FRANCE TOUR APRIL NB: Please note that when we mention you this refers to the group as a whole, including teachers and students

Transcription

1 FRANCE TOUR APRIL 2008 NB: Please note that when we mention you this refers to the group as a whole, including teachers and students Day 1: PERTH PARIS Mon 7 th April Please meet at Perth s international airport at the Singapore Airlines check in area at 12:25pm ready for a 12:55pm check in at the Singapore Airlines check-in counter. Your Singapore Airlines flight SQ 226 will depart at 3:55pm and arrive into Singapore at 9:15pm. On arrival into Singapore you will then need to transfer to the Singapore Airlines flight SQ 334 departing at 11:40pm. (Transit time in Singapore will be 2 hours and 25 minutes) SINGAPORE AIRLINES FLIGHT SQ 226 DEPARTS PERTH AT 3:55PM / ARRIVES INTO SINGAPORE AT 9:15PM SINGAPORE AIRLINES FLIGHT SQ 334 DEPARTS SINGAPORE AT 11.40PM / ARRIVES INTO PARIS AT 6.55AM (on the 8 th Apr) Day 2: PARIS (D) Tue 8 th Apr On arrival into Paris at 6.55am you will be met by your coach and guide and transferred to your hotel where you will stay for the next three nights. En-route you will have a panoramic tour of Paris where you will see the famous and beautiful sights of this amazing city. Dinner tonight will be at the hotel or a local restaurant. Day 3: PARIS - VERSAILLES - PARIS (B) Wed 9 th Apr This morning after breakfast make your own way to the station for your train journey to Versailles. (Return RER train ticket included) On arrival into Versailles you will have a half-day guided visit of one of the finest Palaces in Europe. (entrance included) The Chateau Versailles was built in the mid-17 th century during the reign of Louis XIV, to project to both home and abroad the absolute power of the French monarchy. In the late afternoon, board your train back to Paris. On arrival make your own way back to your hotel. Day 4: PARIS (B) Thu 10 th Apr This morning make your own way to the Eiffel Tower for a spectacular view of Paris from the 3 rd level. (entrance included) The Eiffel Tower, named after its designer, Gustave Eiffel, is 320m high, including the television antenna at the very tip. Later you will enjoy a cruise on the River Seine. (cruise included) The rest of the day is free for independent sightseeing. You can visit the Louvre (own expense) to see the famous painting by Da Vinci, the Mona Lisa, or stroll down the Champs Élysees, a must for shoppers.

2 Day 5: PARIS AVIGNON (B) Fri 11 th Apr This morning after breakfast make your own way to the train station for your train journey to Avignon. (way train fare included) On arrival make your own way with your teacher to your hotel. The rest of the day is free to explore your new surrounds with your teacher. Accommodation: Hotel Saint Roch Day 6: AVIGNON (B) Sat 12 th Apr Today is free for teacher supervised activities. Avignon has become known as the European capital of culture. This reputation was built during the 14 th century, when Pope Clement V and his court fled political turmoil in Rome and established themselves near Avignon. Accommodation: Hotel Saint Roch Day 7: AVIGNON (B) Sun 13 th Apr This morning make your own way to the station for your train journey to Montpellier (one way train fare included). On arrival into Montpellier, you will make your own way to your to your hotel by tram, where you will stay for the next six nights. The rest of the day is free to settle in and explore your new surrounds. (transport pass included) Day 8: Mon 14 th Apr school for your first 4-hour language lesson. In the afternoon you will be taken on a guided tour of Montpellier. Montpellier was former trading post for spices, place of pilgrimage and centre of learning in the fields of medicine and law. Day 9: Tue 15 th Apr school for your second 4-hour language lesson. This afternoon you will have an excursion organised by the school to either Nîmes or Arenas. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire. Day 10: Wed 16 th Apr This morning make your own way with your teacher to the Accent Francais language school for your third 4-hour language lesson. This afternoon you will have the opportunity to watch French movies at the school. This will assist you with learning the French language and culture.

