Robert_G, Apr. 2018
The tour was wonderful, a highlight of our trip for all six of us. The vehicle was clean and comfortable. The guide was well-spoken, friendly, and enthusiastic, as well as full of information at each stop -- she was a terrific guide and we felt comfortable with her driving as well! We thought the tour length was good, not too long or short, and the selection of points of interest to stop at were great. We specially enjoyed Point du Hoc and the American Cemetery.
The museum itself is also excellent -- if you have any interest in D-day or WWII, this is the best place to get a broad perspective coupled with terrific details of life and trials of the time. Although there are many military artifacts, the emphasis is less on equipment and more on the lives of those impacted by the war and how they coped with it.
The price was reasonable, and when we needed to amend our order to add an additional person, it was smoothly handled.
Overall we were very pleased.
However, we would make two comments for improvement. First, the air conditioner in the van was so loud, that those in the back seat could not hear the guide. It was a hot day, so we kept the air on, and rotated seating among ourselves.
Second, we specifically requested and were booked for a morning tour. We took special pains to drive to Caen early, to be certain we were there not later than 8:45 AM, arriving at 8:15. When we arrived we found the doors don't open until 9 AM, and when admitted, we were told by museum staff that morning tours were not offered at all this year, but they had booked us for the afternoon. Viator should have known the morning tours no longer exist, and advised us in advance, since we booked months ahead of time. This was an annoying discovery, because the 5-hour afternoon tour starts at 1 PM -- if we had a train to catch or other obligation in the afternoon before 6 PM or so, we would not have been able to take the tour at all -- not a good situation. This was our first Viator tour, so we will be wary of future bookings.