Day trip to Mont Saint-Michel from Paris

Caution: We are not (repeat NOT) advocating day-tripping to Mont Saint-Michel from Paris. Our time schedule was created months in advance and we wanted to spend the majority of our time elsewhere, so we devised a day-trip schedule that allowed us to explore the island quickly & efficiently. Our time management method might not work for everyone, but it worked out perfectly for us.

During our trip research we reviewed various methods of transportation, ie;

• Auto Rental: Given that auto rentals are more expensive than in the US, and also because the distance between our condo rental in Le Marais to Mont Saint-Michel was nearly 370 kilometers (230 miles), we decided that we could not possibly arrive at the Abbey early enough in the day to allow us to complete our explorations. Combine that with the fact that we would then have to drive back to Le Marais after a day of hiking around the Abbey, and we came to the conclusion that this was not going to work for us.
• Bus Tour: There are bus tours that advertise that they can provide a day trip to Mont Saint-Michel in 14 hours. Viator and Get Your Guide both advertise these types of tours, however, the per person price was in excess of $125. In addition, none of the bus tours (at least at that time) would get us back to Le Marais before midnight. Additionally, we did not want to be "tied" to a tour group moving about at a slow pace.
• Airlines: There are flights from Charles De Gaulle Airport to Pontorson, however, the round trip per person price was high and we would still need to get to Mont Saint-Michel from the Pontorson Airport.

So we then researched train schedules to see if they would be faster and found that if we departed Paris in the early morning, that we could arrive at Mont Saint-Michel with enough time to do everything that we wanted to see there and get back to Paris in the evening of the same day. This was all because the TGV trains operate at 300 kilometers per hour and I doubt that anyone could match that speed if they drove!

If our "how to do this day trip text" seems complicated and you would prefer to "view" our steps, then click this video to watch how we did it. This video is the property of Just Traveling Thru, LLC.

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Keep in mind when you look at Train Schedules, that there are TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse) trains and there are "regular" non-TGV trains. TGV trains make the trip to Rennes from Gare Montparnasse in one hour and 26 minutes, non-TGV trains make that same trip in 3 hours and 18 minutes. Multiply that nearly two hour time difference by two to account for the round trip, and you can see why it is important to schedule your trip on a TGV train.

Pay attention to the train schedule, you do not want to take any train that makes stops & some trains stop in Le Mans, you want to use only the non-stop trains to Rennes. The Gare Montparnasse station is large, but all train schedules are displayed on monitor screens located throughout the station. You will need your train identification number (for example, ours was TGV 8701) and the monitors will tell you where to locate that train.

There are several websites where you can make advance French Rail System reservations; Rail Europe, SNCF Connect and the The Train Line. There may be others, use Google Search, but we have dealt with these companies and they are reputable. All of these websites will allow you to enter your entire train schedule itinerary.

Paris Metro Stations are always equipped with large maps of the entire system, and if you are going to travel the Metro System you have to be aware of where each line is and where it goes. This is because you'll need to know the last station (on that line) to know what direction you're heading - For example, our trip from the Saint Paul Station was on Line 1 to the Champs-Élysées–Clemenceau station. We needed to change there to a Line 13 train, so we boarded the train that headed south in the direction of Châtillon–Montrouge. The last station on line 1 headed west is La Defense, which gave us the direction and which side of the tracks we had to be situated to catch the southbound line 13 train. We jumped off at the Montparnasse–Bienvenüe station where we could access the Gare Montparnasse Train Station on the ground floor via escalator.

