Itinerary

Day 1 of PRE-TRIP EXTENSION Depart U.S./Fly overnight to Paris

Depart from the U.S. for France. The particulars of your arrival overseas are detailed with your flight itinerary and airline tickets.

Day 2 of PRE-TRIP EXTENSION Arrive in Paris/Begin your Pre-Trip Extension

Upon arrival at Paris Charles-de-Gaulle (CDG) Airport, claim your luggage and clear customs. If your luggage is lost, fill in a PIR form before leaving the customs area - VBT representatives are not allowed into the customs area. Please note: Make sure that your VBT luggage tags are attached to your bags. This helps the representative identify you.

After exiting customs, enter the arrival hall and look for your VBT representative or driver, who will be holding a VBT sign. Your representative will welcome you to France and arrange for your transfer via taxi or van to your Paris hotel (approximately 60 minutes depending upon traffic). At this time, please verify with your airport representative the time of your transfer to the Paris Austerlitz train station for your train to Beaugency, where you will begin your main trip. Important: If you are delayed in meeting your VBT representative at the CDG Airport, please call 06 72 07 59 24 or 06 15 15 15 25 from within France. Outside of France, call +33 672 07 59 24 or +33 615 15 15 25.

VBT provides you with City Information in your Final Travel Booklet that includes information and recommendations on what to see and do in Paris. Use the rest of the day to relax or to begin exploring the City of Light.

Day 1 of AIR PACKAGE Depart U.S./In flight to Paris

Depart from the U.S. for France. The particulars of your arrival overseas are detailed with your flight itinerary and airline tickets.

Day 3 of PRE-TRIP EXTENSION Independent exploration of Paris

Today, see for yourself why this City of Light has inspired poets, lovers, emperors and artists for centuries. Visit Montmartre and its charming cafés and artists' colony, along with the Moulin Rouge, made famous by Toulouse-Lautrec in his vivid and colorful artworks. Or venture to the top of Notre Dame for a gargoyle's view of the city. Make a stop at the Eiffel Tower or one of the magnificent museums such as the Musee Picasso or the Musee d'Orsay. Take a stroll through the Tuileries Gardens on your way to the Louvre. You can walk to many of the major sights from your centrally located hotel.

Day 2 of AIR PACKAGE Arrive in Paris

Upon arrival at Paris Charles-de-Gaulle (CDG) Airport, claim your luggage and clear customs. If your luggage is lost, fill in a PIR form before leaving the customs area – VBT representatives are not allowed into the customs area.

Please note: Make sure that your VBT luggage tags are attached to your bags. This helps the representative identify you.

After exiting customs, enter the arrival hall and look for your VBT representative or driver, who will be holding a VBT sign. Your representative will welcome you to France and arrange for your transfer via taxi or van to your Paris hotel (approximately 60 minutes depending upon traffic). At this time, please verify with your airport representative the time of your transfer tomorrow to the Paris Austerlitz train station. Important: If you are delayed in meeting your VBT representative at the CDG Airport, please call 06 72 07 59 24 or 06 15 15 15 25 from within France. Outside of France, call +33 672 07 59 24 or +33 615 15 15 25.

VBT provides you with City Information in your Final Travel Booklet that includes information and recommendations on what to see and do in Paris. Use the rest of the day to relax or to begin exploring the City of Light.

Day 4 of PRE-TRIP EXTENSION Independent exploration of Paris/Join VBT Air Package guests

Take another day to discover Paris! VBT Air Package guests arrive throughout the day.

Day 1 of BIKE TOUR All guests meet in Beaugency/Transfer to hotel

VBT No-Air Package guests: Meet your Trip Leaders outside the main entrance doors to the Beaugency train station at 1:15 p.m. They will be wearing VBT staff garments. If your arrival at the Beaugency train station is scheduled later than 1:15 p.m. or if you are delayed, you must take a taxi at your own expense. Taxi cost is approximately 15 euros/$22 USD (travel time approximately 10 minutes) to the first hotel. Please contact the first hotel to advise the staff of any travel delays or changes so they can inform your VBT Trip Leaders. Please plan to have lunch on your own before meeting your VBT Trip Leaders in Beaugency.

VBT Air Package and Pre-Trip Extension guests: Meet your VBT representative in the hotel lobby at 10:15 a.m. The representative will have a group train ticket and help you transfer to the Paris Austerlitz train station, where you board a train for Beaugency (approximately 1 hour and 35 minutes). Please plan to have lunch on your own before meeting your VBT Trip Leaders in Beaugency.

Once assembled, we will all transfer via taxis to our hotel in Tavers (approximately 10 minutes). Upon arrival, your Trip Leaders will offer a safety and bike-fitting session, followed by a short warm-up ride in the afternoon. This evening, enjoy a welcome wine reception and dinner with the group at the hotel.

