Luxurious Couple's Retreat Tour to France

Pastry shop in Paris, France.

What to expect on this itinerary

France offers visitors an unparalleled blend of European history, delicious cuisine, and stunning natural beauty, all of which appear throughout this 11-day tour of scenic Paris and the country's southern regions. From the regal elegance of the French capital to the vibrant French Riviera, this tour ensures your full immersion into what is best in each community you visit.

Countries Visited

France

Places Visited

Paris, Annecy, Talloires, Avignon, Nice

Suggested Duration

11 Days

Customizable Itinerary

Expand All
Day 1

Paris – Plunging Into the City of Lights

As the capital of France, Paris presents visitors with a romantic landscape where you can encounter award-winning cuisine, stunning architecture, and an abundance of history throughout the city center. Whether you are indulging your spontaneous side on the left bank or pondering the sky-piercing nature of the Eiffel tower, there is something for everyone in this city. After arriving at Charles de Gaulle airport, a private transfer will whisk you from the outskirts of into the UNESCO-listed city center, where you will have a leisurely remainder of the day to unpack and acquaint yourself with the city.

What's Included:

Transfer
Accommodation
Day 2

Paris – Taking a Turn for the Artistic

Day 3

Paris – The Louvre and Orsay Museums

Day 4

Talloires – Gateway to Lake Annecy

Day 5

Talloires – Exploring the Venice of the Alps

Day 6

Avignon – Riding Through the Alps

Day 7

Avignon – Tasting Your Way Through the Ages

Day 8

Nice – Plunging into the French Riviera

Day 9

Nice – The Jewel of the Alpes-Maritimes Region

Day 10

Nice – Basking in Mediterranean Bliss

Day 11

Nice – Departure

Trip Highlights

  • Follow your nose into the many bakeries and colorful cafes in Paris that each have a slightly different take on the traditional and delicious French pastries
  • Stand in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower and the many other monuments and palaces that line the scenic boulevards and parks in Paris
  • Enjoy a private tour of the world-renowned exhibits, artwork, and artifacts displayed in the Louvre and Orsay museums
  • Witness the artistic genius of Monet, Picasso, Cezanne, and others on a trip to witness the inspired art displayed at the Orangerie Museum
  • Roll through the scenic setting of Lake Annecy on a bicycle trip designed for all experience levels, during which you can feel the wind in your hair
  • Meander along the cobblestone alleys and narrow lanes on a walking tour of Annecy village
  • Witness the UNESCO-listed Palace of the Popes during a visit to Avignon, where stunning views of the Rhone and the city center are only footsteps away
  • Savor the many flavors of the department of Vaucluseduring a foodie tour through Avignon, where the bread, cheese, and wine are just some of the best in the world
  • Amble along the placid shores of the Mediterranean during a visit to Nice and chart your own course through this seaside paradise

Starting Price

$10,800 per person (excluding international flights)

Your Zicasso trip is fully customizable, and this sample itinerary is a starting place for your travel plans. Actual costs are dynamic, and your selection of accommodations and activities, your season of travel, and other such variables will bring this budget guideline up or down. Throughout your planning experience with your Zicasso specialist, your itinerary is designed around your budget. You can book your trip when you are satisfied with every detail. Planning your trip with a Zicasso travel specialist is a free service.

What's Included

  • Accommodations
  • In-country transportation
  • Some or all activities and tours
  • Expert trip planning
  • 24x7 support during your trip

Your final trip cost will vary based on your selected accommodations, activities, meals, and other trip elements that you opt to include.

4.6

Verified Traveler Reviews

Based on 44 reviews

France Travel Review: Lyon, Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, Marseilles, Market, Wine Tasting, Cooking Class, History, 9-Day Tour

We decided on this trip with a very short planning time. Zicasso’s travel agent was still able to put together a wonderful trip, taking all of our interests into account and proposing a few things we had not considered. She was delightful to work with. Proposing guides throughout and eliminating the need for a rental car was a wonderful idea, as was adding the stop in Lyon.

