• Fine arts
• Wine & Gastronomy
• History (WWI & WWII)

• Day 1

  Paris / Rouen / Honfleur

  En route to Normandy, Visit in Giverny the extraordinary gardens and the house with its colorful and intimate decor where Claude Monet, leader of the Impressionist School lived from 1883 to 1926.

  See the painter's precious collection of Japanese prints and the famous Water-Lily pond.

  Walking tour in the old town of Rouen, Capital of Upper Normandy with its gothic churches and half timbered houses and the old market square where Joan of Arc was burnt at the stake.

  Afternoon visit of the charming port in Honfleur on the Seine estuary, from where the founder of Quebec, Samuel de Champlain and the founder of Louisiana, cavalier de la Salle set sail. It has inspired many famous painters such as Monet and his master Boudin and is considered as a cradle of the impressionism movement.

  Option: Drive along the coastal road to discover Trouville and Deauville, smart seaside resorts for the wealthy Parisians.

  Accommodation in Honfleur (hotel l'Absinthe).

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• Day 2

  Honfleur / Mont-Saint-Michel / Saint-Malo

  Mont-Saint-Michel.
  Situated in the borderlands between Normandy and Brittany, the abbey of Saint-Michel was one of the most legendary construction sites of the Middle Ages. This feat of monastic architecture rises up on three main levels around the Mount’s granite rock. The Romanesque crypts and nave, the Gothic choir and the Merveille staircase form a vast religious and artistic ensemble whose beauty is the measure of the importance it held throughout Christendom.

  At the foot of the abbey, the village of half-timbered houses is crowded inside a fortified wall, highly unusual in that it is built on sand. Emerging out of the watery bay, the monumental and picturesque Mont-Saint-Michel ranks amongst the most exceptional world heritage sites.

  Enjoy a guided tour of the abbey.

  Saint Malo Destroyed in 1944 the town has been completely rebuilt in its original style. Admire the breathtaking view of the bay of as you walk the 2 kilometres (1.5 miles) of ramparts and discover the picturesque streets and the corsair dwellings inside the walled town.

  Accommodation in Saint-Malo (hotel le Grand Bé)

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• Day 3

  Saint-Malo / Saumur / Fontevraud

  Drive from Brittany through a region called Le Maine to the Loire valley. Discover a wine estate in Saumur where the 'tuffeau' stone cellars were carved by an artist to look like the ruins of an old abbey.
  Wine tasting including a delicious sparkling wine.

  Fontevraud, visit the largest group of monastic buildings in France with intriguing Romanesque kitchen of Byzantine influence. Recumbent figures of the Plantagenêts representing henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine and their son Richard the Lionheart.

  Accommodation in Fontebraud (Domaine de Mestré)

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• Day 4

  Ussé / Langeais / Azay-le-Rideau

  Today start to discover the most beautiful castles of the Loire valley:

  Ussé, the castle which inspired Charles Perrault for his 'Sleeping beauty' seems actually to come out from a fairy tale.

  Langeais, very nice middle-age castle with a draw-bridge, a sentry walk and inside, apartments with beautiful period furnishings and colorful tapestries that exude a genuine medieval atmosphere.

  Azay-le Rideau, gem of the Renaissance set on the banks of the Indres.

  Accommodation near Tours (hotel Chateau d'Artigny)

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• Day 5

  Villandry / Chenonceau / Amboise

  The gardens of Villandry are among the most fascinating in France: an ornamental kitchen garden and the romantic 'Love gardens', designed in 4 parterres (Tender love, Passionate love, Inconstant love and Tragical love...) that can be admired from the terraces to the rear of the château.

  Chenonceau, Castle-bridge built over the river Cher, where the unique beauty of its architecture reflects in the water, nicknamed "le Château des Dames", it owes a large part of its charm to women.

  Amboise Royal castle and gardens overlooking the river and the blue-slate roofs of the town. The Saint Hubert chapel houses the tomb of Leonardo who died in Amboise.

  Accommodation near Tours (hotel Chateau d'Artigny)

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• Day 6

  Chambord / Blois / Chartres / Paris

  Chambord, the Château is the largest in the Loire Valley. Extravagant structure with massive tours and terraces holding hundreds of chimneys where the court and the women used to attend the king coming back from hunting. Of all the architectural wonders of Chambord, the most famous is the double-spiral staircase, core of the building.

  Blois is a magnificent royal castle in a major town and illustrates different periods in architecture : it combines a Gothic, a Renaissance and a Classical wing.

  Option: Chaumont is a former medieval fortress transformed in the Renaissance, exceptional setting for the International Festival of Parks and Gardens

  On the way back to paris, stop in the town of Chartres that boasts one the most beautiful and the largest cathedral in Europe.
  Triple masterpiece of French Gothic Art : by the architecture, the sculpture, and the superb 13th century stained glass windows. (their surface extends over more than 3000 square yards)

  Back to Paris, drop off at your hotel, end of our services.

  Your package includes :
  - Private tour with your English speaking lincensed guide 6 days / 5 nights (9h per day)
  - Transportaion by minivan comfort from Paris and back and guided tours along the itinerary described below, tolls, insurance
  - 5 nights in charm boutique hotels 3 to 5* based on double occupancy, breakfasts included
  - Accomodation and meals for the guide
  - Entrance fees to the monuments and museums and wine tasting mentioned in the program 

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