Day 2 of BIKE TOUR Ride to Chambord/Marvel in Chateau de Chambord

Start cycling from the hotel after breakfast. Today you ride on a mix of quieter roads and bike paths on the way to Chambord, home to the remarkable Chateau de Chambord. Now the largest castle in the Loire Valley, these 440 rooms were never intended to be lived in. The castle was designed as a seasonal hunting lodge and to host large receptions for King Francois I, who built the chateau from 1519-1547 while living in royal residences in Blois and Amboise. The 21-mile-long garden wall is the longest wall in France. Of particular interest are the castle's double-helix staircases, which allow two people to travel up or down without crossing one another's path. Step back in time during your audio-guided visit here.

In the afternoon, shuttle back to your hotel or ride back along a mostly different route. Spend the late afternoon reading a book in the hotel's garden or taking a swim in the pool. Dinner is on your own tonight; your Trip Leaders provide van transport to and from nearby Beaugency and its 16 restaurants.

Day 3 of BIKE TOUR Transfer to Blois/walking tour with local guide/Cycle to Amboise via Chaumont

Board a motorcoach this morning bound for the ancient city of Blois. Many medieval ruins remain here in what was the most important city in the region around the mid-13th century. A guided visit of the old town with a local historian reveals how the city and its architecture evolved from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.

From Blois, we cycle along the river and through the lovely Loire countryside, nicknamed the “Garden of France” for its abundance of fruits and vegetables. Our first destination is Chaumont, where you have the opportunity to explore the Chateau de Chaumont and its gardens on your own.

Then, continue to the town of Amboise. Leonardo da Vinci came here to live at the Clos-Luce Manor in 1516, and evidence of his work remains at the manor. The chateau that dominates the town was once home to Charles VIII, Louis XII and Francois I.

Tonight, enjoy a wine tour and tasting before we gather with the group for dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 4 of BIKE TOUR Explore Chenonceau

After breakfast, we pedal along a scenic route to the Chateau de Chenonceau on the Cher River, known as the most romantic of the Loire chateaux. Its history is the stuff of epic novels: King Henry II gave the chateau as a gift to his beautiful lover, Diane de Poitiers, who built the first gardens and added a bridge to connect the chateau to the Cher's south shore. After Henry's death, his jealous wife, Catherine de Medici, took the chateau from Diane and built the unique gallery that today straddles the river. It became her favorite residence and she later hosted the marriage of her son, Francis II, and Mary, Queen of Scots in 1560.

We have ample time to tour Chenonceau, its gardens and maze before picnicking together. Shortly afterward, we return to the hotel for a fun French language workshop with our native VBT Trip Leaders.

Dinner is on your own this evening.

Day 5 of BIKE TOUR Discover Villandry/Explore Azay-le-Rideau

After breakfast, we transfer overland from Amboise to the Chateau de Villandry, known for its symbolic, terraced gardens unlike any other in France. The last of the large chateaux built during the Renaissance on the banks of the Loire, it was completed around 1536. We then cycle on a beautiful bike route along the Loire River and on to Azay-le-Rideau.

In Azay-le-Rideau, you will have time for independent exploration of this delightful old village. Visit the town's 16th-century island chateau, photograph 15th- and 18th-century houses, and browse the many shops before returning to the hotel by shuttle or by bicycle.

If you choose to cycle back to the hotel, your route takes you along the Indre River, a region that figured prominently in works by Honoré de Balzac, the 19th-century French literary master. The French author referred to Azay-le-Rideau as “a faceted diamond set in the Indre.”

We gather at the hotel restaurant for an elegant dinner tonight.

Day 6 of BIKE TOUR Cycle and discover Chinon

Joan of Arc, France's patron saint, met the Dauphin, Charles VII, in Chinon. Though just a simple farm girl, Joan convinced him to give her command of an army in 1429.

We explore and have lunch on your own in Chinon. You might visit the medieval Royal Fortress where Joan and the Dauphin met. Stroll through the old town, or sip Chinon wine while you gaze across the Vienne River.

After lunch, we return to our own chateau. You may make an independent stop en route to taste some of the region's wines. Red wines are produced from the area's Cabernet Franc stock, with white wines coming from the Chenin Blanc grape. Tonight, we share a final dinner together in our wonderful chateau's dining room.

