Sud au Nord | WorldStrides

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Sud au Nord

Travel Sud au Nord through France! Tour the medieval town of St.-Paul-de-Vence, loved by Picasso and Sartre. Next, take in the Loire Valley and Château de Chenonceau. Then explore Normandy’s D-Day beaches and pay respects at the American Cemetary. Finish with Paris landmarks—Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Champs-Élysées, and more.
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  • Itinerary
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Nice, Provence, Loire Valley, Normandy, Paris

10 Days
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
  • Château de Chenonceau
  • D-Day Beaches
  • Eiffel Tower

Your adventure, day by day

Day 1 : Start Tour
Depart for your tour in France

Day 2 : Bonjour Nice
Arrive in Nice, France

Meet your tour director and check into hotel

Day 3 : Nice
St. Paul de Vence excursion

St. Paul de Vence is a beautifully preserved medieval hill town, and its terra cotta roofs and cypress- and palm tree-dotted landscape have attracted prominent artists for over a century. A favorite hotel was the Colomb d’Or, where painters often paid for their room and board in artwork -- the dining room still displays works by Picasso, Modigliani, and Matisse.

Day 4 : Nice-Provence
Provence

Travel to Provence and visit Pont du Gard. A true masterpiece of ancient architecture, the Pont du Gard aqueduct is one of the most beautiful Roman constructions in the region. Discover more about this startling monument as you follow the course of its history through the ages.

Nîmes

Take a director-led sightseeing tour of Nîmes and visit the Nîmes amphitheater and Maison Carrée.

Day 5 : Provence-Loire Valley
Travel to Loire Valley

Travel to the Loire Valley on the TGV (Europe’s fastest train).

Day 6 : Loire Valley
Loire Valley

Visit the Loire Valley and the Château de Chenonceau and the Chateau d'Amboise, You'll also have the opportunity for a LEAP activity - Bon Appetit Slice, dice, and stir! Savor the French country lifestyle by creating (and eating) traditional Loire Valley cuisine.

LEAP Bon Appetit - France

LEAP Activity | Bon Appetit

Slice, dice, and stir! Savor the French country lifestyle by creating (and eating) traditional Loire Valley cuisine.

Day 7 : Loire Valley-Normandy
D-Day Beaches

See the D-Day beaches where on June 6, 1944, thousands of Allied troops landed in an effort to recapture the coast from Germany. All along the beaches, deserted German bunkers have been turned into memorials and the stark white crosses and stars that mark the cemeteries are grim reminders of the war.

American Cemetery

Pay your respects to the American soldiers that died in battle at the American Cemetery. You will also have the opportunity for the LEAP activity Soldier Stories. Step into the shoes of U.S. servicemen as they land in Normandy on D-Day. Learn about their lives and their experiences to gain personal and historical perspective.

Soldiers Stories

LEAP Activity | Soldiers’ Stories

Step into the shoes of U.S. servicemen as they land in Normandy on D-Day. Learn about their lives and their experiences to gain personal and historical perspective.

Day 8 : Normandy-Paris
Travel to Paris via Versailles

Enjoy a guided excursion to the ultimate palace, Versailles, which was built by Louis XIII and housed the royal family and its groveling court from 1682 to the French Revolution. Everything in Versailles is worth a look, from the 250-foot-long Hall of Mirrors, with themed salons- "war" and "peace" -on either side, to Marie Antoinette's faux country hamlet. When being a queen became too much to bear, she would pretend to be a commoner, tending her sheep and wearing peasant clothes.

LEAP activity Seize the Château!

Enjoy the LEAP activity Seize the Château! A lively role-play puts you in the shoes of the monarchy, clergy, nobility, bourgeoisie, or peasantry to explore the issues underlying the French Revolution.

Seize the chateau

LEAP Activity | Seize the Château!

This costume workshop is a lively role-play activity that puts you in the shoes of the monarchy, clergy, nobility, bourgeoisie, or peasantry to explore the issues underlying the French Revolution.

Day 9 : Paris
Paris tour

Enjoy a guided sightseeing tour of Paris and explore famous landmarks like the Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Élysées, Eiffel Tower, Les Invalides, and the Notre Dame Cathedral.

Visit the Louvre

The world's largest art museum, the Louvre is housed in a Medieval fortress-turned-castle so grand it's worth a tour itself. You walk through the 71-foot glass pyramid designed by I.M. Pei and added in 1989, and step into another world--one with carved ceilings, deep-set windows, and so many architectural details you could spend a week just admiring the rooms. The Mona Lisa is here, as well as the Venus de Milo and Winged Victory (the headless statue, circa 200 BC, discovered at Samothrace). The Louvre has seven different departments of paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, and antiquities. Don't miss the Egyptian collection, complete with creepy sarcophagi, or the collection of Greek ceramics, one of the largest in the world. (Please note the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays.)

Eiffel Tower ascent

Take in breathtaking views of Paris from atop of the Eiffel Tower.

Day 10 : End Tour
Depart Paris for home

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