Cote D’Azur & Nice Carnivals

Celebrate the Carnival season in style on the chic Côte d’Azur

Experience the delights of the sophisticated Côte d’Azur as we travel to the French Riviera. Each year, as part of its Lent celebrations, the city of Nice holds a Mardi Gras parade, generally considered to be the biggest in Europe. The carnival includes the flower festival, the highlight of which is the “Batailles de Fleurs” during which tens of thousands of flowers are thrown into the crowds from elaborate floats and the Mardi Gras Parade with this years theme being the “King of Media”; we will attend both parades. Other highlights include a visit to the Galimard Perfume Factory and Museum in Grasse, the perfume capital of France. Here you will see antique machinery and your guide will explain the techniques involved in the production process including how the aromatic raw materials are extracted from flowers, plants and fragrant woods.

The tour also includes a full-day visit to Monte Carlo here there will be a guided tour of the legendary Belle Époque Casino de Monte-Carlo and a visit to the fascinating Oceanographic Museum. The tour will also take you through the beautiful Provence as it follows the Loup River through the dramatic Loup Gorge, to Gourdon, climbing ever higher through the rocky forested valley, you can’t help but be impressed by your first view of the village. Gourdon sits high on top of a rocky promontory from where it has magnificent views over the valley of the Loup River and beyond to the Mediterranean.

During our stay we will also take time to visit the beautiful village of Tourrettes sur Loup where we will visit the Confisierie Florian and also St Paul de Vence, well known for its modern and contemporary art galleries and museums.

Day One – Saturday 20th February
We meet up at the port of Dover and after our crossing we have a short drive to our first continental stop. This evening we join together for a Welcome Dinner with wine at a French Chateau with overnight parking in their grounds (no facilities). 17 miles

Day Two – Sunday 21st February
We head south today, mostly on motorways, to our lakeside campsite in the Champagne region 240 miles

Day Three – Monday 22nd February
Another motorway drive today to a large campsite just on the outskirts of Lyon 216 miles

Day Four – Tuesday 23rd February
Our drive will take us to the majestic city of Avignon, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Our campsite is right on the River Rhone and tonight we will have a meal in the campsites Cafe restaurant which has lovely views across the river to the city 148 miles

Day Five – Wednesday 24th February
We will take a tour of Avignon using the “little train” and then have a guided tour of the magnificent Palace of the Popes, seat of the papacy in the 14th Century and one of the largest and most important Gothic buildings in Europe. Lunch will be provided in a city restaurant and after there will be a guided walking tour of this historic city

Day Six – Thursday 25th February
We arrive on the Cote D’Azur. Our site is at Villeneuve-Loubet-Plage on the outskirts of Nice, where we will be staying for the next 11 nights 153 miles

Day Seven – Friday 26th February
A free day to relax and take in your surroundings

Day Eight – Saturday 27th February
A free morning before we are taken to Nice by coach to see the “Batailles de Fleurs” during which tens of thousands of flowers are thrown into the crowds from the elaborate floats. The capital of the Cote d’Azur, Nice has been attracting visitors since the 19th Century. Its Lent-time carnivals are the oldest in Europe and amongst the oldest in the world. They now take place over a period of twelve days, packed with parades, floats, street stalls and entertainment and truly represent the joie de vivre of the city

Day Nine – Sunday 28th February
We are back in Nice again this afternoon to see the final “King of Media” Carnival Parade for the 2016 season. This is the biggest winter event on the French Riviera and we will watch from our reserved seats. The enjoyment is infectious and you will almost certainly want to join in throwing streamers and confetti

Day Ten – Monday 29th February
A free day. Nice is a fascinating city to explore and has a plethora of wonderful Museums to visit, or you could use the excellent public transport links to travel further afield

Day Eleven – Tuesday 1st March
We will be taken by coach to the tiny Mediterranean Principality of Monaco. Although it is the second smallest country, it boasts the highest number of millionaires and billionaires per head of population in the world. We will have a guided tour of the legendary Casino de Monte-Carlo (out of gaming hours). A magnificent fusion of Belle Époque style, the building still retains its gildings, chandeliers and sumptuous decor. It is perhaps salutary to note that citizens of Monaco are not permitted to enter. After lunch we will visit the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco which is housed in a monumental building that towers over the sheer cliff face to a height of 279 feet. The underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau was a director here from 1957 to 1988, on display are a great variety of sea fauna and sea-related objects

Day Twelve – Wednesday 2nd March
A free day for independent sightseeing. It is possible to take a short train ride into Antibes to visit its famous covered Provencal market, an ideal place to buy some treats to take home. Picasso lived and worked here in the Chateau Grimaldi in the late 1940s. The Chateau is now a museum and aside from giving a fascinating insight into Picasso’s work during this period it has glorious views over the coastline and is well worth a visit.

Day Thirteen – Thursday 3rd March
An excursion, into some of the most beautiful Provencal countryside today taking in the Loup Gorge and the ancient village of Gourdon perched on its promontory overlooking the Mediterranean. On the way down we will visit the little village of Tourettes-sur-Loup, and “Confisierie Florian” famed for the manufacture of traditional, floral-scented crystallised flowers and fruit, which are specialities of the region

Day Fourteen – Friday 4th March
A free day today, but it is possible to take the train back to Monaco or Nice or perhaps make use of the excellent cycle routes to Nice or Antibes. The hill top village of Biot is nearby with its artisan’s artistic glass blowing studios.

Day Fifteen – Saturday 5th March
We are collected by coach this morning and taken to Grasse, the perfume capital of France, where we will visit the Galimard Parfumerie. After a light lunch at St Donat golf club we will be taken to St Paul-de-Vence, a lovely Provencal walled town with many sites of interest and a rich cultural heritage. The artist Marc Chagall is buried in the churchyard here.

Day Sixteen – Sunday 6th March
Our final day is a free day, in the evening we will have our Farewell Dinner in an excellent restaurant in the marina of Villeneuve-Loubet-Plage

Day Seventeen – Monday 7th March
The tour ends this morning. You may make your way to Calais at your own pace or make use of your flexible ferry ticket to extend your stay. If the Tour Directors are returning to Calais you may accompany them by a route and timing of their choice. Please note that all subsequent costs incurred are your responsibility

PRICE

Motorhome with 2 people = £0000 per person
Motorhome with 1 person = £0000

DEPOSIT = £250

INCLUDED IN PRICE

• Return Dover/Calais Ferry with 60 day Flexible Ticket + Club Class Lounge
• 15 Campsite nights with hook-up
• 1 Overnight parking at French Chateau (No Facilities)
• All transfers required for Excursion/Events as per the itinerary
• Entrance fee’s on excursions unless otherwise specified
• Tour Information Pack with suggested routes
• Services of Tour Directors travelling in their own motorhome

• EXCURSIONS & EVENTS:

• Tourist Train tour of Avignon
• Guided tour of the Palace of the Popes
• Entrance tickets for the Batailles de Fleurs
• Reserved seats at the Nice Mardi Gras Parade
• Excursion to Monte Carlo, Monaco
• Guided tour of the Casino de Monte-Carlo
• Entrance tickets to Oceanographic Museum of Monaco
• Galimard Parfumerie visit and St Paul de Vence
• Loup Gorge, Gourdon, Tourrettes sur Loup, Confisierie Florian

• MEALS

• Three Lunches
• Three Dinners with Wine