Our guide in Lyon was a lot of fun, with a good sense of humor and knowledge of Lyon. She had a good plan for our walking tour and was full of interesting information on local customs and food.

Our other guide was quite entertaining and made for many fun days. She went out of her way to be sure we were having a great time, taking interesting detours in search of poppy fields, beautiful views, and historic sites. She had extensive knowledge of Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, and Marseilles, and showed us great villages and local specialties in between.

The market shopping, wine tasting, and cooking class were wonderful and well placed on our last full day in Aix.

All the transfer drivers were great, with the exception of the Lyon train station, as no driver showed.

The hotel in Lyon was our favorite, with a small sitting area and very comfortable bed. The hotel in Avignon had the most comfortable beds, but the rooms were quite small, with no place to sit other than the bed. We upgraded to a suite for an extra 75 euro per night, which was worth it. The hotel in Aix-en-Provence was nice, but the bed was the least comfortable and we considered a slightly larger room. The hotel in Paris was luxurious and quite large; perhaps a little too grand for our last night as we arrived at 9pm and departed the next day, with little time to explore.

See more

France Travel Review: Lyon, Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, History, Food Pairings, Wine Tastings, 11 Nights

Our trip to Provence was fabulous. The three cities, Lyon, Avignon, and Aix-en-Provence, gave us a real sense of the region. The food, wine, and tours were all magnificent. The hotels were lovely and centrally located. 

The five days in Avignon gave us a sense of the city and history.  All the guides were excellent and well informed. Our entire trip was well organized and the travel app which outlined our trip was “perfect." We were especially thankful for the drivers who were always on time.

We highly recommend our Zicasso travel expert and our travel company. We have never been disappointed with Zicasso.

See more

France Luxury Trip Review: Marseille, Nice, Avignon, Les Baux-de-Provence, Sites & Scenery
This travel team have been professional with the proposal and planning of our trip. The route was logically organized with good recommendations on places to eat and visits. Some hiccups happened which we hope to see improvemnents; viz 1. Our driver at Nice forgot to pick us at the hotel to go to the Nice train station 2. The tour guide for the Antibes, Cannes and St Paul de Vence tour was not familiar with the local area as she was from Avignon. Likewise, she was also not very familiar with the Aix en Provence tour. Notwithstanding this shortcoming, she is a wonderful person and really made the effort to ensure the tours were fun filled. 3. The hotel at Marseille is a nice hotel, however access in and out of the hotel was a daily problem as the whole road in front was dug up. The whole place was messy and dusty. We had to avoid construction vehicles in and out of the hotel entrance. Our drivers had to park a distance away and we had to lug our bags to the transport.

See more

France Travel Review: Avignon, Saint Remy, Nice, Wine Tasting, Rugby, Private Tours, 16-Day Trip
Overall trip was well organized and arranged. The travel agency is responsive and supportive with our changing needs during the trip. Being able to see big city (Nice) and heart of Provence at Avignon and Saint Remy, finishing up in the City of Toulouse was good itinerary for us to enjoy France. We managed to make a day trip to Barcelona, too! Having our luggage stolen on the train (TGV) is still painful and we are saddened by the loss of our precious memento. The agency has done as much as possible and was sincere in supporting us. 

See more

Travel Review: Graduation Trip to France, Nice, Paris, Avignon, Seine River, Notre Dame, Winery Tours

This was our first trip to France and my second experience with working with a travel company to plan a trip to Europe. I wanted to work with someone who knew the area, could recommend an itinerary to suit our interests (my husband, me, our 2 adult children and our niece who just graduated high school). I feel that we settled on an itinerary that worked for all of us and our trip went smoothly - even with the train strike! All hotels, tours, and transfers were as planned. Our trip was lovely!! The only reason I am not rating this agency and agent with 5 stars is that I believe when you are paying a premium for a travel agency a few little extra's would be appreciated. A phone call or text checking in with us during the trip would have been a nice touch, also, notifying the hotels/B&B's of food allergies (gluten and dairy) would have helped considerably with the limited food selections for the included breakfasts. Although our B&B in Avignon was very accommodating once she knew about our food challenges. Our last hotel was in a very poor location in Nice and was definitely not a 4 Star hotel (as advertised). Our agent changed hotels at the last minute for this location and I am not certain why.

