Grand Tour of France – Picturebook Treasures
Oh-la-la! This expression most certainly sums up this ‘grand’ tour of classic French treasures. Whether its romantic cities, picturesque coastlines, charming villages or breath-taking countryside you’re looking for in a coach holiday, it’s all here in one itinerary. Explore the beautiful Loire Valley, with visits to Tours, Blois and Amboise. Learn about the country’s past with a visit to the Remembrance village of Oradour-sur-Glane, and then explore the delights of the Dordgone, including the cliff-side town of Rocamadour. With visits also included to some of France’s most stunning villages, as well as the medieval city of Carcassonne and the cosmopolitan capital city of Paris, you’ll have a fantastic French adventure on this coach holiday!
12 days from £1569 pp
We offer flexible payment options
Once you have booked your tour either online, or by telephone ( 01709 787 463 ), you have the flexibility of how you pay off the remainder of your balance. You can:
Our contact and online banking payment details will be on your confirmation invoice to remind you of your choices.
Local departure by coach or Door-to-Door service, then to the Rouen area for an overnight stay.
We travel to Tours in the Loire Valley where we enjoy a little time at leisure in Tours centre, before continuing to the pretty village of Azay-le-Rideau with its small but incredibly beautiful château. (Please note: entrance costs for châteaux or places of interest are at additional cost). After time at leisure in Azay le Rideau, we continue to our hotel in Chinon, a smart ‘bourgeois’ town, where we stay for two nights
Today’s full-day included excursion takes us through the countryside to visit some of the Loire Valley’s most beautiful villages. We travel first to the picturesque town of Blois, then continue to Amboise on the banks of the Loire River. Amboise is famous for its château, and the Clos Lucé manor house, the place where Leonardo da Vinci lived and ultimately died. We end the day at the village of Chenonceaux, home to the Château de Chenonceau built over the river Cher. The château has extensive parks and gardens created by its many mistresses. (Please note that entrance costs for châteaux or places of interest are at additional cost).
En-route to Rocamadour, we visit the memorial village of Oradour-sur-Glane. Scene of a terrible massacre on 10th June 1944 by the German SS, the village has been frozen in time ever since. We then continue our journey to the Dordogne region, and the village of Rocamadour where we stay for two nights.
Enjoy a day at leisure to explore the pilgrimage town of Rocamadour, where Saint Amadour was reputed to have lived as a hermit. The village is perched high on a limestone cliff in the heart of the Dordogne, and here you'll find many small chapels, including the Chapelle de Notre Dame with its famous Black Madonna, a 12th century carved wooden depiction of the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus.
After breakfast we begin the journey to Carcassonne, famous for the defences of the medieval city. The city exists in two parts – the more modern ‘Bastide St Louis’, which contains the Cathedral of St. Michel, and the walled 'Cité Medieval', whose fortifications were built over many centuries and featured in the religious wars between the Cathars and Albigenses. This afternoon we enjoy time at leisure for exploration before we continue to our hotel in the Carcassonne area for an overnight stay.
This morning we travel to the hill-top town of Béziers, where the Canal du Midi crosses the river by means of an aqueduct. After time to discover the town’s rich history, we continue our journey to Aix-en-Provence, where we stay for three nights.
Our included excursion takes us to the lovely seaside resort of Cassis, with its picturesque fishing port and town square. You will have time to relax, take in the pretty harbour, and perhaps enjoy a drink in one of the nearby cafés.
We continue to La Palud sur Verdon, where we have time for lunch before a scenic drive around the famous ‘Route des Crêtes’, which offers some of the most breathtaking panoramic viewpoints of the canyon. The Verdon National Park is spread over two French departments, encompasses 43 towns, and has an area estimated at nearly 178,000 hectares. Rich in flora and fauna, and an area of spectacular natural beauty, the Gorges du Verdon is one of Provence’s greatest attractions.
Optional Excursions
Our optional excursions are a great addition to enhance your holiday experience and are highly recommended.2022 | 2023 | |
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£24.00 | £25.00 |
This morning we explore the wild, rugged, yet intensely beautiful scenery of the Ardèche, seeing quaint villages clinging to the hillsides. We travel to the spectacular Ardèche gorge taking the scenic route through the gorge, from St. Martin d’Ardèche to Vallon Pont d’Arc, stopping at one of the viewpoints to admire the pretty vistas. We have a little time at leisure in Vallon Pont d’Arc before we travel on to the Lyon/Macon area for an overnight stay.