• Obtain your TGV train reservations in advance! Mont Saint-Michel is a popular destination, and if you wait too long to obtain your tickets then it is possible that you will find that there are no tickets available for the time frame you desire. French Rail companies do not overbook! On-sale dates vary by country, route, and time of year, with most starting two to four months in advance of travel, and six months ahead for Germany and the Eurostar Chunnel train.
• We rode the Paris Metro from the Saint Paul Metro Station (nearest to our VRBO rental in Le Marais) to the Gare Montparnasse train station. Keep in mind that the Metro starts at 5:30AM each weekday and 2AM on Friday & Saturday. Paris Metro trains are frequent; once every 2-4 minutes during daytime hours and every 6-12 minutes at night (after 8:30pm).
• We rode the 6:52AM TGV train to Rennes. Travel time was approximately 1.4 hours (approximately 350 kilometers). The train was fast and comfortable. Keep in mind that you have to be careful that you are getting a TGV train (and not an RER train), not every scheduled train is going to be a TGV and some will be "locals" which will make numerous stops.
• We arrived in Rennes at 8:22am, and switched to a regional (TER) train. Travel time from Rennes to Pontorson was approximately 45 minutes (approximately 60 kilometers). Departure time from Rennes was 9:05AM.
• We arrived in Pontorson at 10:01am, and boarded a local bus to Mont Saint-Michel. The Pontorson Tour Bus meets every arriving train, no need for reservations. You will be taken directly to the Abbey causeway, and dropped off next to the Abbey main gate.
• Our return trip to Paris was dictated by the Train schedule from Rennes to Paris, so we picked a 3:11PM train from Pontorson, so that we would arrive in Rennes in time for the Paris train. We were back in Paris by 18:43PM and had dinner in Le Marais on the way back to our VRBO rental.
• This schedule provided us with a total of over five hours to explore the island and have lunch. This is more than enough time to do a thorough walk of through the entire structure, taking pictures & enjoying everything there is to see.

NOTE: The French Rail System modifies it's train schedules from time to time, and uses different schedules for week-day versus weekend. The schedule that we utilized may no longer exist or may have changed. There are several different train companies that offer transportation service to Mont Saint-Michel from Paris, including; Rail Europe, The Train Line, Omio and SNCF Connect. There may be others, so here is a link to a Google Search Results list for Paris to Mont Saint-Michel Train Schedule.

Click here to view the Train route from Paris to Mont Saint-Michel

When you enter the main gate, it is not immediately clear that there are two routes to the top. We took the Porte Eschaugette route by turning left and going up the stairs. If you turn right and follow the crowds, you will be entering the village area and it is slow movement due to the very narrow (and steep) street and dense crowds. Both directions will get you to the top of the Abbey, but going to the left is far less crowded.

The advantage of heading to the top on the route we selected, is that you are going to be able to get to the top without the crowds and visit the Abbey then you can see the village as you descend, so you will have as much time as you have to visit the little shops.

You should also keep in mind that taking the Porte Eschaugette route will require you to ascend a very steep trail and then steep steps at the top. The trail is a switch-back, so the ascent varies in steepness. Once you reach the top, you will be able to enter various areas of the Abbey that require you to traverse even more steps.

Abbey entrance tickets are available, we purchased ours (€10 per person) in the visitors center on the left side of the main entrance. They check tickets at the Abbey entrance, so you need to have one or you will not be able to enter. Getting the tickets down below allowed us to skip the line at the top.

WARNING: They were turning away visitors who did not have tickets at the Abbey entrance, and it is a lengthy walk back to the place where you can obtain tickets. So if you want to explore the Abbey, get your tickets!

The following images & text, will show you our exploration of the entire island, the Abbey as well as the restaurant where we had lunch.

The island and Abbey are amazing, and as you can see that the entire entire island "is" the Abbey. These views just made us even more eager to begin our trek through the Abbey.

The Pontorson bus from the train station, dropped us off on the causeway that leads out to the Abbey, so this was our first closeup view of this magnificent structure. The bus drop-off stop was perhaps 100 yards from the entrance.

See how the water has not quite completely receded? In less than an hour, it was nothing but sand and the water had departed for the English Channel. When you first learn that the water depth around the island (when the tide is in) can reach 15+ meters, you realize that a receding tide is a gigantic amount of water!

The stairs in the background of image # 1 show you the route that we took (the Porte Eschaugette route). This method allowed us to not have to walk through the village and the crowds that were already gathering. This is a rather steep way to get to the top of the Abbey, but the views were well worth the effort.

The little building in the background of image # 1, just above the stairs, is where we purchased our Abbey entrance tickets - do not forget to acquire those tickets, or you will be denied entrance !

Image # 2 shows that if you had not turned left and followed the Porte Eschaugette route, you would have to wind your way through the village area shown in this image. The later in the day you arrive, the thicker the crowds are going to be.

I have to admit though, there were a lot of interesting shops in the village. I am glad that we took the Porte Eschaugette route and saw the village after the Abbey. We were able to do a bit of window shopping and bought a few souvenirs as we explored the village.

A view of the area around the Abbey from the very top of the Abbey structure. You can see how the tide has almost completely receded, tidal variation here can be 15 meters or higher.

It is comprised of a church, several museums, and numerous areas where various church functions were carried out. These areas include places where the monks lived, ate, studied and performed their assignments.

