Paris and the Châteaux

Day 1:

Overnight Flight to Paris

Day 2:

Welcome to France!

• Meet your Tour Director at the airport
  
• Explore Paris on foot with your Tour Director, walking the cobbled streets of the Latin Quarter, crossing onto Île de la Cité, and pausing by the flying buttresses of Notre-Dame Cathedral
• Visit the Louvre, home to the Mona Lisa and a world-spanning collection housed beneath a modern glass pyramid and royal palace walls
  

Day 3:

Explore Paris

• Guided by a local expert, follow the thread of revolution and elegance through Paris’s grand boulevards. From the Arc de Triomphe to the Eiffel Tower and Place de la Concorde, experience a city that lives and breathes its joie de vivre
• Free time or Optional Guided excursion to Versailles
• Opt to take a guided excursion to Versailles. Explore the Hall of Mirrors, State Apartments, and sprawling gardens once home to the Sun King
• Enjoy a Seine River cruise in Paris, gliding past bridges and landmarks as city lights shimmer on the water
  

Day 4:

Paris - Loire Valley

• Travel to the Loire Valley
  
• Visit the Chartres Cathedral, a masterpiece of Gothic architecture renowned for its towering spires, perfectly preserved stained-glass windows, and sacred relics
  
• Visit Château de Chambord, an extravagant Renaissance palace with 400 rooms, a double-helix staircase, and turrets rising from a hunting lodge built for a king
  

Day 5:

Explore the Loire Valley

• Explore the Loire Valley with your Tour Director, passing vineyards, river towns, and the elegant outlines of fairytale châteaux scattered through the countryside
  
• Visit the Château d’Amboise, once home to French royalty and now the burial site of Leonardo da Vinci, offering panoramic views of the Loire Valley
  
• Visit the Château de Chenonceau, a graceful residence arching over the River Cher, shaped by queens and noblewomen through centuries of French history
  
• Savor a unique meal in a troglodyte restaurant carved into ancient stone dwellings
  

Day 6:

Loire Valley - St. Malo

• Travel via Mont-Saint-Michel to St. Malo
  
• Visit Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey, a gravity-defying medieval monastery rising from tidal sands, where winding steps lead to a sanctuary in the sky
  
• Explore St. Malo on foot with your Tour Director, tracing the fortified walls above the harbor, visiting St. Vincent Cathedral, and pausing at the tomb of explorer Jacques Cartier

Day 7:

St. Malo - Normandy

• Explore the Normandy region with your Tour Director, seeing Arromanches, walking the sands of Omaha and Utah Beach, pausing at the cliffs of Pointe du Hoc, and reflecting at the American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer
• Visit the Caen Memorial, a powerful museum that traces the causes and consequences of World War II with immersive exhibits and personal stories
  

Day 8:

Normandy - Paris

• Explore Rouen on foot with your Tour Director, visiting Rouen Cathedral and walking beneath the ornate face of the medieval Gros-Horloge — the city’s famous astronomical clock
• Travel via Rouen to Paris
  
• Enjoy a special farewell dinner to celebrate your journey and share a final meal with your group
  

Day 9:

Depart for home