The Saone and Rhone Rivers - From Chalon-sur-Saone to Avignon

DAY 1: CHALON-SUR-SAONE

Passengers are welcome to board starting at 6:00 p.m. in Chalon-sur-Saone. After you've comfortably settled in your cabin, we'll introduce our crew during our welcome cocktail party, followed by dinner on board. We'll remain in port overnight in Chalon-sur-Saone.

DAY 2: CHALON-SUR-SAONE - TOURNUS

After a breakfast buffet on board, you can join us on an optional guided visit of Chalon-sur-Saone, birthplace of Joseph Nicéphore Niepce, who invented photography in 1824. This tour must be booked in advance through your travel agent or tour operator before we begin the cruise. Here, in the Old Town, you will find half-timbered houses built between the 15th and 17th centuries, the restored facade of St Vincent's cathedral, and classical mansions dating from the 17th and 18th centuries. Our guided tour will continue to the town center, where we will have a tasting session of wine from the Côte Chalonnaise. At the end of our morning tour, we'll return on board for lunch. In the early afternoon, we will raise anchor and cruise to Tournus. Why not take advantage of the time spent cruising to relax and admire the beautiful scenery as we pass along the Saone? Our boat will arrive in Tournus early in the evening. At the end of the day, you'll enjoy dinner on board, as our boat stays in port overnight.

DAY 3: TOURNUS - BELLEVILLE-SUR-SAONE

After enjoying a breakfast buffet on board, you can join us on an optional excursion to Tournus (1). As you walk along the picturesque lanes of this riverside town, you will discover houses with colored facades and flat roofs topped with rounded tiles that bring out the town's Mediterranean feel. We'll also visit the Abbey of Saint Philibert, a fortress-like Romanesque church with many interesting features, found in the old town. This building is a true masterpiece in and of itself. Built in pink and yellow stone, it is the only monastic monument dating from the 12th century that has been preserved in Europe. Using a unique vaulting system, the nave to soars to a great height, filling the abbey with striking light. At the end of our morning tour, we'll return on board for lunch. Relax and enjoy the afternoon spent cruising to Belleville-sur-Saone, where we'll arrive in the evening. We'll dine on board as we approach our destination, where we will moor for the night.

DAY 4: BELLEVILLE-SUR-SAONE - TREVOUX

You'll begin you day with a breakfast buffet on board. For the rest of the morning, you can join us on an optional excursion by coach to the Beaujolais des Pierres Dorées (Golden-Stoned Beaujolais) area. During the tour, you'll admire the beautiful landscapes of the southern Beaujolais region, a bright and vivid land. We'll pass through charming villages built out of yellow stone which reflect the sun's rays, inspiring the region's nickname “Little Tuscany”. We will stop in Oingt, a spectacular medieval village perched high on a rocky spur overlooking the Azergues valley. At the end of our morning tour, we'll return on board for lunch. We'll spend the rest of the afternoon cruising to Trévoux, while you take advantage of the free time on board to relax on the sun deck and admire the beautiful scenery that gently passes by. We'll arrive in Epernay early in the evening, where you'll enjoy dinner on board, as our boat drops anchor for the night.

DAY 5: TREVOUX - LYON - VIENNE

Our boat will cast off early in the morning to cruise to Lyon. During our cruise, you will enjoy a relaxing breakfast and lunch on board. At the end of the morning, we will arrive in Lyon, the historic city at the confluence of the Rhone and Saone Rivers. After lunch, we will set off on a guided tour of Lyon. This panoramic city tour will show you all the beautiful must-see sites, before stopping to tour the inside of the Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière, built in a position that dominates over the city of Lyon on Fourvière Hill. Topped with a gilded statue of the Virgin Mary, the basilica is one of the most emblematic symbols of the city. After our tour, you'll have free time to explore the Saint Jean district, in the heart of Old Lyon, before returning to our boat, where we'll continue our cruise to Vienne. At the end of the day, you'll enjoy dinner on board, as our boat continues to cruise through the night.

