SOME information, which allowed us to know what we were seeing.
Evening vespers started at 6:30 and we were trying to get back to the cathedral to hear them when they started herding us out as they were closing. I asked if we could go to services and the woman allowed us to go back, even opening up a locked door that led us back quicker.
Sitting in that beautiful church, listening to the singing/chanting echo through it was enchanting. A very moving experience and I am glad we made the effort to do it. There were about 10 of us watching.
I am sooooooo soooooo glad we stayed on the Mont. We had plenty of time after everything closed to wander the streets and get in plenty of views and feel like we lived in a medieval village.
There were one or two shops that stayed open later and we were able to shop without crowds.
We ate dinner at the restaurant at the foot of our steps, I believe it was called La Confidance. It was perfect for us. There are other places both more expensive and less.
There were others with us standing on the north tower to watch the sunset. Still very romantic.
We also got up early to watch the tides come in and wander around town again. We were packed up and left just after the first of the tour buses arrived. It was a great, great experience overall and one of the highlights of our trip.
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