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Loire Valley Immersive French Experience - Small Group Tour (8 Days)

  • 8days
  • France

Single bed room:
Twin bed room:
Double bed room:
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Small Group Tours Europe
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Enjoy a Guided Loire Valley Experience

Explore the world-famous spectacular castles of the Loire Valley. Oo la la the food! Start your day with fresh pastries from the local boulangerie.  Enjoy garden to table food at your accomodation Manor, picnic hampers full of fabulous French bread, cheese and wine, and dine at iconic French restaurants. Discover Loire Valley wines. Join your host who is wine expert for a wine experience like no other. Your host is well known and respected in the region, giving you privileged access to vineyards, wineries and winemakers. Dine like royalty. No vacation is complete without a chance to dress up and experience something very special, maybe a meal at a grand chateau, a Michelin starred restaurant, a quirky French dining experience, or a degustation wine pairing dinner with us in the Manor House Dining Room. Lazy afternoons included.  Take time to adjust to the slower French pace of life with lazy afternoons by the heated pool, reading in the garden, or exploring the local area on our Cruiser bikes.

Highlights:

  • Experience unique access and contact with the characters, sights and tastes of France
  • Enjoy gourmet food and wine
  • Visit world famous Loire valley castles
  • Explore local villages and sights
  • Relax into the slower pace of rural French life

Accomodation: 

Your cottage accomodation is a holiday destination 20 km south of Saumur nestled within the Loire Valley Natural Park. The cottages are within the lovely walled grounds of the old manor (circa 1812) and are fully self-contained with their own bedroom, bathroom, lounge/dining and kitchen. There is a heated pool during the warmer months and a large garden that will satisfy your needs for solitude or socializing.  Our large vegetable garden produces wonderful organic vegetables and fruits that you will enjoy during your stay.

Included in this tour

  • Accommodation in a fully equipped cottage at an exclusive Manor with double bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and lounge/dining

  • Dinner day 1. Breakfast, lunch and dinner from day 2 to 7. Breakfast day 8

  • ½ bottle of house wine per person with lunch and dinner

  • Transport in our comfortable minivan to all sights and activities, and between Saumur train station and your accomodation

  • Entrance fees to all attractions included in the itinerary

  • Wine tasting fees

Not included:

  • Free day additional activities

  • Supplement for chateau dining experience

  • Personal insurance and expenses

Notes:

  • Tour runs from May to September. 

  • Minimum 4 people, maximum 8. Special dates may be arranged for groups of at least 6 guests.

  • Order of tour days may change to take advantage of local events, the weather, availability of activities, or unforeseen circumstances

  • Prices are per person. No single supplement

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  • Day 1

    Sparking Welcome - After a 300 km/h train journey on the TGV, you will be picked up at the Saumur train station and taken to your private self-contained cottage in Saint Macaire du Bois, your French village for the week. A glass of bubbles awaits, along with a briefing on the week ahead. This evening we will dine in the formal manoir dining room with the family porcelain and fine crystal glasses. You will help your host prepare a five-course gourmet meal in the classical French Bourgeois style, and enjoy fabulous local wines

  • Day 2

    Loire Valley Wine Tour - Continental breakfast in your cottage then we meet in the wine room with your host for a primer on the wines of the Loire Valley, how to taste wine and unravel the mystique of food pairings. You have privileged access for a behind the scenes tour of several local vineyards and a chance to taste a variety of 15+ wines using your new-found skills. Lunch is provided at a local restaurant with wine of course! Back to the manor house in the late afternoon for a relaxed BBQ in the garden.

  • Day 3

    Local Castle Visit - After our big day yesterday, we will take a moment to slow down. You are welcome to take a bike ride to the boulangerie with your host to get the breakfast pastries for an extravagant brunch on the manor terrace. In the afternoon we head off to visit a local castle, we may even sneak in a wine tasting on the way. We will return to your accomodation, leaving you plenty of time for a swim and to get ready for dinner out at a casual French restaurant

  • Day 4

    Grand Castle Visit - A breakfast basket will be delivered to your cottage so you can get ready for a big day at one of the premier Loire Valley castles. We will leave early so we can explore the castle before the hoards arrive on their day trips from Paris! We will take a picnic basket with us and find a nice spot on the lawn to enjoy an alfresco lunch with a glass of wine. After our big day out, you will enjoy a private 4 course dinner with wine in your cottage so you can relax with a quiet evening in.