DAY 6: VIENNE - TOURNON

After enjoying a breakfast buffet on board, you can join us on an optional guided tour of Vienne (1). Vienne's history dates back some 2,000 years. You'll discover the vestiges left by the Romans, as well as the cathedral of St Maurice, a registered historic monument. After our tour, we'll return on board for lunch, and the afternoon is spent cruising to Tournon. We will cruise past the Pilat Regional Natural Park to Saint Pierre-de-Boeuf, passing Condrieu and traversing the Cotes Roties region, where you will see the extraordinary riverside vineyards planted on almost vertical slopes. We'll dine on board as we approach our destination, arriving in Tournon during the evening, where we will moor for the night.

DAY 7: TOURNON - LA VOULTE

After enjoying a breakfast buffet on board, you can join us in the morning for an optional guided tour of Tournon (1). We will first discover the main tourist attractions of the town before stopping at the Castle Museum. Here, you will view the museum's permanent collection that traces the history of navigation on the Rhone River. After meandering through the streets and alleys of the historic town center, we will end our tour by sampling regional specialties and wines. At the end of our morning tour, we'll return on board for lunch where we will cast off to cruise to La Voulte, arriving early in the evening. At the end of the day, you'll enjoy dinner on board, as our boat drops anchor for the night.

DAY 8: LA VOULTE - VIVIERS - ST-ETIENNE-DES-SORTS

You will relax and enjoy breakfast on board as we cruise along the section of the Rhone River between the Drome and Ardèche Rivers. We will cruise past the town of Montélimar, before arriving in Viviers late in the morning. After lunch on board, you can join us on an optional excursion through the Ardèche Gorges, a canyon full of dramatic and unspoiled natural scenery. Your breath will be taken away by striking cliffs, steep valleys, dense vegetation, the ever present granite and volcanic rocks, plus much more. After stopping at a beautiful overlook, we'll continue our panoramic tour to the Madeleine Cave to discover a wonderful world created by water million years ago, yet only discovered in 1887. Over 25 caves with domed ceilings and thousands of stalagmites and stalactites shine with the help of special lighting. The entrance to the Cave is on an overhang around 560 feet up the canyon's cliff face in the Ardèche Gorges. After our tour, we'll return on board at Viviers and continue the cruise to Saint-Etienne-des-Sorts. At the end of the day, you'll enjoy dinner on board as our boat continues to cruise. During the evening, we will pass through the Bollene Lock, which, at a depth of around 75 feet, is the deepest lock in France and one of the deepest in Europe. Our boat will arrive at Saint-Etienne-des-Sorts late in the evening, and moor for the night.

DAY 9: ST ETIENNE DES SORTS - AVIGNON

Our boat will cast off early in the morning to cruise to Avignon. During our cruise, you will enjoy a relaxing breakfast and lunch on board. Why not take advantage of the time spent cruising to relax and admire the beautiful scenery as we pass by? We will cruise through the southern vineyards of the Rhone River Valley, which extends from Montélimar to Avignon. The Mediterranean climate and the Mistral, the famous Southern wind, both have great influence over the grape cultivation in the region. AOC wine from Chateauneuf-du-Pape is without doubt the best known of these. Early in the afternoon, our boat will arrive in Avignon, where you can join us on foot for an optional tour of the Papal Palace (1). This tour must be booked in advance through your travel agent or tour operator before we begin the cruise. This special tour is not the standard visit offered to the general public. You will enjoy a guided, special behind-the-scenes visit through the hidden parts of the Palace. Hidden staircases and concealed corridors will take you to the private chapel and to beautiful terraces perched for a view over the town. Our guide's details and anecdotes will give you an insider's look at the building's construction and history, as well as an understanding of the daily lives of the Supreme Pontiffs. After our full day, you'll enjoy a gala dinner back on our boat. We remain in port overnight.

DAY 10: AVIGNON

Enjoy one last breakfast on board before disembarking at 9.00 a.m.