Toulouse-Bordeaux Ballet trip July 2017 NOW BOOKING

I have had a last minute cancellation for a single room for this trip. If you are interested, please email me at toursenlair@gmail.com 
This is a great trip offering lots for the non-balletomane should you happen to have one as a travel companion. Wine, food, airplanes, prehistoric caves, gardens, and more. Fans of the Bruno, Chief of Police novels will find themselves on the detective's home turf.

But there's also still more than enough to satisfy the ballet lover.

Bear in mind that there is no guarantee this trip will be available again in 2018, since everything depends on the two ballet companies' schedules lining up.

By the way, here's a recent review of two Bordeaux Opera Ballet dancers: 

"to close the show came the splendid Sara Renda, who cast a spell on everyone with a nearly impeccable performance of the pas de deux and coda from “Le Corsaire,” in partnership with Neven Ritmanic. Her style is polished, refined, simple and ever so elegant, making the most complex of tours look effortlessly chic and somewhat marked by the calmness of otherwordly grace. The end result is of the utmost, regal class. Next to her, Ritmanic is a prince en devenir, who securely holds and lifts Renda while enchanting on his own with his spectacular, clean manèges and vigorous, light jumps. It is legitimate to expect great things from him in the nearest future."

For a printer-friendly PDF of this brochure, please click here.

CWT VICTOR TRAVEL

101 - 8800 Dufferin Street, Concord, ON L4K 0C5

TICO Ontario registration #1892647

presents

Tours en l'air

Ballet Holidays

escorted by

Canada's Word Lady,

Katherine Barber

South of France:

Toulouse and Bordeaux

Wine, Food, History, Gardens, and Ballet

(day trips to the Dordogne, Carcassonne, St-Emilion)

29 June – 10 July 2017

12 days, 11 nights

BOOKING OPENS AUGUST 24

SIGNUP DEADLINE

20 SEPTEMBER 2016

TO BOOK: 416.736.6010 x. 234

Hotel Mercure Wilson Toulouse

Thursday 29 June TOULOUSE

Arrive Toulouse, France's “rose-coloured city”. Check in to four-star Hotel Mercure Wilson, a typical Toulouse red-brick building, 9 minutes walk from the Halle aux Grains theatre.

Friday 30 June TOULOUSE

Morning: Private 2-hour walking tour of the historic centre of Toulouse. Backstage tour, Theatre du Capitole. Afternoon at leisure. Suggested activities: For aviation and aerospace buffs, visit the Cité de l'espace or the brand new Aeroscopia museum, with over two dozen vintage and modern aircraft, including 2 Concordes, on display. Or see a giant Airbus 380 under construction at the Airbus factory tour. 6pm: 1-hour lecture demonstration (in French) about the ballet program at the Halle aux Grains. See some of the tango festival events around the city. Welcome dinner.

Market day, Sarlat-la-Canéda

Saturday 1 July TOULOUSE

Day trip to the Dordogne.

Wending its way past chateaux and villages, our private coach takes you to the picturesque medieval town of Sarlat-la-Canéda. Brief stop in Gourdon. The weekly farmers' market will be in full swing in Sarlat and you can sample the local foie gras, truffles, duck confit, and other produce. Walking tour of the old town (1 hr). We carry on to the nearby gardens at the Manoir d'Eyrignac, a fabulous reconstruction of a French formal garden with amazing topiary, as well as more informal Italian-style and English gardens. Return to Toulouse.

Jardins du Manoir d'Eyrignac

Sunday 2 July TOULOUSE

Day at leisure. Suggested activities: Enjoy Toulouse's “Car-Free First Sunday of the month” and visit its museums and markets. Take a boat ride on the Garonne River or the Canal du Midi. Visit one of the tapas bars that seem to be on every corner in Toulouse.

Monday 3 July TOULOUSE

Day trip to the Causses du Quercy regional park. Our private coach takes you to St-Cirq-Lapopie, “France's favourite village” (1 hr 45). One-hour guided walking tour. St Cirq, enclosed by fortified gates, includes many beautiful old houses whose facades of stone or wood were built between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries. They are characterized by their steep-sloped, flat tile roofs. In the streets, open arcades of shops preserve the memory of craft activities that created the wealth of St. Cirq: coppersmiths and especially wood turners with workshops producing button moulds, bowls, cups and cooper's taps.
At the foot of Lapopie, mills, dams, ports, locks and a towpath evoke the glorious age of river commerce. Gourmet lunch.

Continue on (20 minutes) to Pech-Merle.

230pm – 330 pm Visit the caves with their limestone formations and 25,000-year-old wall paintings. Return to Toulouse.

The medieval citadel at Carcassonne

Tuesday 4 July TOULOUSE

Day trip to Carcassonne.

8h15: depart Toulouse (1 hr 15 mins)

10-1230: Guided tour of the medieval citadel, including the castle of the counts, the Saint-Nazaire basilica with its remarkable 13th-century statues and stained glass, and the ramparts. “Medieval menu” 3-course lunch

230: return to Toulouse.

8 pm Ballet performance: Les Sylphides (Fokine), MC 14/22 Ceci est mon corps (Preljocaj)

Wednesday 5 July TOULOUSE – BORDEAUX

Morning: check out of Toulouse hotel. Our private luxury coach departs Toulouse for Bordeaux.

TOURS EN L'AIR EXCLUSIVE!!

Arrive Château Mathias, Virazeil.

Château Mathias

Homemade buffet lunch of local specialities overlooking the Garonne valley.

1-hour Q&A with recently retired international ballet star ROBERT TEWSLEY

Continue to Bordeaux, listed by the New York Times as its #2 top destination to travel in 2016. Check in to the 3-star Quality Hotel Bordeaux Centre 3 minutes walk from the theatre.

