TRIP DATES:
May 18-24, 2014 (SOLD OUT)
May 25-31, 2014 (SOLD OUT)
June 1-7, 2014 (SOLD OUT)
June 8-14, 2014 (1 SEAT LEFT)

COST:
$2,200 per person based on double occupancy ($475 single occupancy upcharge)

DETAILS:
Please scroll to the end of this announcement to the DEPOSITS heading for detailed info on how deposits will be charged.

The bus has 54 seats so that pretty much dictates the maximum that can go on each trip. Please contact us at 619-295-3939 if you’re interested in joining us for our inaugural overseas wine adventure. So without further ado, here’s the itinerary. It’s a long read so you may want to get comfortable and pour yourself a glass of wine … heck, just bring the whole bottle. (I won’t even tell you how many glasses, I mean bottles, it took for me to write this email.) Many thanks.

>>> Please SCROLL DOWN for the hour-by-hour itinerary below, but here’s an overview of the highlights:

~ Everyone will meet in Barcelona at Hotel Lleo on Sunday night. Hotel Lleo is only two blocks from La Rambla so it’s got the best of both worlds: it’s centrally located and it’s quiet. You are more than welcome to arrive a day or two early to get over jet lag and acclimate to the local time, and yes, we have made arrangements with the hotel for a discounted group rate for anyone wishing to check in a day or two before the trip. (Please hold off on contacting the hotel until we finalize our reservations with them but you can plan on the cost being around 130 euros per night.)

~ After the welcome reception at the hotel we’ll walk down the famous La Rambla and into the equally famous Barrio Gotico (Gothic Quarter) to our favorite restaurant, Los Caracoles. Founded in 1835, Los Caracoles is a restaurant that time forgot. As you approach, the first thing you’ll notice is whole chickens roasting on a rotating spit uniquely built into the exterior corner of the building. Then you’ll walk through the long narrow bar, down some stairs, and then through the basement kitchen (yes, through the kitchen) and then up some more stairs to get to the labyrinth of dining rooms. After being welcomed with an obligatory glass of cava by our favorite waiter Pedro, we’ll enjoy an authentic multi-course Spanish dinner starting with tapas (chicken and ham croquettes, salad, mussels in marinara, roasted mushrooms, tomato bread and jamón Ibérico) followed by main courses of the afore mentioned chicken plus a seafood paella and culminating with Crema Catalana (Spanish Crème Brûlée) … all washed down with lots of local Rosé and Rouge. After dinner we’ll walk the calories off strolling down La Rambla back to the hotel for the night.

~ Monday is a free day to enjoy Barcelona on your own until early afternoon. Breakfast is included at the hotel (they actually serve wine with breakfast here … gosh, I love this place) or you can stroll down to the boqueria (an amazing indoor market with everything, and I mean everything) for a cup of fresh fruit, or seafood cooked on the plancha right in front of you, or patatas brava with eggs, or, or, or … the choices are endless. After breakfast you can explore the maze of cobblestone alleys off La Rambla with their multitude of shops, cafes and bars or get a ticket for the “hop on, hop off” double-decker bus that will give you a narrated tour of the city. (I highly recommend that you get a two-day pass for this bus if you arrive a day or two earlier so you can get your bearings. It’s a great value and a great way to see the city.) And of course, there are all the amazing Gaudi buildings to visit that are simply mind-boggling.

~ Monday afternoon we’ll say farewell to Barcelona and take the high speed train into the south of France. The exact departure time is still up in the air as they’ve been working on a non-stop train for literally years now that is supposed to come on line by early 2014. This is one of those things that is outside of our control but if I was a gambler, I would bet that the train will leave Barcelona sometime around 4:00 in the afternoon and arrive Perpignan sometime before 6:00 in the evening. We’ll fine tune that itinerary once the train schedule gets finalized after the first of the year, but that’s the plan for now.

