Compare The Seine: Paris to Normandy by Grand Circle Cruise Line vs Paris and Versailles by Eskapas
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| Trip |
4.5 | Great
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5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 13 days | 5 days |
| Price From | $ 3,395 | $ 1,190 |
| Price Per Day | $ 261 | $ 238 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | River cruise | Group tour |
| Lodging Level | Premium | Standard |
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| Countries Visited | ||
| Cities and Attractions |
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| Flights & Transport | Internal airfare and ground transport included | Internal airfare and ground transport included |
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| Meals Included |
11 Breakfasts, 9 Lunches and 10 DInners |
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| Description |
Join us aboard this in-depth voyage from cosmopolitan Paris to the beaches of Normandy, and delve deeply into a region rich in history and culture. You’ll start by exploring Paris, the “City of Light,” witnessing monuments, cathedrals, and elegant avenues made famous in film and photographs. Next, you’ll embark on a Seine River Cruise through the heartland of France aboard our 120-passenger M/S Bizet, which was ranked #17 in Condé Nast Traveler’s “Top 40 River Cruise Ships in the World” 2014 Readers’ Poll. With its Sun Deck and all outside cabins, you’ll enjoy uninterrupted views of orchards and fertile pastures lining the banks of the Seine. You’ll disembark to visit Conflans, or “Van Gogh Country,” meet with a local family in Vernon during a Home-Hosted Visit, take a walking tour of Rouen (made famous by Joan of Arc), and more. Then you’ll arrive in Honfleur, where moving remembrances await you as journey to the beaches of Normandy, visit the World War II Peace Memorial Museum, and pause at the somber field that is the American Military Cemetery. |
A city that simply oozes romance – the original city of love! Paris is the city of a thousand walks and is as close to perfection as is possible for a fabulous city break holiday. Paris’ monument-lined boulevards, museums, nightlife, its romantic Seine river, colorful lives, classical bistros, boutiques and much more. Paris is one of the world’s best places for food and drink. Our selection of 3*** city centered hotels and guided visits of iconic areas such as Versailles Palace, Louvre Museum, Eiffel Tower, Seine Cruise etc. during this full 5 days visited journey will make your trip unforgettable. Paris can be anything you want, but as a romantic city break it is just unmissable. In fact, for business or pleasure, Paris is a city beyond compare. “Once seen, never forgotten” Join our small group tour in Paris |
Day 1: Depart U.S.
Depart today on your flight to Paris, France. Please refer to your individual air itinerary for exact departure and arrival times.
Day 2: Arrive Paris, France , Embark ship
Meals: Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
Arrive this morning or afternoon in Paris. You are met at the airport and transferred to your river ship. If you began your discoveries early with our optional pre-trip extension to Paris, France, or Loire Valley, France, you will join your main group today.
Unpack, settle in, and explore your ship, or just rest up in your cabin. A light lunch will be available for those who arrive early. You have the balance of the day to do as you wish after your overseas flight.
Celebrate the beginning of your Seine River Cruise with a Welcome Drink and a Welcome Briefing with your fellow travelers and Program Director. Then join your new companions for a Welcome Dinner tonight in the dining room.
Day 3: Captain's Welcome Dinner
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
After breakfast, spend the morning exploring Paris, being introduced to both the city's classic highlights and more intimate neighborhoods. First, set off on a panoramic tour, witnessing the Eiffel Tower from different perspectives and the Notre Dame. Then, get a sense of daily life in Paris during a walking tour of one of the city’s residential neighborhoods. Finally, cap your tour with a drive along the famed Champs-Elysees, and witness the Arc de Triomphe (commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 and completed in 1836), which stands at the end of the Champs-Elysees at a large central roundabout where twelve elegant, tree-lined avenues converge.
Explore on your own this afternoon. After your Port Talk this evening, celebrate the beginning of your trip together with a Welcome Drink and Captain's Welcome Dinner in the dining room.
Day 4: Paris • Conflans
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
After breakfast, this morning, explore Montmartre, one of the most famous and lively of the city's 20 arrondissements (districts) on a walking tour. Spend some free time following your included walking tour strolling the charming streets of this romantic neighborhood, and witness the famed Sacre Coeur Basilica, with its dramatic perch on the top of the Montmartre hill. Delight in the views of Paris below, and watch the street artists at work or browse the local shops for a special keepsake to bring home.
Lunch is onboard with the remainder of the afternoon to make your own discoveries in Paris.
Early this evening, board your ship and begin your Seine River Cruise, which will carry you some 230 miles from Paris to Honfleur, on the Normandy coast.
