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La Belle Vie: The Rhone, Geneva & the Riviera
Tour Description:
La Belle Vie – it's the good life en Français – and it is the life you experience on a cruise along the River Rhône that takes you from the beautiful waters of the Côte d'Azur to Geneva and the Swiss Alps...
On one of the most enjoyable river cruises in France, journey from the jet-setting capital of Cannes on the Riviera into Provence to Arles to board ms Emerald for a cruise along the Rhône River to Lyon and then along the Saône – and on to Geneva. Travel into the countryside past vineyards where some of the world's best grapes become some of the world's best wines, stopping to taste some of them. Discover river towns with Roman roots and lingering traces of medieval magic in their streets, experience the cowboy traditions and cuisine of La Camargue, and sample the pleasures of regional cuisine and wine throughout your trip. Explore a palace fit for a pope and an abbey that was once one of the most powerful in Europe. You'll find something new, something wonderful every day. As your cruise along the Rhône continues, so does your exploration of history throughout the ages – and concludes in Lyon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its architecture and culinary traditions. Your travels continue to Geneva, Switzerland, for two nights where you'll have an opportunity to spend a day in the Alps. C'est magnifique.
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Dates & Pricing
| Wednesday 30 Jul 25 — Tuesday 12 Aug 25 | Starting at $8,390 |  SPECIAL | Get a Quote |
Disclaimer: Prices listed are per person, based on double occupancy, and in USD. All promotions are valid for new bookings only, capacity controlled and valid on select dates and departures. Individual Terms and Conditions will apply to all promotions. Any promotion can be withdrawn at any time without notice. Please speak with your Pavlus Travel Planner for complete vendor terms and conditions, including eligible tour and cruise dates.
Destination & Sightseeing
Destination & Sightseeing
La Belle Vie – it's the good life en Français – and it is the life you experience on a cruise along the River Rhône that takes you from the beautiful waters of the Côte d'Azur to Geneva and the Swiss Alps...
On one of the most enjoyable river cruises in France, journey from the jet-setting capital of Cannes on the Riviera into Provence to Arles to board ms Emerald for a cruise along the Rhône River to Lyon and then along the Saône – and on to Geneva. Travel into the countryside past vineyards where some of the world's best grapes become some of the world's best wines, stopping to taste some of them. Discover river towns with Roman roots and lingering traces of medieval magic in their streets, experience the cowboy traditions and cuisine of La Camargue, and sample the pleasures of regional cuisine and wine throughout your trip. Explore a palace fit for a pope and an abbey that was once one of the most powerful in Europe. You'll find something new, something wonderful every day. As your cruise along the Rhône continues, so does your exploration of history throughout the ages – and concludes in Lyon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its architecture and culinary traditions. Your travels continue to Geneva, Switzerland, for two nights where you'll have an opportunity to spend a day in the Alps. C'est magnifique.
Highlights
TAUCK EXCLUSIVE – Private gala evening at the recently restored Chateau of the medieval Duchy d'Uzès
TAUCK EXCLUSIVE - La Camargue excursion to meet the family of a working farm for a Provençal lunch & a cowboy demonstration with prized black bulls
Sightseeing choices in Geneva include visits to the world-renowned resort town of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc or a day in Geneva that includes a walking tour of the city and a visit to the lovely medieval village of Yvoire
All gratuities to ship staff, drivers, local guides, Tauck Directors and Tauck Cruise Director
All private Tauck shore excursions – $5,377 Value
Exploration of the Rhône and Saône wine country with vineyard visits and wine tastings
Highlights
TAUCK EXCLUSIVE – Private gala evening at the recently restored Chateau of the medieval Duchy d'Uzès
TAUCK EXCLUSIVE - La Camargue excursion to meet the family of a working farm for a Provençal lunch & a cowboy demonstration with prized black bulls
Sightseeing choices in Geneva include visits to the world-renowned resort town of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc or a day in Geneva that includes a walking tour of the city and a visit to the lovely medieval village of Yvoire
All gratuities to ship staff, drivers, local guides, Tauck Directors and Tauck Cruise Director
All private Tauck shore excursions – $5,377 Value
Exploration of the Rhône and Saône wine country with vineyard visits and wine tastings
ITINERARY
ITINERARYArrive in Cannes
Tour begins: 6:30 PM, Hôtel Martinez. A transfer is included from the Nice Cote d'Azur International Airport, and Cannes Train Station to Hôtel Martinez. Join us for a cocktail reception and dinner in the Mediterranean playground of Cannes.
