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Itinery
Day 1: Flight to France
Your trip begins with your flight from Albany, New York, and continues with a regularly scheduled overnight flight to France aboard an internationally recognized airline.
Day 2: Arrival in Marseille
Touch down in Marseille and meet your tour director after you pass through customs. Board your private motor coach for the short transfer to Aix-en-Provence. The rest of the day is free for you to relax or explore the town followed by a group dinner and orientation meeting.
Overnight in Aix-en-Provence (dinner included)
Day 3: Hyères & St. Rémy
Start your day with an excursion to the seaside town of Hyères. The most southerly town in Provence, Hyères was once a resort popular with celebrities and the intellectual elite, including Edith Wharton. We will visit the Jardin Exotique Sainte Claire, which was the garden of Wharton’s home. Continue on to the Roman ruins of Glanum. Glanum’s mausoleum is the only monument of its kind remaining from the Roman Empire. After your visit, enjoy some free time in the charming, typically provençal village of St. Rémy.
Overnight in Avignon
Day 4: Avignon
This morning, your tour director leads a walking tour of medieval Avignon, followed by a guided tour of the ancient Papal Palace, which was the seat of the Catholic Church in the 14th century. The rest of the day is free for you to danse on the Pont d’Avignon, visit a museum or shop in the town’s boutiques.
Overnight in Avignon
Day 5: Nimes & Pont du Gard
Few towns have safeguarded their Roman heritage as well as Nîmes. You’ll agree when you visit the well-preserved amphitheater and Maison Carrée, a civic Roman temple built in 16 B.C. Then marvel at the historic engineering feat of the Pont du Gard, the three-tiered Roman aqueduct and UNESCO World Heritage site.
Overnight in Avignon
Day 6: Villeneuve & Orange
Located just across the Rhone from Avignon, Villeneuve retains its medieval flavor. Take some time to explore its charming narrow streets before boarding your coach for the transfer to Orange. Upon arrival, visit the town’s Roman sites. You’ll see the Arc de Triomphe and the remarkably well-preserved theater. Imagine the performances that were held here and test the acoustics for yourself.
Overnight in Orange
Day 7: Dijon
Arrive early this afternoon in the former capital of Burgundy. In Dijon, known for its wine-based mustard, you will enjoy a guided tour. Learn of the town’s 2nd-century Christian roots symbolized by the famed abbey. Visit the city’s Archaeological Museum and the Musée des Beaux Arts housed in the Palais des Ducs, former seat of the dukes of Burgundy.
Overnight in Dijon
Day 8: Vézelay & Chartres
On today’s transfer to Paris, stop for some free time in Vézelay, primarily know for its 9th-century abbey. Later today, arrive in Chartres, whose skyline is dominated by the 13th-century cathedral, one of the most impressive achievements in Western architecture. Take time to enjoy the vibrant stained-glass windows and the picturesque gardens that surround the cathedral.
Overnight in Paris
Day 9: On Your Own in Paris
Absorb all the romance of Paris at your leisure today. You might wish to walk amid the booksellers’ stalls on the Left Bank, visit the Louvre, or see the house on the rue de Varenne where Wharton lived. A group farewell dinner is included tonight.
Overnight in Paris (dinner included)
Optional Guided Tour of Paris
An expert local guide introduces you to the historical and cultural landmarks of the City of Light. Drive down the sycamore-lined Champs-Elysées, one of the world’s most celebrated avenues. You’ll pass the Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889 World’s Fair, as well as the legendary Notre Dame Cathedral. Absorb the haute couture of the Opera district.
Optional Versailles
Louis XIV, known as the "Sun King," set new standards among European royalty for the decadence of his reign. It took 50 years and 35,000 workers to turn Versailles, once a small hunting lodge, into the most magnificent château in all of France—designed by Europe’s most talented 17th-century architects and landscape designers to be the envy of royalty worldwide. On this half-day excursion, you will see the palace in all its glory. Tour the State Apartments and the glittering Hall of Mirrors; then stroll through the lavish gardens, with their fine statuary, splendid fountains and colorful flowerbeds.
These optional excursions require advance booking and payment at least 90 days prior to departure.
Day 10: Departure
Your tour director will escort you to the airport in Paris for your return flight home.
Details
Included in the tour cost:
Round-trip airfare
Transfers to/from the airport and hotel and between destination cities
(as per program itinerary)
Go Ahead Tours standard hotels (3 or 4 diamond)
Buffet breakfast daily
Two dinners
Full-time services of a Go Ahead tour director
All non-optional gratuities
Porterage of one (1) bag per person in hotels
(please note that porterage cannot be provided in airports, train stations or on ferries)
Coach transfers where specified in the itinerary
Not included in the tour cost:
Personal insurance
Beverages and lunches daily
Public transportation to free-time activities
Optional excursions
Transports not specified in the itinerary
Passport costs
Optional gratuities: At the conclusion of your tour, it is customary to offer your Go Ahead Tour director and driver a gratuity. We recommend $4-6 per person per day for your tour director and $2 per person per day for your driver. If applicable, we also recommend $1 per person per local guide.
Costs
A private tour designed exclusively by Suzanne Fisher and
Go Ahead Tours.
Program Fee (based on departure from Albany).........$3129
(Booking by June 19 guarantees this price.)
International Airport Fees (subject to change)..........$150
Donation to the Friends of the Library....................$25
Total Tour Cost.........................................................$3304
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Optional Single Accommodations.............................$325
Optional Travel Safe Insurance (based on twin accommodation)
Baggage Insurance...................................................$60
Medical Insurance....................................................$70
Trip Cancellation Insurance.....................................$175
Discounted Insurance Package Comprising baggage,
medical and Trip Cancellation Insurance Plans.......$249
Flight Cancellation Protection....................................$60
Optional Medical & Baggage insurance may be purchased until the day of departure, while Extended Trip Cancellation insurance may only be purchased until 90 days prior to departure.
Please refer to Go Ahead Tours’ Travel Safe Insurance booklet for all information pertaining to the insurance plan.
Optional Excursions (These half-day tours must be pre-booked)
Guided Tour of Paris....................$89
Versailles.....................................$99
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Deposit
$450 per person
Please note that deposits are refundable for 72 hours. If your group does not reach the minimum size of 20 travelers, you will have the option to transfer to a Go Ahead Tour brochure tour.
The itinerary is subject to change.
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