Day 5: Conflans • Optional Path of Van Gogh tour • Impressionists discussion • French language lesson • Vernon
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
After breakfast this morning, join your Program Director for a walking tour of Conflans. Then enjoy some free time for independent exploration, followed by an onboard lunch.
Or, join us on an optional Path of Van Gogh tour of Auvers-sur-Oise. You’ll see the final resting place of Vincent van Gogh in the simple and quaint town that inspired much of his work. Following lunch at a local restaurant, you'll begin your travels through the landscapes that inspired Impressionist painter Claude Monet on your way to Vernon. The Seine, the Epte, and the Oise—three French waterways referred to as the "Rivers of Light"—neighbor each other in this region, and it was here that the artist and other Impressionists gathered to paint natural scenes that have become recognizable worldwide.
Along the way, you may also choose to take part in a second Exclusive Discovery Series event, an onboard discussion about Monet, providing historical context for tomorrow's tour of Giverny. Shortly afterward, enjoy the opportunity for a third exclusive Discovery Series Event, where you may choose to join your Program Director for a French language lesson, and pick up a few key phrases to use throughout your trip.
Later, this afternoon take part in a Scavenger Hunt in Vernon—your Program Director will give you a list of three French items, a map of the city, and 15 Euros. This is a great opportunity to fully immerse yourself in French culture and have authentic local interactions.
Day 6: Vernon • Giverny • Les Andelys
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
After breakfast, disembark for an excursion into the countryside to see the lovely landscapes that inspired Claude Monet. He first witnessed the village of Giverny while looking out a train window in 1883, and the unique light of the Seine Valley kept him in residence for 43 years. He stayed here until his death in 1926, and you'll find his grave in the family vault at the town's Romanesque church.
Explore the artist's home and gardens, left by his son Michel to the Academie des Beaux-Arts in 1966 and now a museum dedicated to the great painter. The house is furnished as it was when the leader of the Impressionist School lived here, including his precious collection of Japanese engravings.
The gardens have been replanted, and as you stroll through them, you'll see with your own eyes the landscapes that have graced countless Monet paintings. You'll spot the familiar Japanese bridge and water garden shaded by weeping willows, its pond still full of the water lilies that so permeated his work. "I want to paint like the birds sing,” Monet said. Perhaps you'll agree that the idyllic setting in Giverny would lend itself to his dream.
Please note: This tour is available on April through October departures only. On March and November departures, we offer a walking tour of Vernon instead.
This afternoon, take part in a walking tour of the sleepy village of Les Andelys, where you can relish views of Chateau Gaillard, an imposing fortress from the era of Richard the Lionheart.
Later, put brush to canvas during an onboard exclusive Discovery Series watercolor painting lesson—perhaps channeling the scenery along the Seine as inspiration.
Dinner will be onboard tonight.
Day 7: Les Andelys • Rouen
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
Depart Les Andelys after breakfast this morning, enjoying lunch onboard as you sail.
This afternoon, disembark for a walking tour of Rouen, the capital of Normandy. This important French commercial center brimming with half-timbered houses has a distinguished history dating to pre-Roman times. But it is more infamously known as the city where Joan of Arc was imprisoned, tried for heresy, and burned at the stake in 1431. Here you'll see the 14th-century abbey where she was sentenced to death, and visit the Market Square where her execution took place. During your free time after your tour, you may want to delve deeper into the tragic life of France's sainted martyr and heroine of the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) with a visit to the Joan of Arc Museum.
Stop to savor something sweet during a tasting in a chocolate shop. The balance of the afternoon is yours.
Dinner will be onboard this evening.
Day 8: Rouen • Home-Hosted Visit
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
This morning, join a local family for a sweet treat, as well as an opportunity to learn more about life in rural France, during an exclusive Discovery Series Home-Hosted Visit.
Afterward, the rest of the day is at leisure. Perhaps you'll choose to visit Rouen's wonderful Gothic Notre Dame Cathedral, whose facade has graced more than 30 Monet paintings. The renowned artist rented rooms across from the cathedral in 1892, where he painted several canvases simultaneously, capturing the nuances of light and weather that played across its intricately adorned exterior.
Lunch and dinner will be served onboard today. This evening, enjoy a night cap at a local guinguette, a traditional French bar and oftentimes dance hall.
Day 9: Rouen • Caudebec • Cooking demonstration • French cheese tasting • Optional Cliffs of Etretat tour • Honfleur
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
Enjoy a relaxing morning of river cruising during which you can partake in two onboard exclusive Discovery Series events. First, learn how to prepare a few of France's culinary delights as your ship's chef demonstrates cooking techniques. Then partake in a French cheese tasting.