3 Day 11: Thu 17 th Apr school for your fourth 4-hour language lesson. This afternoon you will have an excursion organised by the school to Sète. Sete is the largest French Mediterranean fishing Port and it s also home to Valery and Brassens. Day 12: Fri 18 th Apr This morning make your own way with your teacher to the Accent Francais language school for your fifth 4-hour language lesson. The afternoon is then free for teacher organised activities. You may like to go and see the aqueduct of Montpellier. Romans invented this water transport system which brought water into all houses, or visit the Place de La Comedie, a huge square (18th Century) which is the heart of the city. Sometimes known as l'ouf, owing to its egg shaped central roundabout around which traffic once circulated until it was made for pedestrians only, it is the most lively part of town. (Sightseeing at own expense.) Day 13: TOURS (D) Sat 19 th Apr This morning you will make your own way by tram, (transport pass included), to the train station for your TGV train journey to Paris. France s famous high-speed rail service, the TGV train travels at 300km per hour and offers an unforgettable journey. On arrival in Paris you will be met and transferred by coach to your hotel in Tours. With its wide 18 th century avenues, formal public gardens, café-lined boulevards and a thriving university, Tours has the look of a miniature Paris. Dinner tonight is at the hotel or a local restaurant. Accommodation: Hotel de l Europe Day 14: TOURS - LOIRE VALLEY TOURS (B) Sun 20 th Apr This morning, after breakfast, you will board your coach for a full day of touring through the Loire Valley. You will visit the palaces of Chenonceau (entrance included) and Clos Lucé. (entrance included). With its stylised moat, drawbridge, towers and turrets, the 16 th century Chateau de Chenonceau is everything a fairy-tale castle should be. In the late afternoon return to Tours. Accommodation: Hotel de l Europe Day 15: TOURS ANGERS MONT ST MICHEL - ST. MALO (B) Mon 21 st Apr This morning you will depart Tours by coach for St. Malo. Enroute you will be stopping in Angers and Mont St Michel. In Mont Saint Michel you will see the famous Mont St. Michel Abbey (entrance included) with its many architectural styles. On arrival in St. Malo you will be transferred to your hotel where you will spend the next two nights. Accommodation: Hotel Du Louvre

4 Day 16: ST. MALO (B) Tue 22 nd Apr Today is free for teacher organised sightseeing but you will have the coach at your disposal to explore the area. (maximum 150km) You may like to visit an Oyster farm in the nearby village of Cancale or just outside the city wall is the Plage de Bon Secours, with its beautiful beach. In the late afternoon you will return to St. Malo. Accommodation: Hotel Du Louvre Day 17: ST. MALO BAYEAUX - NORMANDY - CAEN (BD) Wed 23 rd Apr This morning after breakfast you will depart St Malo by coach to Caen. En route you will stop in Bayeaux to see the Tapestry of Queen Mathilda. (entrance included) The Bayeux is not actually a tapestry, but is embroidery. It is currently to be found in a special museum in the town of Bayeux in Normandy. It was made in England, after the Norman conquest of 1066 and commemorates the events leading up to the Battle of Hastings. You will then continue your journey to the D Day beaches of World War 2, where the Allied forces, based in Britain, decided to begin an invasion by landing a huge army at a place called Normandy Beach. The German failure to successfully defend the Normandy area from the Allied liberation forces in essence doomed Hitler's dream of a Nazi controlled "Fortress Europe" and marked the beginning of the end for Germany. You will then head towards Caen, where you will be transferred to your hotel. Dinner tonight is at the hotel or local restaurant. Accommodation: Hotel Rex Day 18: CAEN - PARIS (BD) Thu 24 th Apr This morning after breakfast board your coach and return to Paris for your last two nights in France. Upon arrival the rest of the day is free for teacher organised sightseeing or activities. You might like to see the Eiffel tower or Arc De Triomphe once again for those last minute photos. (Any entrance fees at own expense.) Dinner tonight is at the hotel or local restaurant) Day 19: PARIS (B) Fri 25 th Apr This morning after breakfast the day is free for independent sightseeing with your teacher. You may wish to take the RER train to Chateau de Vincennes in Vincennes. The Chateau was a royal residence from the 12 th 18 th Century, and still has its outer walls, medieval towers, moats, 14 th century keep and Saint Chappele with its 16 th century stained glass windows. Recent excavations have revealed vestiges of the manor house in which Philippe August and Saint Louis lived. (Any sightseeing and entrance fees at own expense entrance to the chateau is free for persons under 18 years.)

5 Day 20: PARIS - PERTH (B) Sat 26 th Apr This morning after breakfast you will be met by your coach and transferred to Paris airport for your flight back to Perth. You Singapore airlines flight SQ 333 departs Paris at 12.25pm. SINGAPORE AIRLINES SQ 333 DEPARTS PARIS AT 12.25PM / ARRIVES INTO SINGAPORE AT 7.00AM (on the 27 th April) Day 21: PERTH Sun 27 th Apr On arrival into Singapore at 7.00am you will transfer to your Singapore Airlines flight SQ 223 which departs Singapore at 9.35am and arrives into Perth at 2.35pm. (Transit time in Singapore is 2 hours and 35 minutes). SINGAPORE AIRLINES FLIGHT SQ 223 DEPARTS SINGAPORE AT 9.35AM / ARRIVES INTO PERTH AT 2.35PM St. Malo Angers Tours Avignon