Hamilton & Chase Tours
Loire Valley & Normandy — Private Package 10-day France tour: Fairy-tale châteaux, D-Day beaches & the cliffs of Étretat

10-Day Private Package Journey

Loire Valley & Normandy

Fairy-tale châteaux, D-Day beaches & the cliffs of Étretat

Available as Private Semi-Private Self-Guided
From €3,690 per person 10 days / 9 nights
View Itinerary

Tour Overview

10 days across France.

Ten days through the north of France — from the boulevards of Paris to the fairy-tale châteaux of the Loire Valley, across to the D-Day beaches and medieval abbeys of Normandy, and along the dramatic Alabaster Coast. This is France at its most varied: Renaissance splendour, wartime history, Impressionist landscapes, and the kind of food and cider that make Normandy one of the most rewarding — and underrated — regions in Europe.

Detailed Itinerary

Your journey, day by day.

Every day is designed with breathing room. Sleep in, take a detour, linger at lunch — the itinerary flexes around you, not the other way around.

Day 1 — Arrival in Paris
Day 1
1

Day 1

Arrival in Paris

The beginning of a journey through northern France.

Your private driver meets you at the airport and takes you to your hotel near the Tuileries. The afternoon is yours — walk to the river, browse the arcades of the Palais Royal, or sit in the Jardin des Tuileries with a coffee and watch Paris go by. In the evening, a welcome dinner at a classic Parisian brasserie — brass rails, white tablecloths, and the kind of steak frites that has kept the same restaurant full since the 1920s.

  • Private airport transfer
  • Welcome dinner at a classic Parisian brasserie
4–5★ hotel, central Paris
Day 2 — Paris: The Louvre & the Marais
Day 2
2

Day 2

Paris: The Louvre & the Marais

Masterpieces and medieval Paris.

Morning with an art historian in the Louvre — skip-the-line, focused on the highlights: the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and the Dutch Masters without the crush. After the museum, walk through the Marais — the oldest neighbourhood in Paris, where medieval townhouses have become galleries, boutiques, and some of the best falafel in Europe. Free afternoon and evening. We recommend the Picasso Museum if you haven't been, or simply getting lost in the streets between Place des Vosges and the Île Saint-Louis.

  • Private Louvre tour with art historian
  • Marais walking tour through medieval Paris
Meals: Breakfast 4–5★ hotel, central Paris
Day 3 — Paris to the Loire Valley
Day 3
3

Day 3

Paris to the Loire Valley

Leaving the city for the garden of France.

A morning to use as you wish — the Musée d'Orsay for the Impressionists, or the covered market at Rue Mouffetard. Late morning, your driver takes you south to the Loire Valley. First stop: the Château de Chenonceau, spanning the River Cher with the kind of architectural grace that makes it the most visited château in France after Versailles. Your guide tells the stories of the women who built and saved it — Diane de Poitiers, Catherine de Medici, and the women of the Resistance who used it as an escape route. Continue to Amboise and check into your château hotel. Evening walk along the Loire, dinner in the old town.

  • Château de Chenonceau — the Ladies' Castle
  • Scenic drive through the Loire countryside
  • Château hotel in Amboise
Meals: Breakfast 4★ château hotel, Amboise
Day 4 — Chambord, Villandry & a Vineyard Lunch
Day 4
4

Day 4

Chambord, Villandry & a Vineyard Lunch

Renaissance excess and the most beautiful garden in France.

Morning at Chambord — the largest château in the Loire, built as a royal hunting lodge with 440 rooms and Leonardo da Vinci's double-helix staircase at its heart. The scale is absurd and magnificent. From Chambord, drive to Villandry — famous for its ornamental gardens, which cascade down the hillside in geometric perfection: box hedges, vegetable parterres, and a water garden that Monet would have envied. Lunch at a family vineyard near Chinon — the winemaker opens his best Cabernet Franc alongside a meal sourced from the local market. Return to Amboise in the late afternoon.

  • Chambord — 440 rooms and Leonardo's staircase
  • Villandry's Renaissance gardens
  • Chinon vineyard lunch with Cabernet Franc tasting
Meals: Breakfast 4★ château hotel, Amboise
Day 5 — Loire Valley to Mont Saint-Michel
Day 5
5

Day 5

Loire Valley to Mont Saint-Michel

Across the heartland to France's island abbey.

