France vacation package | French Savoir vivre tours

CALL FREE 800-935-5000 request@centralholidays.com

Website Search

Search Tours

Find my Vacation

Prepare for a wondrous 8 days aboard Luftner Cruises as you sail along France's stunning waterways on Central Holidays' France vacation package. Commence your French cruise with a welcome cocktail reception as you depart Lyon for Macon, your first port of call, which is a lovely town in the Burgundy region with tours of the Beaujolais scenery of castles and vineyards along winding roads. Tour a museum of wines and sample the famous wines of this region before boarding the ship for lunch and an optional tour of Cluny Abbey, a historic monastery which was the world's largest Christian structure until St. Peter's was built in Rome. Next up, you disembark in Chalon-sur-Saone to explore the epi-center of Burgundy's wine trade and visit Hotel-Dieu for a private tasting session. A driver will escort you to the medieval villages of Brancion and Cormatin, with their colossal castles and sprawling gardens. An optional guided tour of Lyon awaits, and then you will be whisked away to famed and historic Avignon with its historic bridge and majestic Palais des Papes. Depart for Camargue where wild horses and flamingos can be seen as you explore this landscape where land and sea come together. This France tour package allows you to enjoy tours to the Ardeche gorge, Pont d'Arc, and Le Pouzin before savoring dinner and dancing with your captain on the final night of your amazing France vacation.

Day 1 - Lyon

Welcome on board your ''floating hotel''. Tonight a Welcome Cocktail Reception will be held before dinner is served on board. The ship leaves Lyon in the course of the evening. (D)

Day 2 - Macon

In the morning you arrive at Macon, a lovely town along the river Saone in the Burgundy region. After breakfast you will have the opportunity to join a ''Maconais and Museum of Wine'' optional tour. The romantic Beaujolais scenery, with its castles and vineyards, unfolds in front of your eyes as we drive along the winding roads lined with vineyards. The highlight of this excursion will be a visit of a museum entirely dedicated to the making of the Beaujolais wines. Lunch on board. An afternoon optional trip to Cluny Abbey is on the itinerary today. In the early Middle Age, Cluny was Europe's most influential monastery controlling several hundred monastic foundations throughout Europe, and the world's largest Christian structure until St. Peter's was built in Rome. Unfortunately, very little survived the French Revolution, but nonetheless, what is left is certainly impressive. After dinner the Amadeus Symphony continues its journey to Chalon-sur- Saone. (B,L,D)

Day 3 - Chalon-sur-Saone/Tournus

Once we have docked in Chalon-sur- Saone, those who have booked the optional ''Beaune and the Burgundy'' excursion will be driven to Beaune, the epicenter of Burgundy's wine trade. After a visit of the Hotel-Dieu, originally an almshouse dating back to the 15th Century, you will learn the history of viniculture during a wine tasting session. After lunch on board you will be driven to the medieval villages of ''Brancion and Cormatin''. Stroll the streets of Brancion before visiting the magnificent castle of Cormatin and its magnificent gardens. If you prefer not to go on this optional excursion, you can stay on board and just enjoy the lovely scenery. The vessel will briefly stop in Tournus, where those who have been on the optional trip will come back on board. (B,L,D)

Day 4 - Lyon

Today the Amadeus Symphony docks back in Lyon early in the morning. Our optional guided tour of Lyon enables you to absorb the city's most important sights. The city center has an impressive wealth of elegant squares and buildings, with those in Place des Terreaux being particularly magnificent. During lunch our ship resumes its voyage. (B,L,D)

Day 5 - Avignon

Morning arrival in Avignon. The folkloristic song about its old stone bridge has made this city's name familiar to people all over the world. Avignon is one of the few cities whose medieval walls are almost completely preserved. The popes who resided here were responsible for building its majestic ''Palais des Papes'', whose steeply rising facade bears witness to their hegemony. It can be visited in the morning in the course of our optional guided city tour. In the afternoon you can either savor the hustle and bustle in the narrow streets and squares of Avignon's old quarter, or join our optional excursion to Pont du Gard and Uzes. The perfectly preserved Pont du Gard ranks as one of the architectural masterpieces of the ancient world. For more than 2,000 years this Roman aqueduct supplied water to vast tracts of the Roman provinces in southern France. You will have time to walk around the picturesque little town of Uzes before returning to the ship for dinner. The vessel remains docked overnight in Avignon. (B,L,D)

Day 6 - Avignon/Arles

Morning optional excursion to the picturesque Camargue region where land and sea seem to merge. Here, where nature reigns - if you are lucky - you might see some of its famous wild horses and flamingoes. The excursion ends in Arles, a good example of the adaptation of an ancient city to medieval European civilization. Arles has plenty of historical buildings and Roman remains for you to explore during our optional city tour. After dinner the vessel resumes its voyage upstream. (B,L,D)

Day 7 - Viviers/Le Pouzin

From Viviers you can visit one of France's most interesting geographical features, the Ardeche gorge. Over several millennia waterpower has carved out this very romantic gorge through limestone. The coach will follow the river as it meanders through the gorge which is up to 300 meters deep. During this optional excursion you will have an opportunity to see the famous Pont d'Arc - a natural stone bridge that has become an icon for the Ardeche region. The Amadeus Symphony will continue to Le Pouzin, where those who have been on the optional coach trip will come back on board. The last stretch starts during lunch as the vessel returns to Lyon. Tonight the captain welcomes everyone to a special dinner followed by a night of dancing. (B,L,D)