Bordeaux

8 pm Ballet performance: Romeo and Juliet (Jude) in one of Europe's oldest opera houses, the magnificent Grand Theatre, built in 1780 (and the venue for the premiere of La Fille mal gardée in 1789). It was here that Marius Petipa finished his training, was a principal dancer, and mounted his first full-length productions, before embarking on his famous career in Russia.

Grand-Theatre, Bordeaux

Thursday 6 July BORDEAUX

Notre-Dame Church, Bordeaux

Morning at leisure. Suggested activity: Bordeaux's brand new all-about-wine museum, La Cité du Vin. Afternooon: Private walking tour of Bordeaux's classical 18th-century old town, the world's largest urban UNESCO world heritage site. Dinner.

Friday 7 July BORDEAUX

Private day trip by luxury coach to some of the region's most famous vineyards in Saint-Emilion: visit and tasting at two wineries, lunch, private guided tour of the medieval town. Return to Bordeaux.

Vineyards, St-Emilion

Saturday 8 July BORDEAUX

Afternoon: Private guided tour of Grand Theatre.

Sunday 9 July BORDEAUX

Day at leisure. Farewell dinner.

Monday 10 July BORDEAUX

Check out of hotel and depart Bordeaux.

Total Package Price:

Double occupancy: CA$3999 per person

Guaranteed single occupancy: CA$5099 per person

**please note that trip prices are in CANADIAN dollars.

At today's exchange rate, and counting in your credit card charges, they would work out approximately as follows in US$ and UK pounds:

$US 3208 PER PERSON DOUBLE OCCUPANCY

$US  4091 SINGLE OCCUPANCY

GBP 2440 PER PERSON DOUBLE OCCUPANCY

GBP 3112 SINGLE OCCUPANCY

BOOKING OPENS AUGUST 24

TO BOOK: 416.736.6010 x. 234

For more information:

email: toursenlair@gmail.com

phone: 416.693.4496

SIGNUP DEADLINE

20 SEPTEMBER 2016

All prices valid till 20 September 2016

You may use RBC reward points or RBC certificates towards the purchase of any or all components of these travel arrangements

LAND-ONLY PACKAGE allows you the flexibility of arranging travel from your most convenient departure point, on the dates and times you prefer, and to extend your stay if you wish.

Victor Travel's experienced agents will be happy to help you with flight arrangements. There are excellent connections to both cities via Amsterdam on KLM or via Paris on Air France.

This program must be sold as a package. Extra hotel nights can be added on at extra cost (subject to availability). We cannot offer individual components separately, break the package into shorter installments, or offer an

“accommodation only” option.

Mobility issues should be discussed with the travel agent before registering.

Travellers wishing to share will be

put in touch with one another.

SPECIAL OFFER FROM

CHATEAU MATHIAS LUXURY B&B

Live out your fantasy of residing in a chateau in the South of France! Add a day or more before or after the program, and beautiful, restful Château Mathias will extend an exclusive 10% discount on its high season rates, plus the VIP package (welcome drinks, pickup and dropoff at Marmande train station on the

Bordeaux-Toulouse line if necessary).

Château Mathias combines the charm, intimacy, and personal contact of the B&B with the comfort and luxury of the best hotels.

Space is limited. 

For more about Chateau Mathias, please click here:  www.chateaumathias.com

 

Package includes:

6 nights double-share 4* accommodation in Toulouse and 5 nights double-share 3* accommodation in Bordeaux

Porterage

Daily buffet breakfast

Premium seats for 2 ballet performances

Transfer by private luxury coach Toulouse to Bordeaux

Day excursions by private luxury coach to Sarlat and Eyrignac, St-Cirq Lapopie and Pech-Merle, Carcassonne, and St- Emilion

Admission & private guided tour of Pech-Merle

Visit to two wineries in St-Emilion

5 private guided walking tours: Toulouse, Sarlat, Carcassonne, Bordeaux, and St-Emilion

Private guided tours of the Grand-Theatre and Theatre du Capitole

Three 3-course dinners, four 3-course lunches

Beverages with group meals (mineral water, tea or coffee, and 1 glass wine (100 ml) or beer or soft drink)

Free wifi in hotels

Ballet enrichment program: ballet notes and informal pre-performance talks and post-performance reviews with tour leader

Private group Q&A with Robert Tewsley

All taxes, tips for group activities, service fees, and surcharges

Not included:

Airfare

Meals and transfers not specifically mentioned in this itinerary

Items of a personal nature, e.g. phone calls

Cancellation insurance

and hospital/medical insurance

All items and activities listed as “suggested” in this brochure

Terms and Conditions:

Non-refundable deposit of CA$2000 per person is required at time of registration, no later than 20 September 2016, to secure your space for this package**.

Single supplement, optional airfare (price available on request) and optional cancellation and hospital/medical insurance also payable at this time.

Final payment due 28 March 2017, and total package price is fully non-refundable.

Added hotel nights are fully non-refundable

All cancellations must be received in writing at CWT Victor Travel to the attention of Lucy Nati(lucy@cwtvictortravel.ca)

Manulife out-of-province health insurance (for Ontario residents holding an OHIP card) and trip cancellation insurance are available through Victor Travel and STRONGLY RECOMMENDED. Price will vary according to birthdate. Premium must accompany the deposit and is non-refundable.

**Deposit is fully refundable in the event of cancellation of the trip by the travel agent

Disclaimer
Victor Travel acts only as agents for the traveller and accepts no responsibility for the services of any aircraft, bus, hotel, concert agencies, etc. used in this tour, nor any delays, loss or accident to travellers or baggage occasioned by such services. While the organizers will do everything possible to assist travellers,

they similarly disclaim any such responsibility. 

The right is reserved to cancel or modify the tour.

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