In image # 1 you can see a tour group setting out for a walk about the sandy area exposed during low tide. Although you do not need to be in a tour group to walk about, one must be aware of when the tide comes back, as well as being able to avoid the quicksand areas.

Image # 2 was taken near the top of the Abbey, and you can see that the tide is not quite at it's lowest point. As mentioned previously, tidal variations can reach 15 meters.

It is apparently "normal" for boats to be left at anchor when the tide goes out, obviously that boat is not going to move until the tide returns and refloats it!.

Tidal Speed: In reality the full extent of the tides is only visible at the entry of the bay (the sea level around Mont Saint-Michel is above the low tide level) and its actual speed is closer to a walking human, the fastest observed being around 6.1 kilometers per hour.

For a more complete description of the tides, click here to view their speed and tidal variations information.

Did I mention that the Porte Eschaugette route to the Abbey is steep? The steepness is continuous all the way from the main entrance to the top of the island! Fortunately for the walker, the trail has to keep switching back & forth in order to ascend to the top.

Seriously though, if you are not used to steep walks or are not in reasonably good health, you might not want to take this walk!

IMAGE CREDITS: Image # 2 above is the property of Antoine Lamielle via Wikimedia Commons using the CC BY-SA 4.0 license. All other images are the property of Just Traveling Thru, LLC unless otherwise noted.

It is fortunate that the route we followed would occasionally "flatten out" as it looped back and forth! We paused here and took image # 1 of people descending back towards the The Center for National Monuments. Image # 2 shows another flat spot as we continued to ascend to the summit.

Many of the websites that talk about Mont Saint-Michel, describe that the total walking distance to tour the entire island is approximately 2 kilometers. Because the island is relatively small, the 2 kilometer description gives you some idea of how the trail loops back and forth.

You have to keep looking up & around you, or you will miss these incredible views!

See the gargoyles sticking out from the top of the building in these pictures? They are actually there to prevent rainwater from running down the masonry wall and slowly erode the mortar between the stones, thereby weakening the structure. By "sticking out" away from the building, the rainwater is forced away from the building, on it's way down.

Click here For a more complete discussion of gargoyles (and some great pictures) found on French buildings..

These are the kinds of views you get as you descend from the Abbey at the top of the island to the village at the bottom. These images were taken in the inner courtyard of the Abbey, you can just barely see the tops of the walkway arches on the very bottom right of this image. At the extreme left of image # 1, is the entrance to the church (not available for tourist entrance however).

A gilded statue of St. Michael is at the very top of the spire, you can see it in each of these images or click either to see a larger view.

NOTE: This is the building that you will need the tickets for, be sure to get them when you enter the main entrance or you will be denied entry to the Abbey.

This tower was constructed in 1524 by the lieutenant of the King of France, Gabriel Dupuy. He completed the defensive structures with a tower called “Tour Gabriel” (Gabriel Tower). The round shape allowed soldiers to react rapidly, shooting in all directions from three levels which were built to house cannons.

If you take the Porte Eschaugette route, you will walk very close to this area, which is on the western side of the island.

La salle des Chevaliers (the Knight’s room): This room earned its name from the St. Michael Knights’ Order, founded by King Louis XI. The King intended for the knights to meet here in this room annually, however history says that these meetings never took place because of the distance of Mont Saint-Michel from Paris. The end result was that the monks spent much of their time to copy and illuminate precious manuscripts in this room.

Situated on the second floor of the Merveille, this hall is divided in four naves of different width by three rows of columns ; the southern nave is built on the rock, the other two on the pillars of the room beneath.

This room is directly underneath the cloister, and these columns and vaults support the weight of the cloister and its garden.

This has long been a source of fascination for researchers. “In 1421 the choir of the Roman church collapsed and, with it, a part of its supporting crypt,” Yves Gallet (professor of medieval art history at the Université Bordeaux-Montaigne) recounts. “Later in that century, both the chancel and what we call the Crypt of the Massive Pillars were rebuilt in the purest Gothic style.” However, the Roman remnants in the crypt led the historian to question the actual age of the granite columns. “The form and appearance of the Gothic choir just above it got me thinking,” he says. “Although it is in the flamboyant style typical of the 15th century, it has the layout of older Rayonnant churches, like Évreux Cathedral, which is 200 years older.”

