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Take advantage of our latest saving of up to £45 per person when booking European and UK Winter and Spring holidays on or before 1st June 2018.
Take advantage of our latest saving of up to £45 per person when booking European and UK Winter and Spring holidays on or before 1st June 2018.
You are viewing the 2019 itinerary
Itineraries and pricing may vary by departure year
Spring comes early to the French Riviera and Nice, with glamorous Monaco to the east and the beautiful Provençal Alps in the background. This is the perfect spring destination, especially with the added zest of the Nice Carnival.
We meet at our exclusive Departure Office in London St Pancras, where we take the Eurostar to Paris. We continue from here by rail to Nice where we check in to the 4-Star Hotel Westminster On Day 2, we enjoy a comprehensive guided tour of Nice by coach. We begin at Mont Boron, overlooking the city and continue to the Roman ruins of Cimiez before finishing at the Place de l'Opera and the flower market.
Your time today is at leisure in Nice before this evening's excursion and the highlight of the tour, where we enjoy the magnificent Nice Carnival from our reserved grandstand seats. This event is widely recognised as one of the biggest carnivals in the world and it takes a new theme each year. The intricate and beautifully designed floats often feature elaborate and intricate caricatures and figures of celebrities and politicians. There are also exciting dance performances and a wealth of sights, sounds and smells as the city erupts into a celebration of colour and art.
Today we travel to Grasse, renowned worldwide for its perfume making, for a tour of the Fragonard Parfumerie. We then head into the hills and enjoy lunch at La Jarrerie, a restaurant dating from the 17th century. Later we continue to the beautiful medieval 'perched' village of St-Paul-de-Vence.You may wish to visit the Maeght Foundation, which houses one of Europe's most important collections of 20th century art. Day 5 is yours to discover Nice.
Our excursion today takes us to the tiny principality of Monaco. One of the most glamorous and luxurious destinations in the world, this area exudes sophistication and intrigue and it is here where we watch the changing of the guard at the 13th century Palais du Prince and home to the Grimaldi family of Monaco. From here, we continue along a stretch of the Monaco Grand Prix race track to Monte Carlo. In Monte Carlo, you have some free time; the Monte Carlo resort is famous as a casino hub for the rich and famous, featuring in James Bond film, Casino Royale. On our way back to Nice from here, we travel through the hilltop village of Eze which retains much of its ancient charm. Tonight we enjoy a farewell dinner together in Nice.
We leave Nice behind today, travelling on the high-speed train service to Paris, where we join the Eurostar to London. Here your tour concludes.
Please note that while every departure of this tour will feature the same excursions, the order may differ from that shown above.
Provisional departure and return times, where available, can be found together with our dates and prices by clicking on the 'Prices & Availability' button. We write to all booked customers approximately 10 weeks prior to the start of their tour to advise the exact departure and return time for their particular group.
An escorted experience and all travel arrangements
Comfortable accommodation in your destination
Delicious meals included
Exciting excursions and free time to explore
Enhancing your tour
Thank you for your letter requesting comments on our holiday to
Nice. We had never visited the area, and completely fell in love
with it.
The holiday was better than expected, with the hotel being of very
high standard. An ideal location on the front, and all the staff
were exceptionally friendly and attentive - an excellent
choice.
Our included trips were absolutely superb, made excellent by the
guide, Sandrine, who was a fountain of local knowledge from start
of journey to the finish. How she could keep us all interested all
day was an achievement. PLEASE pass on our thanks and do continue
to use her again for all your future clients. Brilliant!
Our Tour Manager, Lydia, was again superb and friendly, efficient
and full of energy.
I am sure behind the scenes a lot of work went on but in front
everything went without a hitch. Again, please pass on our sincere
thanks to her.
We will be using you again, just keep sending the newsletters.
Explore Nice, fashionable Monte Carlo and Monaco
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Thank you for your welcome home letter. We have already booked another trip, to the Italian Lakes departing 1st September.
We have previously enjoyed Great Rail Journeys tours to Japan, India, Switzerland and the last one, Nice and the Venice Carnival. We have always enjoyed our trips with your company having found them good value, with lovely hotels and interesting and helpful Tour Managers.
With regard to our last trip to Nice in February, the Tour Manager was great, especially considering he had a couple of difficult travellers and a train schedule hiccup at the end. He coped well with everything. The location of the hotel was super and we thoroughly enjoyed the carnival.
We are looking forward to our September trip.