Grape Escapes to the Loire Valley 2006
The Loire
This is a lush green land of gently undulating countryside with rich vineyards interspersed with charming towns and magnificent châteaux. The region has some of the most famous châteaux in France: Amboise, Blois, Azay-le-Rideau, Villandry and Chenonceau to name but a few. The rivers Loire, Cher, Indre and Vienne meander gracefully through the region and offer a delightful backdrop to many of the regions châteaux and towns.
Tours , the capital of Touraine, is an old but lively university city is and the original home of the French language. Among its many delights, is a stunning cathedral dating back almost 900 years.
The Wines
The Loire valley offers a broader range of wines than any other small wine growing region. It is the home of Chenin Blanc, the only region in the world to specialise in cabernet franc and also makes superb botrytised dessert wines. White, rosé and red, still and sparkling, dry and sweet. Wines of all these styles are made within 20 miles of Tours. The white wines in the central Loire are generally produced from the Chenin Blanc grape (albeit in four distinctly different styles of wine: dry, semi sweet, sweet and sparkling) while the red wines are usually dominated by the Cabernet Franc grapes.
The Hotels
This year, we are using 2 of the best hotels in the region; The Château de Brou and Les Hauts de Sainte-Maure.
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Our flagship hotel in the Loire for the 2006 season, this property is truly outstanding. The château, built in 1475 is situated in a 250 acre park with views across the Coutineau valley.
Each of the 12 rooms is unique and decorated in the colours of a historical figure from the region’s past. The hotel is an oasis of calm and elegance where you immediately feel special. |
This is a well-appointed hotel with excellent facilities and is centrally located for touring the area.
It started life in the 16th century as a coaching inn and post house and now comprises of high quality accommodation and a locally renowned restaurant.
The gardens, swimming pool and terrace offer the perfect choice of places to relax and unwind after a hard day’s tasting. |
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Grape Events
With every Grape Escapes holiday comes the opportunity to indulge in a choice of social events and enjoy some great wine and food. What makes Grape Escapes tours different is the flexibility that is offered to allow you to choose when to arrive and which of the tours and meals you wish to include.
The programme of events during each tour allows you the opportunity to make the most of your holiday and you can choose as few or as many of these as you wish. The events range from escorted vineyard and château visits to gourmet dinners.
However, unlike other companies, you will not be herded around in a group of 30 or 40 as we feel that this does not give us access to the best properties and that our guests do not get the quality of tour they deserve – we limit the number of guests on each trip to 24 and a typical group size is between 12 and 18 people.
The Grape Events on the Loire 2006 tours will be as follows: Thursday dinner
You will be collected from your hotel and taken to a top local restaurant. The dinner will start with top quality local aperitifs, you will then enjoy a top quality 4 course meal, accompanied by 2 different wines.
The meal will conclude in relaxed fashion with coffee and petit fours. When you have finished, you will be transported back to your hotel. The cost of this is £59 per person.
The Valley of the Vienne (Friday)
You will be collected from your hotel by luxury coach and driven to the historic town of Chinon. You will then visit Chinon castle, which is where Joan of Arc met Charles VII in 1429 and helped him to conquer the English.
Following your tour of the castle, you will have some free time to explore this beautiful town. Next, you will be taken to Château du Rivau where you will be able to view this outstanding medieval castle, with its stunning gardens.
To make your visit even more memorable, we have arranged a private cheese tasting session in the cellars of the castle. After all the walking, you will be able to relax and enjoy the most amazing picnic that you have ever experienced.
The “gourmet picnic” consists of an individual hamper for each guest containing a
variety of dishes to tempt the taste buds. After lunch, you will rejoin the coach and visit a top local wine producer where you will have a tour of the vineyards and the obligatory tastings! The cost for this will be £65 per person.
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| Chenonceau and Chenin Blanc (Saturday) |
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Your tour will start with a visit to the stunning castle of Chenonceau, where a number of Kings of France resided. The castle has a very long history and the different parts of the castle reflect this history. In fact, Francis II and Mary, Queen of Scots, were married here in 1560. Following your visit to Chenonceau, you will be taken to a top class restaurant for a gourmet 4 course meal including wines.