Following lunch onboard, you may choose to join a half-day optional excursion to the beautiful cliffs on the Normandy coast at Etretat. You'll discover the treasures of Etretat including the clifftop Chapel Notre Dame Garde.
Spend your afternoon at leisure. Early this evening, you'll begin your cruise to Honfleur, your final port of call. En route, you'll pass under the town's 90-foot-tall Tancarville Bridge. Dinner tonight will coincide approximately with your arrival.
Day 10: Honfleur • Normandy Beaches
Meals: Breakfast Lunch, Dinner
Accommodations: M/S Bizet
The D-Day landings, code-named “Operation Overlord,” were the largest military campaigns in recorded history with the beaches of Normandy bearing the brunt of the invasion. Beginning at 6:30 am on June 6, 1944, nearly 7,000 landing craft hit the highly-fortified coastline. Those vessels carried tens of thousands of soldiers from the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and many other Allied nations, all of whom arrived determined to carry out General Eisenhower's order, “Full victory—nothing else.”
After lunch at a local restaurant, continue to the American Military Cemetery. You'll see a monument honoring the fallen, and visit the cemetery of Colleville sur Mer, where 9,386 American soldiers were laid to rest.
Walk down to Omaha Beach for an up-close look at where the first Allied footing was achieved in German-occupied France. When they arrived on shore, the Allies were met with a deafening barrage of German gunfire. As Nazis soldiers shot from secure concrete pillboxes built high above the open sand, Allied fighters were mowed down while exiting the Higgins boats and wading to shore. In time, some doggedly made it to the ridge overlooking the beach, finding shelter from the hail of enemy bullets. More than a thousand Allied troops died on Omaha Beach alone.
Continue delving into D-Day's unprecedented history as you make your way to Pointe du Hoc—a site all Normandy veterans know well—where Allied forces scaled 328-foot cliffs as they sought to silence German artillery.
After returning to the ship, your evening is at leisure after dinner onboard.
Day 11: Honfleur • Optional Bayeux tour • Captain's Farewell Dinner
Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodations: Novotel Convention & Wellness Roissy CDG or similar
After breakfast, set off on a walking tour of this well-preserved port town of Honfleur, founded in the eleventh century. Situated on a Seine estuary opposite Le Havre, the town was once one of the most important ports in France. It was from here that many voyages of discovery were launched, including the journey of native son Samuel de Champlain—who went on to found Port Royal in Nova Scotia and the settlement of Quebec in Canada.
The port changed hands frequently between France and England during the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) and was finally won back by France in 1450. In the 1800s, Le Havre displaced Honfleur as a major port.
Following your included tour, you'll have time to continue exploring Honfleur on your own.
Or, join an optional visit to the Tapestry Museum of Bayeux, which showcases a remarkable piece of embroidered fabric—230 feet in length—depicting events of the 1066 Norman invasion of England. Study elaborate scenes created with wool yarn of russet and gold, and learn the history that inspired this fascinating work of art.
Gather with your new friends to share memories and toast to your enriching Seine River Cruise at the Captain's Farewell Dinner. The ship remains in port tonight.
Day 12: Honfleur • Disembark ship • Caen Peace Memorial Museum • Roissy-Charles De Gaulle Airport area
Meals: Breakfast
Accommodations: Novotel Convention & Wellness Roissy CDG or similar
This morning, disembark your ship and transfer to the Peace Memorial Museum in Caen, a state-of-the-art facility that does an outstanding job of presenting the events of World War II, including D-Day, very vividly. It's an excellent way to put into context what you saw at the Normandy beaches.
After time for lunch on your own here, transfer to Charles de Gaulle Airport, located 18 miles from the Paris city center, for a final night in France before your return flight. Or, if you've chosen our post-trip extension to Brittany & St. Michel, France, transfer by motorcoach to St. Malo.
Day 13: Return to U.S.
Meals: Breakfast
After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your flight home. Or, begin your post-trip extension in London, England.
Day 1: Arrive in Paris, France
Arrival to Paris, “Bienvenue a Paris”, meet and greet and transfer to your city centered hotel in Paris.
Overnight: Paris Meals: N/A
Day 2: Paris Highlights
Spend a day exploring Paris in a very unusual way. This excursion on foot and riverboat will show you the highlights of Paris: visit the Louvre Museum and the Eiffel Tower with our professional guide.
After breakfast, meet with our guide in the center of Paris at 08:15 am. (Arc de Triumph of the Carrousel facing the Louvre pyramid)
He/she will take you straight to the famous Louvre Museum, through this must-see museum and tell you about the main artworks: the Venus of Milo statue representing the goddess Aphrodite, the impressive painting of The Wedding at Cana the Coronation of Napoleon illustrating the emperor’s crowning in the Notre-Dame Cathedral, and Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Mona Lisa which is the most visited work in the Museum.