Choice of Nice and Monte-Carlo or Grasse and St. Paul de Vence
Explore the south of France on a choice of sightseeing excursions today. Your first choice is an excursion that includes walking tours of Nice and Monte-Carlo plus a famed drive... mega-yachts from around the world bobbing in the bay… the rich, the famous, the jet setters… a casino world-renowned for its glamour… a real-life royal fairy-tale romance… it's all part of Nice and Monte-Carlo's magic spell... Alternatively, journey to the hills above Cannes for a visit to Grasse, one of the world's premiere centers for the perfume industry, and a visit to the picturesque walled town of Saint Paul de Vence, a Provençal hilltop town that was built in the 13th century, for a walking tour – you'll be taken with its medieval look and easily understand why it became an artists' enclave. Return to Cannes late afternoon for the evening.
Aix-en-Provence & embark ship in Arles
Travel to lovely Aix-en-Provence; it's not hard to imagine great artists like Vincent van Gogh or Paul Cézanne at work amidst the spectrum of colors found in Provence as you view Mont Ste-Victoire and join your local guide for a walking tour among the fountains, squares and medieval center. Early afternoon, travel to Arles, where you'll board ms Emerald and begin your journey in France along the Rhône and the Saône. The crew welcomes you aboard with a reception followed by dinner this evening.
Discover van Gogh's Arles and meet the cowboys in the Camargue
It may seem strange to encounter Roman ruins in Provence but Arles was, after all, once a Roman city; while the gladiators are gone, the arena they left behind – just one of the town's many Roman remnants. You have a choice today of exploring Arles' medieval streets and city walls on a walking tour, or embarking on a challenging, 2-hour bicycling excursion across the countryside surrounding Arles (which van Gogh found so enchanting). Lunch today is a real treat, as you visit a private ranch in La Camargue for a private banquet of farm-grown Provençal specialties, a musical serenade, and a chance to see the region's iconic white horses, fleet-footed gardians (cowboys) and famous black bulls.
Avignon & a gala dinner in Uzès
Although the fortified city of Avignon was undoubtedly a pleasant place before they arrived, the 14th-century popes, who spent less than a century here when Rome became "tedious" for them, really put it on the map, and cultivated the local wine industry (Châteauneuf-du-Pape) and an appreciation for good food. This morning, choose a visit to the fortress-like home that the pontiffs built for themselves, the Palais des Papes, a guided tour that brings you along the streets of Avignon for an exploration of the city's history and Jewish heritage dating back to the 13th century or an exploration of Avignon via mini train. After a free afternoon aboard ship, travel to the Duchy d'Uzès – a medieval city dating back to the 11th century, often called the "First Duchy of France," that forms the heart of the town of Uzès – for a guided visit followed by a cocktail reception and a Tauck Exclusive gala dinner at the recently restored Chateau.
St. Remy & Chateauneuf du Pape
With your riverboat docked in Avignon for the morning, you can spend more time exploring the medieval city or take a morning excursion to Saint-Remy-de-Provence – home to the ruins of the Roman city of Glanum, as well as the Saint-Paul Asylum where Vincent van Gogh was a patient. After returning to the ship for lunch onboard, head out again for an afternoon wine tasting at one of the select vineyards permitted to produce Châteauneuf-du-Pape – literally "the New Castle of the Pope" – the most famous of the Côtes du Rhône wines; your host reveals secrets of the terroir as you sample estate-crafted red and white wines from a region that's been producing wine for more than 2,500 years! Catch up with the riverboat in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and spend the evening onboard.
Explore the vineyards of Tain L'Hermitage
Arrive this morning in Tain L'Hermitage, deep in the heart of Cote du Rhône wine country, where you'll have a choice of two sightseeing excursions this morning. Visit a local orchard (with tastings), take a mini-train through the Tain L'Hermitage heritage vineyards. Or, go on a fascinating 2.5 mile hike through the heritage vineyards of Tain L'Hermitage where you'll learn about the history of the region's wine. Reboard the riverboat midday and spend the remainder of the day cruising to Macon.
Mâcon & Cluny
Your riverboat arrives in Mâcon on the Saône River this morning, for exploration in Cluny. During the reign of Charlemagne (742 - 814), monastic influences inspired a great revival in art, education and culture; today you'll visit one of the great monasteries of the period when you tour the great Benedictine Abbey of Cluny. Founded in 910, it was at the center of this major monastic reform movement and was also the largest Christian building in the world until the construction of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. After some free time to explore Cluny on your own, reboard your riverboat and cruise to Chalon-sur-Saône.
