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Discover the delights of the beautiful Basque Country, a region in the western Pyrenees shared by both France and Spain. Our holiday begins with an overnight crossing from Portsmouth or Plymouth to Santander, on board Brittany Ferries’ Pont Aven, whose features including a cocktail piano bar and entertainment area for your enjoyment. Arriving on the Spanish side of the terrain we first visit Guernica, then head for San Sebastián, a stunning resort town on the Bay of Biscay. After that, it’s another day of Basque delights but this time on the French side, taking in Biarritz, Bayonne & St. Jean de Luz. Our tour doesn’t end there, with a few gems thrown in between, this carefully thought-out itinerary also covers the fortified town of Carcassonne and the spectacular setting of Rocamadour, plus much more.
11 days from £999 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.
Please note: When you board the ferry at Portsmouth or Plymouth, you will require a small overnight bag containing any essential items such as medication. Please note that this small bag (no larger than a small rucksack) is counted as part of your overall luggage allowance.
Evening arrival in Santander, then travel to Zarautz for a three-night stay.
Included excursion, first to Guernica which was infamously bombed by the Nazis during the Spanish Civil War. The haunting museum is well worth a visit (admission is extra). Later, we head to San Sebastián with its stunning setting on a sweeping, shell-shaped bay. San Sebastián, or Donostia (its Basque name), is renowned for beautiful sandy beaches, and has many excellent seafood and tapas restaurants.
Included Highlights
Another day of Basque delights, as we include a full-day tour along the French Basque coast. Biarritz is a playground for the French rich, with a seafront lined with grand buildings. In Bayonne, saunter around the narrow streets of the old town, with half-timbered houses painted in traditional Basque colours. We end the day in the small French resort of St. Jean de Luz, with its sheltered, sandy beaches and pretty old town.
Included Highlights
Our journey takes us east to Pau, an elegant city in a spectacular setting with the Pyrénées Atlantiques as a backdrop. We continue on to Carcassonne for a three-night stay.
Spend a full day in the medieval, walled town of 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. The walled ‘Cité Médieval’ with its cobbled lanes, is a joy to explore with spectacular views towards the Pyrenees from the medieval walls.
Included Highlights
Optional excursion around the Languedoc region, which takes us first to the hill-top town of Béziers, once a Roman staging post and now an important wine-growing town. The imposing Cathedral has impressive views over the surrounding countryside, and the Canal du Midi crosses the River Orb by means of an amazing 240-metre long aqueduct. We continue to Narbonne, which boasts a pretty medieval core, and a fine Gothic cathedral.
Optional Excursions
Our optional excursions are a great addition to enhance your holiday experience and are highly recommended.| 2020 | 2021 | |
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£22.50 | £24.00 |
We head to the rose-red town of Albi, birthplace of the artist, Toulouse-Lautrec. See the impressive 13th century Palais de la Berbie, now a museum, containing a comprehensive collection of his work. We continue along the Lot Valley, to the pretty town of Cahors, situated on a loop of the Lot River. The town’s long and sometimes turbulent past is best represented in its architecture, with Gallic, Roman, Moorish and English influences. We continue to Rocamadour for two nights.
Included Highlights
Included excursion to the charming town of Sarlat in the Perigord-Noir, a fascinating town with some of the best-preserved medieval buildings in France. In the afternoon, we return to Rocamadour for time at leisure. Spectacularly perched on a limestone cliff overlooking the gorge of the River Alzou, Rocamadour is an important pilgrimage site for the French, where Saint Amadour was reputed to have lived as a hermit. There are 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.
Included Highlights
To the Paris area for an overnight stay. En route we stop in the Remembrance village of Oradour-sur-Glane, scene of a German SS massacre of the villagers. The ruined village has been left exactly as it was during World War 2.
Included Highlights
Return home.
Travel Insurance from £38.00 (11 days) (includes insurance premium tax, prices per person). Single Room Supplement from £319.00 (11 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.
You will stay for three nights at the 3-star Hotel Zarauz in Zarautz, then three nights at the 3-star Brit Hotel in Carcassonne or similar, followed by two nights at the 2-star Hotel Lion d’Or in Rocamadour.
Overnight stay in the Paris area will be in a city-style hotel.
On the overnight sailing, accommodation will be in two-berth, en suite cabins.
Tuesday 15th September 2020 Departure
Tour Code: 11EBDV - On day 5, you will stay for three nights at the 3-star Ibis Carcassonne Est la Cite in Carcassonne.
Front row seats can be reserved for £15pp (up to 6 days' duration), £24pp (7 & 8 days' duration), £26pp (9, 10 and 11 days' duration) and £30pp (12 days' duration and over) on all European tours. This offer is only available for bookings of two or four persons on the front row and is subject to availability. In addition to this, seats on the second row can be reserved for £8pp (up to 6 days duration), £15pp (7 & 8 days duration), £18pp (9, 10 and 11 days' duration) and £22pp (12 days' duration and over). Guaranteed front/second row seats cannot be reserved on transfer journeys to/from the interchange. Children under 15 years cannot occupy a front row seat due to French Law. Central view seats are free.
Please note: On some coaches the legroom on front seats 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 for any reason and front/second row seats are not available on your new tour, you will be refunded the supplement. 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.
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.
You can join your coach at your nearest joining point – we’ve hundreds to choose from throughout England, Scotland and Wales. To find your nearest pick up, search using your postcode below.
*Please note pickups are subject to availability.
On Single Traveller holidays and coach holidays of 7 days’ duration or more, you don’t even have to think about getting to your local joining point. If you live within 20 miles of one of our free joining points we’ll pick you up from your home and take you to meet your transfer vehicle, then return you back home at the end of your holiday. The cost is from £40 per booking each way for up to four people per booking.
If you live a little further afield, you can also take advantage of this convenient option for an additional charge – please enquire at the time of booking.
To book this tour, just give our friendly team a call on 01709 787 463 or book online at www.leger.co.uk
