Villefranche-sur-Saone: Bonjour, welcome to your foodie adventure! Today kicks off with a complimentary transfer from Villefranche sur Saone Station to our 16th Century Chateau.
Beaujolais Wine Region: Rub your eyes, blink: yep, that's our accommodation for the night, complete with a bar, swimming pool and dreamy views of the surrounding vineyards. Once we've checked in and chilled out we'll be feeling like royalty, and that's before we enjoy some local wine paired with cheese. Then, it's time to head to the local village, for a 3 course welcome dinner of traditional French fine dining. This is the good life. Once we've had time to digest our dinner, we'll get to explore this cute village before heading back to the Chateau for a glass of wine at the bar. What a day, and we're just getting started...
This morning we'll bid au revoir to our Chateau for the day, as we head into Lyon for a change of pace.
Lyon: Welcome to the hub of culinary wonders that is Lyon! We won't waste any time getting stuck in with an optional walking tour of wondrous Lyon, with its chic bistros and boulangeries. As well as exploring the city's icons, we'll also uncover 'Hidden Lyon' through it's secret passageways, known locally as Traboules. Once used by locals to cross the city undercover, they were also used by the Resistance in WWII to hold secret meetings and contributed to protecting Lyon from total Nazi occupation. After some exploring, our local guide will take us through the food markets to shop for the freshest local produce. What are we going to do with all this food? Cook it, of course. That's right, our guide Anne Sophie is also our host for the evening, and she'll take us into her home for an immersive cooking class. Once we've learned all the tricks that make French cuisine so delicious, we'll get to enjoy the fruits of our labours (maybe with a glass of wine, or two).
Beaujolais Wine Region: Once we're suitably stuffed with history, culture and food, we'll head back to the Chateau for a well deserved chilled night. We've got more adventures in store tomorrow.
Rise and shine! After enjoying a hearty homemade breakfast this morning, we'll get ready for some winery hopping. The Beaujolais region has some of the world's finest vineyards, producing fruity, bold wines that are as distinctive and beautiful as the region itself. We'll visit two wineries where you'll have a chance to learn about the wines they produce (including the world-famous Beaujolais Nouveau), meet local winemakers and of course sample some of their finest drops. At our second stop, surrounded by the swaying vineyards, we'll enjoy lunch paired with wine. Then, for our final evening, it's time to head back to the Chateau where our team of live-in chefs will prepare an authentic French Dinner. We'll tuck in on the Chateau terrace, with even more magnificent views of the Beaujolais countryside. France, we never want to leave you.
It's our final day (sob), but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy one last breakfast, take a stroll in the countryside or even have a dip in the pool. You can take a complimentary transfer back to Villefranche-sur-Saone, or make your own arrangements. The trip is over, but all of those delicious memories will put smiles on our faces for years to come.