  • Day 5

    Free Day - A breakfast basket and picnic lunch will be delivered to your cottage in the morning so that you can spend your day as you please. You can relax by the pool, grab one of our cruiser bikes and tootle along our quiet country lanes, or head further afield and maybe take a balloon ride or a boat cruise on the Loire. Let us know what you would like to do, we are happy to help you with reservations and transport. This evening it is time to dress up and head out to an iconic French restaurant for dinner.

  • Day 6

    Troglodyte Experience - A breakfast basket will be delivered for you to enjoy at your leisure in your cottage.
    Mid-morning we will meet at the manor house. Bring a light jacket and good shoes because today will be spent exploring underground! The area around your accomodation is famous for its limestone caves, created when the blocks were quarried to build the beautiful white castles and houses in the Loire Valley. These caves are now being used for all manner of interesting activities. After a visit to a magnificent art installation, we will enjoy a traditional cave lunch of stuffed mushrooms and fouets cooked in a wood fired oven. The afternoon will be spent exploring an underground habitation, and then it is on to a prestigious wine house where you will descend into the caves where grapes undergo the metamorphosis into the magical Crement de Loire sparkling wine, which you will get to sample of course! This evening we will enjoy an alfresco dinner together.

  • Day 7

    Explore Saumur - After breakfast in your cottage we will head into Saumur. This is also your time to explore Saumur, the castle, the sparkling wine caves, take a boat trip, or visit the Combier distillery, a local distillery producing incredible spirits and liqueurs on equipment designed by Gustaf Eiffel. Yes, THAT Eiffel. This producer only sells locally and to high end bars and gourmet stores abroad. Enjoy a restaurant lunch in Saumur. We will return to your accomodation for a quiet afternoon, then it’s into our fancy clothes for our final evening meal together at a magical restaurant nestled under a castle next to a river. If the group prefers we can go all-out and dine at an exquisite chateau (supplement applies).

  • Day 8

    Champagne Farewell - A champagne breakfast will be served in the dining room to give us a chance to reminisce about our week together experiencing this unique part of France. You will be dropped back to Saumur to pick up the TGV to take you to your next adventure. We won’t say “goodbye” but “au-revoir”, until we meet again.

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Bumblebee Manor - gardens

I want to tell you what a memorable week we had! Sue and Martin are wonderful hosts. They provided comfortable accommodation, beautiful meals, varied and flexible days....Martin has an extensive knowledge of the local wines, from which we benefited. This is not a tour for the 5****, dress for dinner crowd, but for those who want to experience the "real" local area. I cannot recommend this program enough and encourage you to promote it!!!! An unforgettable week. - June 2023

chateau

Had an amazing time in the Loire Valley with our hosts Sue & Martin. Food & wine was amazing as was their every effort to make our stay as good as it possibly could be. Visited chateaus, castles & local markets and of course amazing wine tastings - August 2023

Tours marked with are special prices.

Start End Max. No. Guests Accommodation Price p.p.
Aug 23 2025 Aug 30 2025 8 Single rooms 2,760€
Double rooms 2,760€

Car rental in France

If you would like to drive yourself before or after your tour, ask us for a quote on any brand new Renault, Peugeot or Citroen vehicle for driving in Europe.

Pick up your vehicle from most capital cities in Europe and return it to your drop off destination. Top insurance cover. Email [email protected] for a competitive quote

Paris Theatres

Shows in English in Paris: Paris offers a wide variety of shows accessible to English-speakers. One-man shows, classic & modern theatre, musicals, cabarets and more are all performed in the city every night. You can get the full programme of shows in Paris to fit your city break dates by emailing [email protected]

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