Rooms for 10 nights in first class, superior, or deluxe hotels or villas

Private tranfers between hotels and stations / airports.
8 day rental, with unlimited miles, of intermediate car (Peugeot 407 or similar) with manual transmission*** and A/C; or 4 day 1st class rail pass.
Daily breakfast (continental or buffet, depending on hotel)
City tour of Old Toulouse
The fortified city of Carcassonne, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Walking tour of medieval Albi on the banks of the River Tarn
Albi’s Gothic Sainte Cecile Cathedral, with its extraordinary art collection
Guided tour  of the Palais de la Berbie in Albi, housing the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum
The prehistoric cave art of Lascaux II, Rouffignac, Font-de-Gaume, Cougnac and Pech Merle; the shelters of Abri Pataud and Cap Blanc and the Village Troglodyique de la Madeleine
The Museum of Prehistory in Les Eyzies-de-Tayac
Explore three magnificent medieval chateaux: Castelnaud, Beynac, and Puymartin
Visits to the beautiful hillside/hilltop villages of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, Rocamadour, and La Roque Bageac
The colorful weekly market in ancient Sarlat
Half day Guided tour of the Bordeaux wine region (tasting optional) and the ancient village St. Emilion 
Guided city tour of Bordeaux including the Musée d’Aquitaine
Travel planning services

*** Rental cars with automatic transmission are expensive and often not readily available in the Toulouse area. If you must have an automatic transmission, we will make every attempt to arrange the vehicle of your choice. Also,there is a reasonable chance that you could be upgraded to a full size car (Mercedez C-class or similar with manual transmission) with no additional charge. 

ABOUT OUR FEATURED HOTELS

U.S.A. / Paris
Day 1
Depart U.S.A. for Italy. Meals Aloft

Arrive at the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris and proceed to the boarding gate for your flight to Toulouse. Your driver will be holding sign with your name as you emerge from baggage claim in Toulouse, and will provide private transfer to the hotel you have chosen from our list. You can choose to tour Toulouse with English speaking guide this afternoon or tomorrow morning.

 The "Golden Age" of Toulouse flourished between 1500 and 1700, when wealthy merchants erected magnificent townhouses topped with medieval towers overlooking the city.  Tour the most beautiful of these houses, Hôtel d’Assézat, designed by Nicolas Bachelier, the greatest Renaissance architect of Toulouse.  Visit Les Jacobins, the first Dominican monastery founded by Saint Dominic in the 13th century and a masterpiece of southern French Gothic style.  The Musée des Augustins, housed in the former Augustinian Monastery, displays a remarkable collection of medieval stone sculpture.  View Saint-Sernin Basilica, the largest and one of the wealthiest Romanesque churches in France.  Built of red brick and white sandstone, the church’s construction began in the 11th century.     Meals aloft

Toulouse (Haute-Garonne countryside)
Day 3

As is true each day, water sports, fishing, golf, tennis, horseback riding, hiking, biking or aerial activities can be arranged.  Be sure to allow time today for the part of Toulouse that you missed on Day 2.  B

Drive to the Cité of Carcassonne, the largest and best-preserved fortress in Europe.  Tour the castle with your guide and walk along the formidable ramparts, climb to the top of the towers, and explore the basilica.  Enjoy lunch (extra cost) at the Hôtel de la Cité within the fortress walls before driving to Albi.

Situated on the banks of the River Tarn, Albi is a city rich in historical and artistic heritage.  A walking tour of Albi’s lovely ancient quarter includes 14th-century Sainte Cecile Cathedral, where the outer rigor of its defensive architecture contrasts with the inner riches of its sumptuous decoration.  The mighty Gothic fortress/cathedral of Sainte Cecile is home to many cherished works of art, including a priceless, intricately carved ornamental altar screen, a vast fresco of The Last Judgment, and a Flamboyant Gothic chancel dating to the 15th century.

Accommodations for the next two nights are in the Albi area at the hotel you have chosen from our list. B

For the balance of the day, the Tarn region north of  Albi offers an abundance of picturesque medieval hilltop villages, fortresses, and castles (chateaux). We have routed you to the beautiful hilltop villages of Cordes-sur-Ciel and Najac. Be warned, however, that these villages are best explored on foot and the steep, cobblestoned streets are best traversed with sturdy shoes.  We will help you choose a less strenuous itinerary if you wish.