~ Once we arrive into Perpignan we’ll check into our hotel literally one hundred yards from the train station (and on the quiet side of the tracks). After everyone’s had a chance to freshen up we’ll walk a couple of blocks into the old part of Perpignan to Le Tire Bouchon (literally “the corkscrew” … how apropos for our group), an old school restaurant specializing in traditional regional dishes. Here we’ll have a simple yet deliciously decadent 3-course meal of Caesar salad, duck confit and chocolate mousse. No host cocktails will be available for those who wish, plus we’ll have bottles of Rosé and Rouge at each table for folks to share. After dinner we’ll walk back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep before the festivities start in earnest.

~ After breakfast at the hotel (included), our luxury bus (with on-board restroom) will arrive to escort us around the south of France for the next four days. First stop will be in the village of Maury. Here we’ll visit Pertuisane Winery where English ex-pat Richard Case will be our host. I first discovered the wines of Pertuisane only several months ago when I instantly fell in love with their old vine Grenache. It wasn’t until we met Richard at his seemingly-out-of-place, super-modern, state-of-the-art facility at the end of a dirt road in an ancient village in the south of France that we realized that he also oversees David Phinney’s (of “Prisoner” fame) D66 project here and that David, indeed, built this winery for Richard to run. Words cannot express how special this stop will be.

~ After what will surely be an epic morning of tasting killer wines in Maury, we’ll back-track about ten minutes to Tautavel, another ancient wine-making village in the Roussillon region of southern France. Here we’ll rub elbows with many of the local winemakers for lunch at an outdoor party on the grounds of the village’s only chapel. Lunch will be a traditional meal of the local specialty of cargolade (escargots cooked over charcoal) and paella. It’ll be a ruckus party with local musicians performing “bandas” songs with lots of brass horns and, of course, plenty of the local wine. If the weather doesn’t cooperate for an outdoor party, we’ll move it indoors to Le Petit Gris, a beautiful restaurant with a huge covered outdoor patio overlooking the village.

~ After lunch we’ll head east on the scenic D117 route towards Limoux. The D117 is one of those fairy tale roads literally carved out of rock that winds its way through one of the most beautiful gorges in France. Some of the boulders along the way are the size of three-storey buildings that have been surgically dynamited just enough to allow a bus to baaarely pass through. I can already hear the camera shutters clicking and folks gasping OMG.

~ After about an hour of one of the most breathtakingly beautiful rides of your life, we’ll start the slight assent into the village of Roquetaillade, one of the only places in the south of France high enough and cool enough to grow the Burgundian varietals of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. (As you will discover on this trip, because of its Mediterranean climate, the south of France is all about Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault … varietals that thrive in warm weather … so it is quite rare to find cooler climate varietals like Chard and Pinot thriving here.) Here we’ll visit Domaine de l’Aigle, arguably the best producer of Burgundain varietals in the south of France, where we will trek the vineyards (weather permitting) and then taste specific barrels from specific parcels in an exercise to create our own cuvee. (And for those of you who would prefer not to “geek out” too much on the blending exercise, relax! You are absolutely most welcome to just chill, take in the storybook scenery, and enjoy a glass or three of some of the best Chard and Pinot that’ll ever cross your lips.)

~ After our first full day in France experiencing an overwhelming yet just tiny fraction of what it has to offer wine and food wise, you’ll probably just want to check into the nearest hotel to decompress and re-energize. Fortunately the medieval walled city of Carcassonne is only about an hour away and, while most folks only have the opportunity to visit the cobblestone alleys of this fortress during daylight hours, we’re not only going to spend a relaxing evening exploring the quaint shops and bars of those same alleys, but we’re also going to spend the night there in our own private rooms hewn out of the original castle walls. (Yeah, I know, how cool is that … but please don’t expect it to be ADA compliant.) But wait. We haven’t had dinner yet. So after checking in and freshening up we’ll walk the almost deserted streets (now that all of the tourists have left) to our hands-down favorite restaurant, Adelaide. We first discovered this non-pretentious, off-the-beaten-path restaurant after exhausting all of the usual tourist trap places, and what a find it was. Efficiently run, good service, and creative takes on the centuries old cuisine of the region. After an obligatory Ricard aperitif (you will become addicted to Ricard by the end of the week) and appetizers, we’ll enjoy the specialty of the region, cassoulet. Unlike the mass produced cassoulet typical of most of the city’s restaurants, this one is actually made with love … tender, juicy duck with crispy skin and perfectly cooked, soft yet not mushy white beans. Yum. A real find.