See more

Southern France Tour Review: Nice, Marseilles, Aix en Provence, Luberon Villages, Perfume Factory Tour, Olive Farm, Architecture
Overall the trip was extremely enjoyable.  We did a tremendous amount of research beforehand and Zicasso and this travel team complemented our thoughts and desires.  For the most part the trip was a positive.The negatives:  Negotiating the train in Nice and again in Marseilles was a nightmare.  We had no experience, little to no understanding of French, and three pieces of luggage to get on, and up two sets of stairs in Nice.  My wife advised the travel team about her rotator cuff surgery as being one of the reasons we were paying for the transports, and that we wanted this trip to be as stress free as possible.  We had no idea what to look for on the monitors, what train, where to go, and what the process was.  We were going to Avignon from Nice, and that is what we were looking for on the monitor.  We had no idea that our train, when it finally came up was the one that showed Paris as the destination,  It was a godsend that we had over 2 hours. We went to information and they told us to go to the ticket office.  We did.  It was crowded and busy, and after observing and making some mistakes, we finally figured out the system there and were able to speak to someone with very limited English.  Marseilles was as equally bad as Nice.  A couple that we had shared a tour with us spotted our discomfit and took us under their wings.  We would never have made the train without them.  It was shear and utter chaos.  My wife held onto his shirt as we pushed and shoved our way to the train.  Honestly, my 5' wife thought she was going to get trampled.  More people than could fit were trying to get through the train doors, and we again, had to get our luggage up the stairs.  Please bear in mind we were gone for a full month and each bag was close to 50#'s.  There were twice as many people on the train than there were seats, with luggage jammed in the aisles.  I managed a seat with my 50# luggage on my lap for 3-1/2 hours, and my wife sat on her carry on bag, with her legs on top of her luggage.  The train was delayed for 45 minutes while they tried to get some people off and onto another train, but even after that the aisles were still packed.  There was no way the entire trip to even get to the bathroom.  At 66 and 69 years old, I can tell you, we will never do that again unless we have someone to assist us in learning the ropes.  I have no idea if first class is better.  My wife expressed her concern to this travel team prior to the trip and he said "it's easy, you will have no problem".  Our suggestions to the team would be, if you have clients who have never used the train system, provide them with the information necessary to guide them through the process.  Explain the monitors, advise what destination to look for, and give an itinerary on the stops as part of the train voucher,  and along with that advise the cab driver to go in with the clients and give them a brief overview. Your trains are nothing like our trains.  Never would they be able to have anyone, never mind women and children standing in the aisles, unable to move.  As you can see, the beginning and end of the trip was not good. The other negatives are minor.  The Perfume Factory tour was boring, loud and inaudible.  The private transfer from Avignon to Aix en Provence was almost 5 hours of driving with a couple of brief stops.  It was long, also boring and as he took all the back roads it was mile after mile of countryside with nothing to look as nothing was in bloom.  Our driver was very difficult to understand. Most of the time we had no idea what he was saying, and to make matters worse some of the villages he quickly drove through were where we were going the next day.  We wished we had more time in some of the small towns and villages that we visited that we were entranced with, especially when it was  just the two of us.  We understood the constraints of a group organized tour.  Our room at the hotel in Aix-en-Provence had a consistent sewer smell.  When we entered the room it was strongly perfume scented but it did not cover it up.  We weren't in there a lot so just dealt with it and opened the windows at night. Just a heads up.The positive is that we were able to see everything we had selected and then some, Our trip planner at this travel team was responsive and patient and did an excellent job in complying with our requests to the best of his ability. We enjoyed working with him and this travel team.              

See more

Customizable Itinerary

This is a sample itinerary to inspire a personalized trip designed with your travel specialist.

28,000+ Verified Traveler Reviews