22 Apr 2023
I’m giving this a 4-star because we made it back alive.
We are +60 yr old women with a relatively active lifestyle but no electric bike experience.
I read on the Viator ad that we could ride to Omaha beach and back. In fact it made it seem that the distance was short… what were we thinking.
We met Pasquale and Jean Michel(?) who got us set up with the bikes and maps and showed us the various routes. They had us download Komoot to help navigate. Word of advice download it before you get there and make sure it’s working.
The bikes come with repair accessories, a side basket, front basket to slot in map and a smartphone holder with a charger
A few of issues.
1/The smartphone charger they provided had no cord which sucked because even though I had brought mine, the plug somehow broke and my phone died on the ride back.
2/There was no waiver to sign, but he did make sure the bikes were charged and fit us
3/Komoot didn’t work so we had to rely on Google which means we may have taken a longer route
4/The bike route to Omaha was not clearly marked by so we rode a good deal of the way on the roads, which was fine since the drivers were very considerate
There are some very steep hills both on the bike path ( once you find it) and in the village Bessin en Port
However, there are some wonderful things too.
The ride is amazing as you can really see the countryside and reflect on the history of WWII and how soldiers made their way through it. And somehow riding up to Omaha Beach Memorial made the ride worthwhile.
The ride back was mostly on the bike path and there were 2 very steep hills.
35 plus kilometers later we dropped off the bikes relied and happy
Lastly, Please just mark the bike routes better