Chalon-sur-Saône and beyond
Chalon-sur-Sâone on the River Saône lies in the heart of southern
Burgundy. Although its history dates back to the time of Charlemagne, it
has another significant claim to fame – this is considered the
birthplace of photography. So you have local inventor Nicéphore Niépce, who started it all with several photographic firsts right here in the 1820s, to thank
for the great photos of the town's Romanesque churches and other
monuments. Visit the walled city of Beaune – the "wine capital" of the famous Burgundy wine-producing region, and one of France's most important wine centers. A walking tour includes a visit to Hospices de Beaune or Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune, considered one of the best-preserved examples of 15th-century French architecture; you may also see the old market (les Halles), the Beffroi (clock tower), parts of the medieval walls and ramparts, and more. This afternoon you have a choice of wine tasting in Burgundy or a walking tour (and tasting tour) of Chalon-sur-Saône.
Tournus & a day in beautiful Burgundy
After cruising the Saône overnight, ms Emerald calls on Tournus this morning, from which you'll head out to explore the beautiful wine producing region of southern Burgundy, where history lies around every corner (this was a major crossroads during Roman times), and vineyards are everywhere. Picture in your mind what a typical French vineyard looks like... and then view the most amazing landscape that surrounds you for miles and miles. Vineyards, gently rolling hills, orchards, red-tiled farmhouses, medieval cathedrals, the occasional village to stop in... and historic country estates like the 17th-century Château de Cormatin, which you'll explore on a visit today. With its moat, drawbridge, turrets, gilded rooms and parklike grounds – including the mazes and fountains of its completely restored "pleasure garden" that's now among the finest in France – this classic Burgundy château takes you back through the centuries. Return to the riverboat in Tournus for lunch, and continue your cruise this afternoon and evening to France's culinary capital, Lyon.
A day in Lyon, where food is king
Ahh, Lyon. If you're a serious foodie, Lyon is the place for you! But of course there is more to this 2,000 year-old city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, than food. Your day includes getting a panoramic view of Lyon from the hilltop district of Fouvière; a visit to the stunning Basilica of Notre-Dame-de-Fourvière – built in the 1870s on "the hill that prays," it features exquisite marble work, stained glass windows, colorful mosaics and gilt galore; a tour of medieval Vieux Lyon; and a free afternoon to explore more of the city as you please. As your riverboat spends the night docked in Lyon, join us aboard ship for our farewell reception followed by dinner and onboard entertainment.
Disembark in Lyon & on to beautiful Annecy and Geneva
Bid your riverboat au revoirs this morning as your travels to Geneva begin. Arrive in the alpine town of Annecy, known for its lake and its mountains – its setting is where Lake Annecy feeds into the Thiou River. The town itself is amazing, like something out of a storybook; the word "picturesque" doesn't do it justice. Join a local guide for a walking tour along its cobblestone streets, viewing the Old Town set beside flower-bordered canals and boasting colorful houses; 2,000 years of history unfold. Mid-afternoon, following some free time to explore, travel to Geneva for a two-night stay.
Day of choice in Geneva or Chamonix
Today is a day of choice as to how you'll explore. You can join us for a visit to the lovely medieval village of Yvoire followed by a walking tour of Geneva that includes a visit to the Old Town. Alternatively, travel to the world-renowned resort town of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc; travel by cable car from Chamonix town (3,396 feet / 1,035m) to the top of Aiguille du Midi at 12,605 feet for breath taking views of the Alps and Chamonix below, followed by time at leisure in Chamonix. Your third option is to travel to Chamonix and enjoy a scenic 3.2 mile (5km) long cog train ride up the forested slopes of the Mont Blanc massif to the viewing point of the famous glacier called Mer de Glace ("Sea of Ice"). Featuring a beautiful refuge hotel built in 1880 to welcome the first mountaineers and travelers who came to visit the Mer de Glace (and renovated in 2017), Mer de Glace offers stunning views of a glacier, the dramatic valley that it carved out, and the jagged snow covered mountain tops that feed the glaciers – the Mer de Glace valley is regarded as the longest and largest glacier in France, and the second longest in the Alps. Everyone returns to Geneva late afternoon; we invite you to join us for a farewell reception and dinner at your hotel.
Journey home
Tour ends: 8:00 AM Geneva. Fly home anytime. A transfer from InterContinental Gèneve to Geneva Airport or Gare de Genève is included. Please allow a minimum of three hours for flight check-in.
Disclaimer: Prices listed are per person, based on double occupancy, and in USD. All promotions are valid for new bookings only, capacity controlled and valid on select dates and departures. Individual Terms and Conditions will apply to all promotions. Any promotion can be withdrawn at any time without notice. Please speak with your Pavlus Travel Planner for complete vendor terms and conditions, including eligible tour and cruise dates.