A scenic drive northwest across the French countryside — gentle hills, Romanesque churches, and the occasional field of sunflowers. Arrive at Mont Saint-Michel in the early afternoon — the island abbey rising from the tidal flats like something from a medieval illuminated manuscript. Your guide meets you at the causeway for a private tour: the abbey church, the cloisters suspended above the sea, and the narrow Grande Rue with its half-timbered shops. If the tide schedule allows, walk across the sand at low tide to see the mount from below — one of the most dramatic approaches in France. Check into your hotel on the mainland with views of the abbey lit up at night.

  • Mont Saint-Michel private guided tour
  • Abbey cloisters above the tidal flats
  • Optional low-tide walk across the sand
Meals: Breakfast 4★ hotel, Mont Saint-Michel area
Day 6 — D-Day Beaches: Omaha, Utah & the American Cemetery
Day 6
6

Day 6

D-Day Beaches: Omaha, Utah & the American Cemetery

The beaches that changed the course of history.

A day of profound significance. Your expert guide — a specialist in the Normandy landings — takes you to the beaches, bunkers, and memorials that tell the story of June 6, 1944. Begin at Utah Beach and the museum, then drive along the coast to Omaha Beach, where the scale of what happened becomes viscerally real. Continue to the American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer — 9,387 white crosses and Stars of David on the bluff above the beach, looking out toward a country most of them never saw. The visit is moving, dignified, and unforgettable. After the cemetery, a stop at Pointe du Hoc, where the Rangers scaled the cliffs under fire. Check into your hotel in Bayeux — the medieval town whose tapestry tells another invasion story, a thousand years earlier.

  • Utah and Omaha Beach with an expert D-Day guide
  • American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer
  • Pointe du Hoc — the Rangers' cliff assault
Meals: Breakfast 4★ hotel, Bayeux
Day 7 — Bayeux Tapestry & the Norman Countryside
Day 7
7

Day 7

Bayeux Tapestry & the Norman Countryside

A thousand years of conquest, stitched in wool.

Morning visit to the Bayeux Tapestry — 70 metres of embroidered medieval storytelling that chronicles the Norman conquest of England in 1066. It's one of those rare artefacts where the artistry, the drama, and the historical importance all converge. Your guide puts the panels in context: the politics, the personalities, and the stitch techniques that made it survive nearly a millennium. After the tapestry, explore Bayeux's cathedral and old town. Lunch on your own — cider, camembert, and Normandy's famous apple tart. Afternoon drive to Honfleur — the harbour town that launched the Impressionist movement. Check into your hotel overlooking the Vieux Bassin. Free evening in one of the prettiest ports in France.

  • Bayeux Tapestry — 70m of medieval storytelling
  • Bayeux Cathedral and old town
  • Arrival in Honfleur's picturesque Vieux Bassin
Meals: Breakfast 4★ boutique hotel, Honfleur
Day 8 — Honfleur, Étretat & the Alabaster Coast
Day 8
8

Day 8

Honfleur, Étretat & the Alabaster Coast

Impressionist harbours and chalk cliffs plunging into the sea.

Morning walk through Honfleur — the Vieux Bassin harbour that Boudin, Monet, and Courbet painted obsessively, the wooden Sainte-Catherine church built by shipwrights, and the Lieutenance gate where the town meets the Seine estuary. After Honfleur, drive along the Alabaster Coast to Étretat — where massive chalk cliffs arch over the sea in formations that Monet captured and Maupassant described. Walk the cliff path for views of the Needle and the natural arch, then descend to the pebble beach. Lunch at a seafood restaurant overlooking the cliffs. Afternoon, a stop at a Normandy calvados distillery for a tasting of apple brandy aged in oak. Continue to your evening hotel.

  • Honfleur's Vieux Bassin — birthplace of Impressionism
  • Étretat chalk cliffs and the Needle
  • Cliff-top walk with Channel views
  • Calvados distillery tasting
Meals: Breakfast 4★ hotel, Étretat area
Day 9 — Giverny, Monet's Garden & Return to Paris
Day 9
9

Day 9

Giverny, Monet's Garden & Return to Paris

The water lilies — in the place where he painted them.

Morning drive to Giverny — Claude Monet's home and garden for over forty years, and the landscape that produced the most recognisable paintings in the history of art. Walk through the flower garden — a riot of colour arranged by the artist himself — then cross the road to the water garden: the Japanese bridge, the wisteria, and the water lilies floating on the pond exactly as they do in the paintings hanging in the Musée de l'Orangerie. Your guide explains how Monet engineered the garden to create the effects he wanted on canvas. After Giverny, continue to Paris. Check into your hotel, then a farewell dinner at a restaurant that represents everything you've tasted over the past ten days — a fitting end to a journey through France.