Return to your hotel in the Albi area this evening. B

Albi/Perigord (Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, Cave of Pech Merle, Rocamadour)
Day 6
Drive from Albi to fabulous Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, with panoramic views of the surrounding valley  and begin your exploration of fascinating Périgord, Europe’s most important prehistoric region.  Its terrain, crisscrossed by gentle rivers flowing amid extraordinary limestone formations, offered numerous shelters and caves to our early ancestors.  Expressive cave paintings, tools, and excavated remains are evidence of human existence and cultural evolution.  A short drive eastbound from Saint-Cirq-Lapopie takes you to the beauty of the artistic Cave of Pech Merle, known for its prehistoric paintings of mammoth, horses, and "negative hands."

Then drive north to Rocamadour, a spectacular medieval village chiseled into the side of a limestone cliff.  In the Middle Ages, Rocamadour was the third most important pilgrimage site after the Holy Land and Santiago de Compostela.  On the outskirts of Rocamadour, the ancient Hospitae de St. Jean is well worth a visit. The hotel or chateaux that you choose from our list will be your home in Perigord/Dordogne for the next three nights. B

Sarlat, Beynac, Castelnaud, La Rocque Bageac, Domme
Day 7
Begin today at the weekly open-air market in the medieval village of Sarlat. (We will adjust your itinerary so that you are in Sarlat on market day). While browsing through the local shops, take the opportunity to sample ingredients for some of the great culinary traditions preserved through the centuries by Sarlat’s people. If you have chosen not to stay at Chateau de Puymartin, you should at least tour the fortress. Located two miles northwest of Sarlat, the castle has been continuously occupied by the descendants of one of the Dukes of Aquitaine for over 500 years. Ask the countess or her son Xavier to recommend the best place to have Foie Gras for dinner.

Depart southbound from Sarlat and visit Château de Beynac, a formidable presence on the meandering Dordogne River that holds a commanding view of the fortress-dotted valley. On the opposite bank of the river, see Castelnaud, Beynac’s medieval rival. At La Rocque Bageac, considered by many to be France’s most beautiful hillside village, you may want to explore the Dordogne Valley by canoe, or by "boat & bike". A few miles south of La Rocque, Domme is a picturesque, hilltop walled village dating back to the Middle Ages.

Depending upon your energy level, you may want to continue south of Domme to visit the prehistoric Cave of Cougnac, known for its prehistoric paintings of extinct megaloceros, mammoth, and rare human portraits. Return tonight to your hotel in Perigord.  B

At the site of Abri Pataud, extensive digging in the early 1960s revealed astonishing details of Cro-Magnon man. You can explore the galleries at the  prehistoric Cave of Rouffignac on board an electric train, stepping off at different points to admire the numerous engravings of mammoth, rhinoceros, horses, bison, and mountain goats, extensively represented on the walls. You can also see numerous animal paintings at the Cave of Font-de-Gaume’s and the Shelter of Cap Blanc displays sculpted frieze of life-size horses.

 Whichever of the cave art you choose to see, your day should also include a visit to the Village Troglodytique de la Madeleine. Return to your hotel in Perigord this evening. B

After lunch at Le Château Grand Barrail, an impressive 19th-century edifice amid Saint-Emilion’s renowned vineyards, you take a three hour guided tour of the Bordeaux wine region (wine tasting optional). You may want to wait until Day 10 to visit the Sauterne region and Chateau d’ Yquem, which is about 40 miles southeast of Bordeaux.

Select a hotel from our list for this area and check in for three nights.  B/L

The Medoc, a distinct part of the Bordeaux wine region northwest of the city, is an interesting option for today, as is the Sauterne region. However, the Atlantic Ocean is less than 40 miles west of Bordeaux and you may choose to sun, swim, parasail, or go boating. Boat + bike exploration along the canals of the region, fishing, golf, tennis, horseback riding, hiking and hot air ballooning are other options. Return to your Bordeaux area hotel this evening. B

Well known for its wine, trade, and strategic port, Bordeaux attributes its "Golden Age" to the 18th century, when city fathers created the classical urban masterpiece we know today.  Bordeaux’s Old City is one of the largest protected architectural neighborhoods in all of France.  The morning’s tour includes resplendent architecture, opulent mansions, and broad avenues designed by the Marquis de Tourny.  Visit the Musée d’Aquitaine, exhibiting prehistoric to present-day artifacts of the Aquitaine Region, including the second-century B.C. Tayac treasure.  The afternoon is free for lunch on your own, with time to browse in the charming Old Quarter.  Return to your hotel this evening.  If you wish, we will make dinner, symphony or theatre reservations for either of the evenings that you are in the Bordeaux area. B