~ After dinner we’ll walk back to the hotel for the night. Nightcap in the hotel bar, anybody?

~ After breakfast at the hotel (included) we’ll check out and hit the road again. First stop will be about twenty minutes away at Chateau Donjon in the tiny village of Bagnoles. (For those of you plotting our stops on a map, please note that there are two Bagnoles in France and that the one we’re going to doesn’t show up on most maps.) Here we’ll meet Caroline and Jean Panis, the affable proprietors of this old winery. We’ll tour their original centuries old facility with the original concrete fermentation tanks (now painstakingly sealed with paraffin wax each vintage to protect the integrity of the wine) and then enjoy a tasting. (For those of you going on the May 25-31 trip, please note that due to a religious festival in Bagnoles, the Chateau Donjon visit will be eliminated and you’ll have extra time to sleep in and/or explore the city of Carcassonne.)

~ Next stop will be for lunch in Caunes-Minervois, another one of those storybook villages with cobblestone streets so steep and narrow that it’s no wonder Vespas and mini Coopers are the preferred mode of transportation here. Lunch will be served in the caves of the 500-year-old abbey where English ex-pat Linda (who owns an amazing restaurant in town which unfortunately isn’t large enough to accommodate a group our size … hence the cave location) will host a delicious, locally-sourced, three-course lunch for us. Due to the narrowness and steepness of the streets, the bus will drop us off at the top of the village and we’ll hike down to the abbey, and then will pick us up again at the bottom of the village so it’ll be a downhill hike both ways. (See, we’re always looking out for you!)

~ After lunch we’ll be checking into L’Hospitalet, our “home base” hotel for the next three nights. (Yippee … no more packing / unpacking for the next 72 hours!) But not before one more winery stop at Chateau Gourgazaud in the town of La Liviniére a few minutes away from Caunes-Minervois. Laetitia will be our gracious hostess here, showing us through the courtyard of the original chateau before taking us down a very steep, very much non ADA compliant stairway into their underground barrel room for an extensive tasting of their premium wines. (There is an alternate entrance through the vineyards for anyone unable to negotiate the steep stairs.)

~ After a relaxing spell at Chateau Gourgazaud we’ll head about forty-five minutes west towards the seaside town of Narbonne-Plage where we’ll do an early evening check in at L’Hospitalet, Gerard Bertrand’s upscale winery/restaurant/hotel which will be our home base for the next three days. We’ll have plenty of time to explore the grounds in the next couple of days but for now we’re just going to check in, freshen up and then hit the road again for an amazing seafood dinner in the neighboring town of Gruissan twenty minutes away.

~ Gruissan is one of those seaside towns like you’d find on the east coast of the US with tons of over-priced, under-delivering tourist trap restaurants catering to the unsuspecting masses. But the locals have got to eat somewhere, right? And they do. At Le Grand Soleil. Close yet waaay off the beaten path. Luc (pronounced Luke) will be our host for a decadent yet healthy and low cal feast of seemingly endless supplies of oysters on the half shell, gazpacho, a rich fish soup similar to cioppino, prawns with garlicky aïoli, razor-shell clams (my favorite … you’ll have lots of these if you visit the boqueria in Barcelona), mussels in white wine and, for dessert, baba au rhum … those of you who saw our facebook post a couple of months ago will recognize this as the place where they plunk a full bottle of rum down on the table for you to self pour over the babas … without casting any judgmental glances. (OK, so maybe the aïoli and rum parts aren’t that healthy …)

~ After this low-key but thoroughly satisfying on a primal level dinner (that you’ll be talking about for years) we’ll head back to L’Hospitalet for what will surely be a satisfyingly comatose sleep.