After lunch, you will visit a top Vouvray producer whose wine is included on the wine lists of several fine establishments including the Conran restaurants. This vineyard is famous for its Chenin Blancs which it produces in all styles from dry to botrytised dessert wines. After this visit, you will cross the Loire to Montlouis and visit another famous wine producer where you will taste both red and white wines from several Loire appellations. The cost for this trip will be £95 per person. |
Sparkle of the Loire (Sunday)
To start this interesting tour, you will visit Château Villandry, one of the most famous of the Loire Châteaux. As well as the beautiful house, you will be able to see the stunning gardens which are laid out in different styles but all of which are based on geometric patterns.
You will then visit the pretty town of Saumur where you will be free to explore and have some lunch. You will then rejoin the coach and be taken to visit one of the Loire’s most famous sparkling wine producers, where you will experience the recuperative effect of their bubbly.
The cost of this trip is £45 per person.
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The Brou Banquet (Sunday evening)
For those who enjoy gastronomic delights, this trip is a must.
The banquet is set in the stunning Château de Brou, with its delightful and historic atmosphere. You will start with aperitifs on the terrace with views over the lake and across the valley, followed by a 5 course gastronomic meal in the main Château.
Each course is matched with a different wine to compliment the flavours. The food is prepared by David
Moreau, the Château’s renowned head chef. Transport is also included for those staying at Les Hauts de Sainte Maure. The cost for this banquet will be £85 per person.
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Meet the Maker (Monday)
The day will start with a visit to a traditional Chinon winemaker and will be
followed by lunch in his caveau.
The lunch will be a plentiful buffet where you will be able to sample the excellent regional food. After lunch, you will visit an up and coming young winemaker who is a much sought after lecturer on wine and winemaking.
You will get a chance to taste his wide range of wines and ask him any questions that you may have on wine and wine production. The cost for this excursion will be £55 per person.
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Dates
These trips will run between the 11th and 16th May and the 3rd and 8th August. As with all our trips, the emphasis is on making the ideal trip for you, so you can add or deduct nights as you wish. If you wish to extend your trip, we will provide you with details of the local area and additional places that are of interest to visit, along with restaurant recommendations.
Prices
The prices below includes a Dover to Calais ferry crossing or transfers from Tours airport or St Pierre des Corps TGV station and 2 nights bed and breakfast in your chosen accommodation. These prices are per person and based on 2 people sharing a twin/ double room.
To calculate the price of your Grape Escape Tour, simply take the base price, add any extra nights and then add all of the tours and meals that you would like to include (detailed above).
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| Hotel / Room |
Base Price (£) |
Extra Nights (£) |
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| Les Hauts de Sainte Maure – Standard room |
140 |
43 |
| Les Hauts de Sainte Maure – Traditional room |
151 |
48 |
| Les Hauts de Sainte Maure – Grand Comfort room |
183 |
64 |
| Château de Brou – Charme / Luxe room |
189 |
67 |
| Château de Brou – Deluxe room |
203 |
75 |
| Château de Brou – Prestige room |
218 |
82 |
| Château de Brou – Richelieu suite |
265 |
105 |
| Château de Brou – Charles VII tower |
301 |
123 |
Travel Options
The base price includes a return Dover to Calais ferry crossing. The driving time to the Loire from Calais is approximately
4 ½ hours using the new Autoroute to travel via Rouen instead of Paris. The other options are as follows:
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Ryanair flight from London Stanstead to Tours. Transfer from Tours airport to your hotel is included in the base price but you will need to book your own flight.
- Fly to Paris (numerous operators) and get the TGV to Tours. Transfer from Tours is included in the base price but there will be a £45 per person supplement for the TGV.
- Eurotunnel crossing from Folkestone to Calais. The supplement for this will vary according to when the crossing is booked but will be in the region of £25 per person.
- Long sea crossing with Brittany ferries from Portsmouth to Caen. The travel time from Caen to the Loire is 2 ¾ hours. Supplements from £25 per person dependant on the specific crossing required.
- Additional supplements may apply to weekend travel in August. Please contact us for details.
Places on these trips are strictly limited. To reserve your place, please contact us on 08707 667 617 or
email: info@grapeescapes.net
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