Literary Tour to France – From Hugo to Proust: Exploring Literary Paris

Paris is one of the most iconic cities in the world, filled with culture and history, monuments and museums. Known as the City of Light, Paris is a million things to a million people. No writer has ever been able to truly capture Paris in words, and only the experience of being there can begin to express the grandness and magic of this incredible city.

Experience the rise of Paris with a visit to the Musée Carnavalet-Histoire de Paris that chronicles Paris dynamic history through thousands of paintings, drawings, letters, photographs and sculptures.

Experience the perfect introduction to the beauty of Paris with a Seine River Cruise. You'll pass under many graceful bridges and view important landmarks on both banks during this amazing cruise.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Explore the mansion where Victor Hugo lived for 16 years. The museum houses furniture and momentos from the author, such as Hugo's 450 drawings of scenes from his own works.

Enjoy a walking tour where you'll visit the haunts of Ernest Hemingway, Scott Fitzgerald, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein and Jean Rhys, while hearing stories of the famous writer's lives in old Paris.

Tour this historical landmark that was dates back to 1163 on a spot that had been a holy shrine since Roman Times. Over the centuries, the cathedral has been the scene of some of France's most momentous occasions, including the coronation of Napoleon.

Enjoy visiting the Marais Quarter, whose history stretches back to the beginning of the city. The Marais features magnificent shops and cafes, and is a perfect place to take in the Parisian lifestyle. While here, we will get a view of the La Place des Vosges, the oldest square in Paris.

Ascend to Montmartre, an area of Paris made famous in the late 19th century as an artist's’ haunt. We will spend time in the Place du Tertre, a square known for it's local artwork. Then visit Sacré-Coeur Basilica, a huge white church that dominates the Parisian skyline, and admire the stained glass and some of the world's largest mosaics.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Enjoy the experience of visiting one of Paris's most famous landmarks, the Arc de Triomphe. Commissioned by Napoloeon and a symbol of Paris, the massive triumphal arch is also home to the tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Walk through the Neo-Classical gardens of Jardin des Tuileries and continue to La Place de la Concorde for a magnificent view of the Champs Élysées.

Tour the renowned Louvre Museum with a local specialist guide and view Leonardo da Vinci’'s Mona Lisa, the imposing Coronation of Napoleon, and many of the finest paintings and sculptures from western civilization.

Visit more great sights, such as the Hôtel des Invalides, the gilded Dome Church, and Île de la Cité and Île St-Louis, the oldest area of Paris.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Take a half-day excursion outside the city exploring Alexandre Dumas' Château de Monte Cristo in Le Port-Marly.

Discover the Panthéon, a Neo-classical building in the Latin Quarter. With it's facade based on Rome's Pantheon and a dome reminiscent of St. Peter's, this beautiful work is a fitting resting place for some of France's greatest minds.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Explore Cimitiere Pere Lachaise, where many of the greatest artists, musicians and authors of France and the world are buried.

Walk to Shakespeare and Co., the famous English-language bookstore founded by Walt Whitman's grandson.

Latervisit the home of Honoré de Balzac and view artifacts from the life of the prolific French writer. In this particular house he wrote some of his last works, including La Rabouilleuse, Une Ténébreuse Affaire as well as La Cousine Bette.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Enjoy a visit to the "House of Tante Léonie" in Illiers-Combray, one of the last actual vestiges of the environment Proust described in his novel "Remembrance of Things Past", and observe a rich collection of items, letters and documents that belonged to the author.

Experience Versailles, a palace commissioned by Louis XIV. In addition to viewing the spectacular Gardens, your visit will include the ornate State Apartments, highlighted by the magnificent Hall of Mirrors.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Take a guided-tour of the Opéra National de Paris, the thirteenth theater to house the Paris Opera. Highlights of the tour will include: the Grand Staircase, the Library-Museum, the richly decorated Grand Foyer, the Salon du Glacier, and the Auditorium dominated by the immense crystal chandelier hanging below Marc Chagall’s brightly colored ceiling.

Because Paris is one of the most important centers of fashion in the world, we will visit the elegant stores of Au Printemps and Galéries Lafayette for a first-hand look at the latest trends in fashion.

At the Musée d'Orsay, you'll view many great pieces of French art, such as impressionist masterpieces by Monet, Degas, Renoir and Cézanne. Later, ascend to the top of Paris' most recognizable landmark, the Eiffel Tower.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.