Paris | Essence of Paris & Bordeaux Rail Tour

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Enjoy the romance of the "City of Lights" combined with the tastes & flavours of France's famous Saint-Emilion wine region. This 7-day independent rail tour brings you to the heart of it all!  

Day 1: Paris

Welcome to France! Collect your luggage, clear customs and make your way to your Paris hotel. Check-in and pass the remainder of the day exploring your new surroundings. An optional airport transfer is available.

Day 2: Paris - City Tour with Cruise

This morning you will enjoy a stunning and complete small group sightseeing tour of Paris in a deluxe air-conditioned minibus including all the major sites and 3 stops* plus Seine cruise. You will see the Place de la Concorde with its Egyptian obelisk, fountains & statues, the Madeleine Church, the gorgeous 19th-century Opera Garnier, Rue le Paix with its luxurious jewellery stores and Place Vendome with the column dedicated to Napoleon. We drive along Rivoli street and the elegant Champs Elysées Avenue toward the Arc de Triomphe, before proceeding to see the Eiffel Tower* built for the Universal Exhibition in 1889. After a short photo stop, you will follow the Seine river bank where most of Paris’ major historical buildings are located - Le GrandLend le Petit Palais, the Louvre Museum with its glass pyramid, the Tuileries gardens, the Place des Vosges in the Marais district with its narrow medieval streets, the Bastille square and its columns celebrating the French revolution. Crossing over to Ile de la Cité, we reach the famous Notre Dame Cathedral* where we stop for 20-minutes, before continuing on the left bank of the Seine to see the Latin Quarter, Le Pantheon, the Luxembourg Gardens, St Germain & St Sulpice Churches and Les Invalides, crossing some of the city’s famous bridges - Alexandre III, Pont Neuf - along the way. Finally, we visit the "village" of Montmartre* where you will have another 20 minutes to stroll around the Sacre Coeur Basilica and the Place du Tertre where local artists & painters display their works. All along this tour, our professional guide will tell you about the 2000 years history of Paris.  Following the city tour, enjoy a one-hour cruise with audio-guide on the Seine River to discover the 32 bridges & viaducts and the main monuments of Paris for a different perspective. The tour ends at the cruise location, close to the Eiffel Tower and walking distance to Champ Elysées, from where you can continue to discover the city at your leisure. (B)

Day 3: Paris - Louvre Museum

A guided visit to the Louvre museum is planned for this morning. Your priority access ticket will allow you to follow your guide straight into the world's largest museum - Paris' Louvre Museum. No need to stand in line! This guided tour offers the perfect opportunity to learn about the museum's huge collection and its greatest works of art, such as the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, and the Coronation of Napoleon. Spend time discovering these collections with your guide, who will show you some of the museum's most famous works and tell you about the stories that lie behind them. Marvel at the Mona Lisa, painted by Leonardo da Vinci in 1506, one of the most famous female portraits in the world; the Venus de Milo, a celebrated Greek sculpture dating from 100BC depicting the goddess Aphrodite; or the giant 33-foot-long painting of the Coronation of Napoleon, painted in 1807 by Jacques-Louis David to commemorate the crowning of Napoleon Bonaparte in Notre Dame Cathedral. The tour ends at the museum and has a duration of 2 hours 30 minutes. After your guided tour, spend time exploring other parts of the museum at your own pace and then the remainder of the day is yours to enjoy Paris as you choose. (B)

Day 4: Paris | Bordeaux

Today you'll leave Paris behind. Make your way to Paris railway station to board your train, with reserved seats, to take you to Bordeaux. Arriving at Bordeaux airport or railway station you’ll find your driver waiting and ready to bring you comfortably to your hotel in central Bordeaux. Check-in and enjoy some free time before this evening’s very special Wines of Bordeaux tasting experience, held in one of Bordeaux’s famed wine bars. For your first evening in Bordeaux, we have booked a very special tasting experience that will be the perfect introduction to the Wines of Bordeaux. Reach one of Bordeaux’s centrally located wine bars and participate in a special “Grands Crus Classés Wines” commented tasting session. A mysterious hallway that opens up into an immense modern art deco room, strange machines made of stainless steel, a tall ceiling where, hung by their feet, hundreds of wine glasses seemingly float, suspended in mid-air… Welcome to Max Bordeaux and its magical concept! (B)

Day 5: Bordeaux | Medoc Wine Tour

This morning, head towards the famous Medoc wine region. On this full day tour, experience 3 visits and wine tasting sessions in Grands Crus Wineries that have been carefully selected for their exceptional setting and quality of the wine. During these visits, you will learn all there is to know about the history of the estates, the winemaking process as well as the techniques used during the winemaking. Each visit is followed by a wine tasting session. The wineries are usually located in Margaux, Saint Julien, Pauillac or the Haut Medoc appellations. During the day you will inevitably drive along the D2 road or Route des Chateaux as it is known locally. It is along this route that some of the most famous Wineries such as Chateau Margaux, Chateau Palmer, Chateau Latour or Chateau Pichon Longueville are located. Depending on the timing of the tour, your driver/guide will certainly make a stop in front of one of these world-renowned wineries so that you may have the opportunity to take some photos. (B)

Day 6: Bordeaux | Saint Emilion

Today, depart for the Saint Emilion wine region and enjoy a visit and wine tasting in a famous Classified Growth Chateau of the Saint Emilion appellation or surrounding appellations (Pomerol, Fronsac, Lalande de Pomerol…). Then, arrive in the village and participate in another visit of a Classified Growth Chateau, followed by some free time for personal discovery and lunch. In the afternoon, after a walking tour of Saint Emilion village, experience another visit and wine tasting session in a local winery of the Chateau of the Saint Emilion appellation or surrounding appellations (Pomerol, Fronsac, Lalande de Pomerol…). The wine tasting fees, the guided walking tour of the village and bottled water in the minivan are all included. A return to Bordeaux is planned for 5:30 pm giving you time to refresh before ending the day with a pre-booked 2-course dinner in a carefully selected local restaurant of Bordeaux. (B.D)

Day 7: Depart Bordeaux

Today marks the end of your Essence of Paris & Bordeaux Rail Tour. Enjoy a leisurely breakfast at your hotel and, at a time to suit your departing train, make your way to the railway station. Bon Voyage! (B)
 

Daily Departures