Looking forward to this tour. Wondering if anyone else is taking the tour leaving Chartres May 7.
I will arrive in Chartres May 5 and am staying at the tour hotel. Happy to explore with anyone who arrives early and is interested.
I am looking at a day trip to Monaco on May 19 or 20. Happy to go alone but if anyone is looking at something similar would love to chat.
Wendy
We did this tour last May; if it hadn't been for the dozen people, including our original guide Virginie (if you have her you'll be guaranteed a fantastic trip), it would have been a perfect trip. Fortunately, my wife and I made it to the end without Covid, and had a great time; some of the things you'll see are so fantastic (Pont des Arts comes to mind).
Be sure to do the nighttime trolley around Chartres; it's really fantastic and worth staying up for.
I feel like Bob was trying to say people and the guide came down with Covid but forgot that part of his sentence.......
Oops, you're right! What I meant to say was, "if it weren't for the dozen or so travelers and 2 guides who came down with Covid, we would have had a perfect trip."
Sadly, we kept having to leave travelers behind; first it was one couple in a tiny town, then another couple, then our guide Virginie; they replaced her with another guide, who promptly came down with it too. So we got our THIRD guide...
But that was a year ago; we're doing a RSE Italy tour in May, again with my brother and his wife who came down with Covid last time--and we're expecting much better luck this time!
There's a great market day in Sarlat; had some delicious street fare there, not to be missed. The roast duck there was particularly excellent.
Rouffignac Cave is also one of the highlights--looking up at 15,000-year-old cave drawings was truly awe-inspiring.
Because our tour got so disrupted, we were treated to a visit to Carrières de Lumières, which is a former limestone quarry near Les Baux-de-Provence in southern France. If you do get to visit it, you'll be amazed; words really can't describe it.
Also doing this trip in May - but mine starts on the 14th.
Have fun.
We’re on the June 4th tour.
We were on this tour last May with Bob who has described it well. Except for the loss of our wonderful guide and over half our fellow travelers due to the Covid protocols, it was a wonderful tour. Bob, which Italy tour are you taking in May? We will be on Sicily tour in April. Hoping for no Covid casualties this time.
We're doing the Tuscany tour, traveling again with my brother Mike and his wife Becky. Starts in Florence, then winds around in Tuscany, to Siena, and other small towns. Mary and I are planning to do the 2-week Scotland tour next June, if it lines up with another trip.
Remind me what your first name is; were you one of us fortunate few who got through the tour without Covid?
Yes, the lucky 10, John & Wendy from Florida.
Hi Wendy! You guys went on to a 2nd RSE tour, right? To tell you the end of Becky & Mike's saga (and yes, it was a bit of a saga):
They left the tour in Carcassone, and couldn't get a train for a day or two. They got back to Paris, where they holed up in the hotel while Becky felt poorly but not really bad. Their flight was on a Friday, and Sunday was the day that the US lifted the rule that mandated a negative Covid test before boarding a flight home. So they couldn't take their flight home even if they'd wanted to. Meanwhile, Becky started feeling a lot better, and I think she tested negative on that Saturday. So on Sunday Mike called the airlines, and was told that they had to wait 2 WEEKS before they could fly home. Needless to say, he wasn't a happy camper.
So he decided to just go for it--they went to the airport on Monday, and he said he wanted to change his flight; they did so, flew home...
I have a photo of John from Nice; if you remember my last name, my email address is bob@.com; send me a note and I can get that photo to you guys.
:)
We’re on this tour a week ahead of you. Staying in Paris until the day the tour starts. This is a re-booking from 2020 so fingers crossed. Getting excited!
I took this tour last June (it was my first tour) and absolutely loved it. I posted a scrapbook here (#79): https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/scrapbooks
If anyone likes to bike, you can rent bikes in Sarlat and there is a really lovely bike path called the Voie Verte that you can ride on. I was really glad that I did this.
Enjoy your tour!
