Destinations On This 15 Day Tour:
Day 14: Avignon, Gordes, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Day 1 – Arrival in Lisbon
Arrive in Lisbon, where your driver-guide meets you at the airport. After checking in at your hotel, take a light evening stroll through Alfama, the city’s oldest neighborhood. The winding streets and tiled walls are beautiful on their own, but it’s the Fado music drifting from open doors that makes it even more special. Starting here sets the tone: Lisbon is a city best experienced slowly, by walking its lived-in corners.
Day 2 – Lisbon’s Stories & Flavors
You begin the day in Belém, where Portugal’s Age of Discovery is on full display. With your guide, you step inside the Jerónimos Monastery, its stone carvings filled with nautical symbols, and then continue to the Tower of Belém, standing guard over the river.
Late morning, you hop aboard Tram 28, rattling through Lisbon’s hills and neighborhoods. Instead of staying on for the full loop, you get off at hidden squares and lively local markets, the kind of stops your guide knows make the ride more than just a sightseeing novelty.
In the afternoon, you walk through the Chiado and Alfama districts, with time to visit elegant cafés and old bookstores, before exploring winding alleys passing tiled houses.
Day 3 – Palaces & the Coast
Spend a day exploring the romantic palaces across Sintra, starting at Pena Palace. Walk through rooms filled with 19th-century royal furnishings, step out onto the terraces for views across the Sintra hills, and wander the stunning gardens that surround the palace.
In the afternoon, you head to Quinta da Regaleira, exploring the lavish rooms before descending into its gardens, filled with underground tunnels, hidden grottoes, and the famous Initiation Well.
After lunch, continue to Cascais, once a royal getaway, now a seaside town with a stylish but relaxed vibe. The sea air, the marina, and the rocky “Devil’s Mouth” cliff make it an easy place to linger. This mix of mountain retreat and coast is why Lisbon locals still escape here.
Day 4 – Lisbon to Porto via Coimbra
Drive north through Portugal’s countryside, stopping in Coimbra, a city defined by its university. The highlight is the Joanina Library — a golden Baroque hall that still protects its books with a colony of bats in the rafters.
By late afternoon, you’ll reach Porto. Staying near the Douro means you can step outside into Ribeira, a district where painted houses line the waterfront. It’s a lively but charming place to start your Porto days.
Day 5 – Discovering Porto
Explore Ribeira, where narrow streets tumble down to the river. Cross the Dom Luís I Bridge for one of the city’s most iconic views. Step into Livraria Lello, an ornate bookshop that feels more like a cathedral of literature, with its carved wood, stained glass, and the famous staircase.
In the afternoon, head to Gaia for a port tasting. Port isn’t just sweet wine — there are different styles, each with its own story. Tasting them with a view of Porto across the river is an experience that ties the city and its culture together.
Day 6 – Douro Valley Escape
You spend your last day in Portugal out in the Douro Valley, a landscape of steep, terraced vineyards that run down to the river. In the morning, journey along winding roads that open up to incredible views before arriving at a family-run wine estate. Here you tour the cellars, walk through the vines, and hear how the same traditions have been passed down for generations.
Lunch is served right at the estate — simple, regional dishes paired with the wines made on-site. In the afternoon, you board a traditional wooden boat for a slow cruise on the river, watching the hillsides unfold from the water.
Day 7 – Portugal to France
Fly from Porto to Paris, then travel south into the Loire Valley. Along the way, the scenery changes — the rugged Atlantic tones of Portugal give way to the gentle French countryside. Staying in a château hotel puts you right into the atmosphere of the region, with stone towers, gardens, and a sense of stepping into history.
Day 8 – Loire Valley Castles
You’ll spend the morning exploring Château de Chambord, the largest and most extravagant château in the Loire. Its double-helix staircase winds you up to terraces with sweeping views of the grounds, and the roofline bristles with turrets and chimneys. After wandering its vast halls, you drive to a nearby vineyard where you sit down for an intimate tasting with the winemaker, learning how the Loire’s soil gives its wines their distinctive freshness.
Day 9 – Amboise & Chinon
On your 9th day, explore Amboise with your private guide, with a walk through the cobbled streets leading up to the royal château overlooking the Loire River. Enjoy a guided tour of Clos Lucé, Leonardo da Vinci’s final home, where you’ll witness models of his inventions and sketches. In the afternoon, you continue to Chinon, where you descend into a cool stone cellar for a tasting of robust red wines, a deep contrast to the whites of the previous day.
Day 10 – Bordeaux
Your private driver guide will transport you south through gentle French countryside, stopping along the way in a sleepy village for coffee and a walk through its market square. By late afternoon, you arrive in Bordeaux and settle into your hotel. As evening falls, you stroll the elegant boulevards and riverside quays, getting your first taste of the city’s easy rhythm.
Day 11 – Bordeaux’s Mix of Old and New
Spend your 11th morning wandering through Bordeaux’s UNESCO-listed old town. At the morning market, you can sample fresh oysters and cheese alongside locals doing their shopping. In the afternoon, you join a hands-on wine blending workshop, where you measure and mix different varietals to create your own Bordeaux blend.
Day 12 – Arcachon and the Atlantic
You head west to Arcachon Bay, where oyster baskets line the water’s edge. Sitting at a rustic seaside shack, you savor oysters straight from the bay, accompanied by a splash of lemon and a chilled glass of white wine. Afterward, you climb the Dune du Pilat, Europe’s tallest dune, where the reward is a sweeping panorama of the Atlantic on one side and endless pine forests on the other.
Day 13 – South to Provence
Depart Bordeaux in the morning, driving through vineyards and farmlands as the scenery begins to shift. Around midday, you stop in the historic town of Cahors, known for its medieval bridge, Pont Valentré, and its rich red wines.
After lunch, the drive continues south into Provence. The roads wind past orchards, olive groves, and fields that in summer are splashed with lavender. By early evening, you arrive at your hotel in Avignon, with the rest of the night to spend at your leisure.
Day 14 – Avignon & Wine Country
The morning begins inside the Palais des Papes, Avignon’s towering Papal Palace. You walk through its echoing halls and climb up to the ramparts for sweeping views of the city below. Afterwards, you stroll down to the Pont Saint-Bénézet (also known as the Pont d’Avignon), a half-bridge that stretches into the Rhône.
By midday, you leave Avignon and head into the Luberon hills to Gordes. You wander its steep cobblestone streets, browse small artisan shops selling lavender products and pottery, and pause at the main lookout to admire the expansive valley views.
Later in the afternoon, continue to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, the heart of Provence’s wine country. Here you walk through vineyards and then settle in for a guided tasting in a family-run cellar. By evening, you’re back in Avignon, with the day’s mix of history, scenery, and wine still fresh in your memory.
Day 15 – Departure
On your final morning, enjoy a relaxed breakfast before your driver takes you to Marseille or Paris for your flight. Two weeks of castles, vineyards, seaside towns, and hilltop villages now sit in your memory — a journey that felt smooth from start to finish.