  • Monet's house and gardens at Giverny
  • The Japanese bridge and water lily pond
  • Farewell dinner in Paris
Meals: Breakfast 4–5★ hotel, central Paris
Day 10 — Departure
Day 10
10

Day 10

Departure

Au revoir — until next time.

A final Parisian breakfast, a last walk along the Seine if time allows, then your private driver takes you to the airport. If your flight is later, we can arrange a morning at the Musée de l'Orangerie to see Monet's water lilies one more time — full circle. Your travel specialist remains on call until you're home.

  • Private airport transfer
  • Optional Musée de l'Orangerie morning visit
Meals: Breakfast

Where You'll Stay

Hand-picked hotels, every night.

We choose properties for character, location, and the kind of service that makes you feel looked after — not just checked in. Every hotel can be swapped for an alternative if you prefer.

4–5★ hotel, Paris

Paris

3 nights

4–5★ hotel

Central Paris

Near the Tuileries and the Louvre, walkable to major sites

4★ château hotel, Amboise

Amboise

2 nights

4★ château hotel

Loire Valley

Overlooking the Loire river and the royal château

4★ hotel, Mont Saint-Michel area

Mont Saint-Michel area

1 night

4★ hotel

Mainland overlooking the mount

Views of Mont Saint-Michel lit up at night

4★ hotel, Bayeux

Bayeux

1 night

4★ hotel

Old town

Walking distance to the Tapestry museum and cathedral

4★ boutique hotel, Honfleur

Honfleur

1 night

4★ boutique hotel

Vieux Bassin

Overlooking the Impressionist harbour

4★ hotel, Étretat area

Étretat area

1 night

4★ hotel

Alabaster Coast

Near the chalk cliffs and seafront

Hotels shown are indicative of the standard we book. Upon request, we will provide a detailed itinerary with specific hotel options tailored to your preferences and budget.

What's in the Price

Included

  • 9 nights in 4–5★ hotels and château properties (double occupancy)
  • Daily breakfast at each hotel
  • Private airport transfers in Paris
  • All inter-city transfers in air-conditioned private vehicles
  • Private expert guides at all major sites
  • Skip-the-line Louvre access
  • Chenonceau, Chambord, and Villandry château entries
  • Mont Saint-Michel private guided tour
  • D-Day beaches with specialist guide
  • American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer
  • Bayeux Tapestry museum entry
  • Monet's house and gardens at Giverny
  • Calvados distillery tasting
  • 24/7 travel specialist support
  • All entrance fees and museum tickets
  • Hamilton & Chase digital travel booklet

Not Included

  • International flights to/from Paris
  • Travel insurance (required — we can arrange coverage)
  • Meals not mentioned in the itinerary
  • Personal expenses
  • Gratuities for guides and drivers (optional but appreciated)
  • City tax (typically €2–5 per person per night)

Good to Know

  • This itinerary is a starting point — every detail can be adjusted.
  • Hotels confirmed at booking. Upgrades always available.
  • All guides and experiences are exclusively for your party.
  • Comfortable walking shoes essential — cobblestones, cliff paths, and château grounds.
  • Flexible booking: adjust or postpone dates up to 60 days before departure at no charge.

Make It Yours

Optional add-ons & upgrades.

Every trip is different. These extras can be woven into your itinerary — just let your travel specialist know what catches your eye.

Champagne day trip from Paris

Private visit to two Champagne houses in Reims and Épernay

From €320 pp

Hot air balloon over the Loire

Sunrise flight over the châteaux and river

From €250 pp

Normandy cider and cheese route

Half-day visiting a cidery, fromagerie, and calvados producer

From €130 pp

Versailles private tour

Half-day including Hall of Mirrors and the gardens

From €180 pp

Professional photo session

1-hour portrait session at iconic locations

From €350

"The Loire châteaux were magical, but Normandy surprised us — the D-Day beaches were profoundly moving, and Étretat's cliffs were jaw-dropping. Then ending at Monet's garden in Giverny tied the whole trip together beautifully."

Robert & Susan H.

Melbourne, Australia · Loire Valley & Normandy, May 2025

Common Questions

Questions about this trip.

Can I change the hotels?

Absolutely. We'll adjust the itinerary and pricing for any property you prefer.

Is this trip suitable for children?

Yes, though the D-Day day may need adjustment for younger children. The châteaux, Giverny, and Honfleur are great for all ages.

Private Package Journey

Loire Valley & Normandy

10 days / 9 nights

From €3,690

per person

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