Gallet surmises that some of the pillars of the Romanesque choir withstood the collapse and were “sheathed” (reinforced) to bear the weight of the Gothic chancel, whose walls rise higher than the previous Roman structure. In order to align the church’s colonnades with those of the crypt, its layout was modeled after an older building. This hypothesis was corroborated by a GPR study in the autumn of 2016: “The probes revealed the presence of a core of different stone inside the Gothic pillars,” Gallet reports.

At one point several hundred years ago, they actually grew food in this area. This area is located above ("on top of") the Knight’s room, and the water for the garden continually leaked into the that room below. After repeated attempts to stop the water leaks, use of this area as a garden was eventually abandoned.

Contrary to tradition, this cloister was not built at the centre of the monastery and thus does not link with all the other buildings. Nonetheless, as in every monastery, it is a place of contemplation, a promenade uniquely for the monks. It also used to serve as an open air library as monks were usually copying books or simply reading. In order to build this space, the northern part of the Abbey’s transept had to be partially reduced. The western, gallery was supposed open onto another building, mentioned before, and the three bay windows would have been the doors.

Everything on the island (Interior & exterior of all buildings) is granite stone, and as you can see here, it is not only very pretty, but it is in excellent condition for as old as it is.

All of the stones were transported here from nearby quarries in boats, then hauled up the steep slope by ropes and sheer human strength.

A substantial amount of the granite was quarried from the Chausey Islands, and the granite extracted there was brought to the island by barges during high tide. The Chausey Islands belonged to the monks, as they were given to them by the Duke of Normandy in 1022.

The rough granite was finished at the island after it was delivered, which allowed the stone masons to create stones for specific construction areas of the island's structures.

The Abbey was entirely constructed between 1203 and 1228, but has undergone a number of enhancements and changes over the years.

Located in the monks living area of the Abbey and it is adjacent to the cloister area. The refectory is covered by a wooden vault, far lighter than stone.

The refectory is where the monks ate their meals in silence. To provide light to this large room, the side walls are pierced with narrow windows invisible from the entrance.

NOTE: Image # 2 is the property of the France Voyage Site. We encourage you to visit that site for more great Mont Saint-Michel images.

The horse carraige is the more leisurely way to get back to the parking lots and there are other methods including; walking, buses, taxis, etc. You may want to keep in mind that the parking lots are over 2 kilometers from the Abbey gates.

All visitors to Mont Saint-Michel, whether arriving by bus or car, have to either walk (40 minutes) or take the free shuttle buses (10 minutes), or a horse-drawn carriage, the last 3 km to Mont Saint-Michel. (Cycling is only allowed at quiet times.) The views are obviously better walking towards the island than back towards the parking lots.

Free shuttle buses (Passeur navettes) transport visitors with high frequency from the parking lots to Mont Saint-Michel. The buses stop en route at La Caserne / Grand’rue (the hotel and shopping complex on the mainland) and at Le Barrage (the dam), which offer some of the best views of Mont Saint-Michel. (From here, it is a ten-minute walk back to the parking lot should the buses arriving from the island be too crowded.)

Buses to Mont Saint-Michel coordinate with train times at Pontorson, which is used by local (TER) trains. The bus journey is only around 15 minutes (€3).

The horse-drawn carraige (the 'Maringote') cost is 5.30 Euros per person one way & children under 4 are free.

Village Shops: Most of the shops and restaurants in the village, or at least the ones that are on the east side of the island's only street, have doors that open onto a stone rampart that allows a great view of the tidal area below the wall.

 Quick Facts 

Typical of the medieval era, the island is surrounded by ancient walls (ramparts) that protected against invasions. Tourists can take a walk around the "Chemin des Remparts" (Ramparts Pathway) to enjoy the scenic views. The immense stone ramparts circle the edge of the island and feature battlements that were used to fight off invaders. From many points along the Chemin des Remparts, there are sweeping panoramas of the Bay of Saint-Michel.

 The above information was extracted from Wikipedia

We came into the Abbey with the intention of walking around this side on our way to the highest part of the Abbey. Due to the steep walk ways on this side, the crowds were not as large as they were on the bay side of the island.

At the top of this picture, you can see the top of the spire that is on the very top of the Abbey. This is the "back side" of it, the earlier picture showed it from the front side.

To see the Abbey like we did, turn left (the Porte Eschaugette route) at the main gate because it is the least crowded route up to the top, and make sure you get your camera ready! Do not turn right (after the main gate) and enter the village, as this will have you walking along with the crowd along a very narrow trail.