Day 7 of BIKE TOUR Transfer to Charles de Galle Airport via the Palace of Versailles/VBT No-Air Package ends

VBT No-Air Package guests: The tour ends at our hotel after breakfast this morning. You may make your arrangements to leave the hotel at any time that is convenient. Checkout time is from 11 am. Trains depart from Tours to Paris and to Charles De Gaulle Airport. You are responsible for all transfer arrangements. A taxi from the hotel to Tours railway station costs approximately 70 euros (3 passenger maximum). We recommend you ask your VBT Trip Leaders or the hotel to help make the reservation at least a day in advance.

VBT Air Package guests: After breakfast, depart for Paris and one of the most visited monuments in France, the Palace of Versailles. Wanting to escape the busy life in Paris, and to keep the nobility under his control, Louis XIV built this chateau in which he set up home and installed the government. Louis Le Vau was commissioned to renovate and extend an old hunting lodge, Le Notre created the gardens from swamp land, and Mansart masterminded the hydraulic display of the fountains. This grand palace served as France's official royal residence from 1682 until 1790.

Once you arrive at the Palace you will be given an individual audio guide and entrance ticket for the state apartments of the king and queen and the Galerie des Glaces (the Hall of Mirrors, where the Treaty of Versailles was signed to end World War I), along with the gardens.

In mid afternoon, rejoin the shuttle and transfer to your hotel, located near Charles de Gaulle Airport.

This evening is free. You may wish to stroll through the park into Roissy village and have dinner in one of the restaurants there, or dine at our hotel.

Day 8 of AIR PACKAGE Depart for U.S.

After breakfast*, transfer by shuttle bus to Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris. Please ensure that you are ready in the hotel entrance area at the designated transfer time. The shuttle is complimentary for hotel guests and it runs approximately every 30 minutes. Please ask the hotel reception for exact times. Once you leave the bus, make sure that you follow the signs for flight departures.

*Note: For guests with early-morning departures, breakfast at the hotel may not be available. Please check with the Front Desk to verify the times that breakfast is served.

Loire Valley 2012

Pre and Post Trip Extensions

Pre-Trip Extension

Paris 2012 (Loire Valley) - 2 nights for only $395

Begin your adventure with a visit to Paris and see for yourself why the City of Light has inspired poets, lovers, emperors and artists for centuries. Visit Montmartre and its charming cafés and artists’ colony. Here, too, is the Moulin Rouge, made famous by Toulouse-Lautrec in his vivid and colorful artworks. Or venture to the top of Notre Dame for a gargoyle’s view of the city. You have plenty of time to make a stop at the Eiffel Tower or one of the magnificent museums, like Musee Picasso or the Musee d’Orsay. Take a stroll through the Tuileries Gardens on your way to the Louvre. You can walk to many of the major sights from your centrally located, 4-star hotel.

Available only with the Air Inclusive Package.

Note: Single supplement for this extension is $295.

Accommodations

Hotel Chateau Frontenac

The hotel Chateau Frontenac is a magnificent building dating from the late 19th century. Its location is ideal, just a block from the Champs Elysees, making it very easy and safe for visiting the sights, shopping, and taking evening strolls. The rooms in this four-start hotel are decorated in a Louis XV style and are provided with modern amenities, including air conditioning, internet access, mini-bar, safe deposit box, and satellite television.

Hotel Le Tonnellerie

This 18th-century former wine merchant's house has wonderful cellars and outdoor dining. Classic in style, the hotel is quite comfortable; the first floor has a series of comfortable lounges complete with fireplace. There is a heated outdoor pool and most rooms primarily overlook a quiet, central garden area. Mrs. Marie-Christine Pouey and her husband own and manage the hotel. Their hospitality and experience shines through in their attention to detail and in their warm welcome.

Le Manoir les Minimes

On the south bank in Amboise, the Manoir Les Minimes overlooks the Loire River. Formerly a convent and private home, this refined hotel is decorated with fine antiques. The property boasts an exceptional location in an authentic part of the city, as well as the shade of the Chateau d’Amboise. Each of the 14 uniquely decorated rooms overlook the chateau or the Loire River.

Chateau de Brou

This elegant, intimate and perfectly maintained, 15th-century chateau was built in 1475 by the Lords of St. Maure. Set in a 250-acre park and forest, this refined property is tastefully furnished with antiques and luxurious fabrics. Each room is devoted to and decorated around the theme of a local or historical Loire personality, such as Joan of Arc, Rabelais and others. The chateau also boasts its own private chapel and hunting lodge.

Relais Spa Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle

On the edge of the village of Roissy-en-France, the Relais Spa Paris – Roissy Charles de Gaulle offers comfort and tranquility in a cozy atmosphere.
Opened in Spring 2011, it offers a brasserie with a wide selection of menus and wines along with a bar, the Starry Lounge, which offers snacks along with drinks.

Rating Level

Easy

This tour offers easy terrain throughout the trip.