We have an early departure this morning as we travel north to the Paris area where we have an overnight stay. This evening, be sure to take advantage of our optional visit into the Latin Quarter, a bustling area of restaurants, cafés and souvenir shops to the south of the Ile de la Cité and Notre Dame. Here, you can enjoy the atmosphere and sample the local bars and restaurants.
Optional Excursions
Our optional excursions are a great addition to enhance your holiday experience and are highly recommended.2022 | 2023 | |
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|
£20.50 | £22.00 |
Return home.
Single Room Supplement from £379.00 (12 days).
Book online OR call our friendly travel advisers on:
01709 787 463
If you prefer, then you can join the tour at the hotel. To do this, we will require a copy of your passport for identification purposes and you must advise us at the time of booking.
No reduction will be given if you should choose to do this.
We are unable to guarantee that the hotel will be able to meet your dietary requirements. We find that the majority of European countries do not generally cater for vegetarians and that the meal supplied may well be what everyone else is having minus the meat.
We will of course endeavour to arrange for a vegetarian meal at the hotel. We do however suggest that you advise us of your dietary requests at the time of booking and recommend that you speak to the receptionist on arrival with regard to your request.
In the Loire Valley, you will stay for two nights in a minimum 3-star hotel, followed by a two-night stay at the 2-star Hotel du Lion d'Or in Rocamadour. You will then spend one night at a 3-star hotel in the Carcassonne area, and three nights at the 3-star Novotel Beaumanoir, in Aix-en-Provence.
Overnight stays in Lyon/Macon and Paris/Rouen areas will be in minimum 3-star, city-style hotels.
Front row seats can be reserved for £15pp (up to 6 days duration), £25pp (7 and 8 days duration), £30pp (9 to 11 days) or £35pp (12 days or more) on all European tours. This offer is only available for bookings of two or four persons on our Executive and Silver Service coaches and for one or two persons on our Luxuria coaches and is subject to availability. In addition to this, seats on the second row can be reserved for a supplement of £8pp (up to 6 days duration), £15pp (7 and 8 days duration), £18pp (9 to 11 days) or £22pp (12 days or more).
Guaranteed front or second row seats cannot be reserved on transfer journeys to/from the UK port. Occasionally, front and second row seats may be on a request only basis.
Please note: children under 15 years of age are not permitted to sit in the front seats of any coach.
On some coaches the legroom on front seats, central view seats and seats directly in front of the washroom may be slightly less than that available on other seats due to the presence of a modesty board in front.
If your tour is cancelled or merged for any reason and front or second row seats or central view seats or table seats are not available on your tour, you will be refunded any supplement paid. No other compensation will be payable.
Alternatively, we can take seating requests on your booking. However, requests are not guaranteed. All seat numbers are confirmed on travel documents approximately 7-10 days prior to departure.
Central View Seats are available to pre-book free of charge.
Table Seats are available to pre-book free of charge on our Luxuria coaches.
Transfer coaches are routed approximately 2-3 weeks before departure. The route taken depends on where paassengers are booked to travel from on any particular date as to which route is taken. If you require further detailed information regarding the route to the port you can contact our Customer Service Department on 01709 830333 two weeks before you are due to travel.
With regard to the route taken by the main tour coach, this is determined by the driver.
When it comes to getting you to your destination, Leger Holidays make it easy, with a selection of travel options for you to choose from.
We have hundreds of coach joining points throughout England, Scotland and Wales. To find your nearest joining point, search using your postcode below.
*Please note joining points are subject to availability.
Why not go the night before your tour for a relaxing start?
You can park for FREE for up to nine days at the Holiday Inn Ashford North and enjoy an overnight stay with English breakfast from just £41.50 per person (Based on 2 sharing a twin/double room on a B&B basis, subject to availability. Single supplements and terms and conditions apply.) We’ll then collect you from the hotel on the day of departure and return you there at the end of your holiday.
To book this package, please call the hotel on 01233 713333, select option 1, quoting ‘Leger Holidays’ and your booking reference. If your holiday is longer than seven days you can pay for additional days’ parking. Ask one of our friendly reservations team for more details when you book your holiday
On most holidays if you’d prefer to join your tour coach at Stop 24 services, you can park your car in the car park which is accredited by the Park Mark safer parking scheme and is monitored 24 hours a day by CCTV. Payment for the parking is made on arrival using the self-service machines. Excludes holidays to Ireland and the U.K. and tours travelling via Brittany Ferries.
To book this tour, just give our friendly team a call on 01709 787 463 or book online at www.leger.co.uk