West Express | Day 1

Departure from Paris in a deluxe coach with your Carol Voyages guide and road to Normandy. Stop in Giverny to visit Monet’s house and gardens. Then drive for a guided tour of the Manoir d’Apreval, a cider house where you will learn the secrets of making pommels, ciders and other calvados. Continuation by a pedestrian tour of Honfleur with its port, its alleys, its art galleries and its Sainte Catherine church of the 15th century. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 2

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning departure for Deauville with its boards, casino and deluxe boutiques. Continuation by a guided tour of the Graindorge cheese dairy in Livarot with cheese tasting. Continue to the landing beaches and stop at Arromanches for a visit to the DDay museum. Road to Bayeux. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 3

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit of Bayeux, its old town, its cathedral and its famous tapestry museum. Continue to Colleville-sur-Mer via Omaha Beach and visit of the American cemetery of Colleville-sur-Mer. Continue to Pointe du Hoc and then drive to Avranches. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 4

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning visit of the Western Marvel : the Mont-Saint-Michel. Free time for lunch at La Mère Poulard for example. Continuation for the small port full of charm of Cancale. This pretty port is getting appreciated both by the look and the palate. Elected as a remarkable site of taste, Cancale has long been known for its oysters and shellfish. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 5

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning visit the oyster farm The Marine farm to better understand the oyster farming, then drive to the city of pirates : Saint-Malo. Visit of the city fortified by Vauban. Continue along the Emerald coast for the charming seaside resort of Dinard then road for Saint Brieuc passing by the Cape Frehel. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 6

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning, visit the Brieuc craft biscuit factory which produces Breton specialties with a good taste of fruit, caramel and salted butter. Continue to the typical fishing port of Paimpol, passing by the sublime coast of pink granite. Continuation to Morlaix and visit of the city between viaduct and alleyways with its churches St Mélaine and St Mathieu, its Pondalez houses (sort of timber-framed) whose best example is the house Penanault. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 7

Breakfast at the hotel. Crossing the Armorique regional park of you will reach the town of Quimper. Visit of Quimper, the capital of Cornwall, a wild and authentic region famous for its lace and its half-timbered houses. Continuation to the charming port of Bénodet, then road to Concarneau, nicknamed “the blue city”. Visit of the Courtin canning factory, the oldest in town, with a tasting. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 8

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning visit the famous biscuit factory of the Galettes de Pont-Aven. Continuation to Carnac and visit of the famous alignments of menhirs of Carnac with the discovery of their mysterious history. The 3 alignments of Carnac stretch over nearly 4km with a total of 2,934 menhirs. Then walk in the peninsula of Quiberon and end in Vannes, city of art and history. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 9

Breakfast at the hotel. Walking tour of the inside ramparts city of Vannes with its cathedral and its half-timbered houses around it. Drive to the Loire Valley castles region and first Saumur. In the afternoon guided tour of the Ecole du Cadre Noir to discover the spearhead of equestrian art in France! An exciting and very informative visit. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 10

Breakfast at the hotel. Morning departure for a visit to the royal abbey of Fontevraud founded in the 12th  century and which remains one of the largest monastic cities from the Middle Ages. Continuation by visiting a famous cellar of Bourgueil wine with tasting. Continuation with the visit of the marvelous Chateau d’Ussé which inspired Charles Perrault for the Sleeping Beauty. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 11

Breakfast at the hotel. The morning departure for Villandry and visit of its extraordinary gardens representing the reconstruction of a 14th century French garden based on ancient texts. Continuation to Montbazon and its fortress of the Black Hawk where you will have the pleasure to discover the trades of the Middle Ages.  In the afternoon drive to Amboise and visit the Clos Lucé, the last home of Leonardo da Vinci. At the end of the day, walk through the streets of Amboise and tasting of Touraine wine. Free time for dinner and night in a 3-star hotel in the surrounding area.

West Express | Day 12

Breakfast at the hotel. Departure for Chenonceau and visit of the most visited historical monument of France after Versailles. Continuation for a visit to the Maison des Vins in Cheverny with visit and tasting. Stop in Chambord and visit the masterpiece of François 1st. Drive to Paris and late arrival at the end of the day.

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