After your tour of the Louvre Museum which takes about 2.30 hours, your guide will take you to the riverbank, before the Pont du Carrousel, to board a Batobus boat. This short cruise will show you Paris from a different angle. You will see some of the superb bridges over the Seine and Paris monuments along the banks. The boat moors at the Quai de la Bourdonnais at the foot of the Trocadéro, right opposite the Iron Lady
You will have time then for lunch on your own before going up to the Eiffel Tower
Your guide will let you disembark to go to the iconic monument of Paris. He/she will lead you up to the second floor where the secrets of the Eiffel Tower will be revealed. After hearing remarkable commentaries, you can enjoy the beautiful panorama of Paris and see the top Parisian landmarks. Keep on visiting the Tower on the second level and get down to the first one to experience the incredible glass floor.
The services of our professional guide will end on the second level of the Eiffel Tower and you will have free time at leisure (End approx 04:30 pm)
Day 3: Paris – Versailles
After breakfast, randez-vous at 08:15 am.
Departure from the center of Paris to the Palace of Versailles. Make the most of the 45-minute journey by luxury air-conditioned coach and listen to your guide’s introduction to the history of the palace.
The Palace of Versailles covers an area of over 721,000 square feet and has more than 700 rooms.
Follow your guide straight to the front of the line to see the palaces most beautiful rooms: the Kings Grand Apartments, with seven rooms each dedicated to a different god (Apollo, Mars, Mercy, Venus, etc.) and the Queens Grand Apartments, mirroring those of the king, including the Coronation Room and the Queens Bedroom, once occupied by Marie Antoinette, among others. Also, admire the spectacular Hall of Mirrors, a unique room in which guests were received and impressed, designed by the famous architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart. Almost 240 feet-long, it was created to dazzle visitors to the Sun King, Louis XIV; it is lit by 17 windows and some 350 mirrors, and overlooks the palace’s breath-taking gardens, the second part of your visit.</span></div>
Return to Paris at 12:30 pm
After noon free time at leisure
Overnight: Paris Meals: Breakfast</span></div>
Please note:
We strongly advise against high-heeled shoes (parquet flooring in the rooms and cobblestones in the courtyard)
Strollers are not permitted inside the palace
Access to the palace is challenging for those with reduced mobility
Photography without flash is permitted inside the palace
The skip-the-line access is subject to the Versailles Palace procedures: The Vigipirate plan, the security control or an unforeseen crowd can slow down the entrance.
Day 4: Paris
Breakfast and free day at leisure. Overnight: Paris Meals: Breakfast
Optional Tours:
Disneyland® Paris: 1 Day 2 Parks with round trip transport:
1 entrance ticket 1 day / 2 Parks
We begin our day by crossing Paris as far as the Porte de Bercy to join the A4 motorway leading to Disneyland ® Paris. (average journey : 1 hour). Our driver will leave you at the group parking area close to the park entrances. Take advantage of a nice day with your family at Disneyland ® Paris. Both adults and children will enjoy discovering the magic world of Disneyland Paris. You will be able to enter both parks:
Disneyland ® Park: Magic world where you will meet all the Disney characters who live in an endless fairy tale.
Walt Disney Studios ® Park: Go behind the scenes of the movies, cartoons and tv shows.
The group will re-join the coach at the same spot at the end of the day at 7.15 PM
Come back to Paris around 08.00 PM. Departure at 7.00 PM in winter 200€ per person Children Mont Saint-Michel Tour with lunch: (Only Friday – 14 Hour Experience) An exceptional day at Mont-Saint-Michel in the company of a professional guide. Discover the history and the riches of this Wonder of the West; through the enthusiastic commentary of our guide. 250€ per person
Loire Valley Castles: (Only Mondays - 13 Hours) Come and live an exceptional day in the heart of the Loire Valley in France. You will visit the Chateau de Chenonceau and the Chateau de Chambord with our guide, two of the greatest castles of the Loire Valley. This dive into French history will be completed by a visit to the Clos Lucé castle, the emblematic place of the famous Leonardo da Vinci. Take a seat in an air-conditioned vehicle, departure from the center of Paris at 7:15 am! 250€ per person
Normandy D-Day Beaches: (Only Saturdays - 13 Hours) Enjoy a full day excursion from Paris to the D-Day Beaches in Normandy in the company of an official guide, who will bring these historic sites to life. 250€ per person.
Day 5: Paris Departure
After breakfast, free time until your flight time. Transfer to the airport and end of ou services.
Au Revoir!