~ Next morning sleep in and have a late breakfast as we don’t leave until 10:00. And all of you energetic “type A’s” can meet me in the reception room around 8:00 for the quick ten minute trek to the top of the vineyards to take in the spectacular Mediterranean sun rise … double espressos and croissants in hand, of course.

~ After the rest of the troops have been roused and sufficiently caffeinated, we’ll head north to the tiny hillside village of St-Jean-de-Blaquiere a little over an hour away. Here we’ll visit La Sauvageonne, where we’ll hike to the top of a hill to a private estate owned by Gerard Bertrand to have an upscale picnic lunch on the grounds paired with the premium wines made at this property. (Cars will be available for those not up for the hike.) But before lunch we’ll have a very unique opportunity to taste unblended Grenache from two very dissimilar parcels. (This truly is a unique opportunity as our hosts will be actually taking barrel samples from the actual plots we’ll be visiting before they all get blended together.) Anyway, the first stop will be in the lowland vineyards just below the estate where we’ll taste Grenache grown among “garrigue,” Mediterranean scrub consisting of plants like rosemary, lavender, olives and marjoram. I remember the first time almost twenty years ago that I heard the word garrigue used as a wine descriptor and had no idea what it meant. After walking through these wines and smelling the garrigue in the air and then tasting these aromatic, herbal flavors in the barrel sample we’ll have pulled for you, you’ll know exactly what it means! Next stop will be to try the identical varietal but with a completely different flavor profile. As we head up the hill for lunch, we’ll make a quick detour into a plot of some old vine Grenache. Here we’ll tasted a barrel sample from the almost century-old vines with gnarled trunks almost a foot in diameter growing through soil-less ground that is basically 100% boulders. The garrigue flavors will be gone and replaced with decadently intense, complex, rich fruit flavors instead. It promises to be a fascinating study in terrior that very few will ever be able to experience firsthand. Now it’s time to relax, have a simple yet gourmet picnic lunch, enjoy some great wines (including the blended versions from the two plots you’ve just visited), and soak in the spectacular views.

~ After lunch we’ll head about an hour west to the village of Saint-Drezery where we’ll meet up with Alain at Puech Haut. Located in the low hills just north of Montpellier, Puech Haut will be the most north and the most west winery of the entire tour. It’s a drop-dead gorgeous winery with pristine cellars, perfectly manicured vines and even a new olive oil production demo facility. We’ll walk through the vineyards, visit their barrel room and then taste some of their high-scoring, premium wines. With any luck Alain might even break out some older vintages so you’ll be able to A-B them with the current ones.

~ Next we’ll start heading south back towards L’Hospitalet for the night but we’ll break up the drive with a stop at Chateau Lignan in the village of Lignan sur Orb for dinner along the way. The restaurant at Chateau Lignan (it’s also a hotel) is another one of those how-did-you-find-this-way-off-the-beaten-path gems that will blow your mind. Chef Fabrice, their super talented young chef will be putting together a seasonal six-course tasting menu for us that will be sure to please. The courses have yet to be determined as everything will be seasonal and last minute but one thing is for sure … we will be having a wild mushroom omelet for one of the appetizers. But not just any ordinary omelet. This one is served in a martini glass. You’ve got to see it and taste it to believe it. Mary and I were so impressed with the food here that we’re going to fly our chefs over to stage in their kitchen for a week. Dinner will be served on rounds in their conservatory-like dining room overlooking their gardens and the river. This will also be a fun opportunity for everyone to share a bottle with their table as everyone will be asked to purchase a bottle at one of the wineries from the past two days to share at this dinner. This is a fun, always popular tradition that we started on our first tour years ago that everyone always looks forward to.

~ After a leisurely evening of good food, good wine and good conversation, we’ll get back on the bus for the thirty minute drive back to L’Hospitalet for the night.

~ Next morning you can sleep in and have a late breakfast again as we don’t leave until 9:30. After breakfast we’ll depart for the remote village of Bizanet only a half hour away but seemingly like on another planet. Here we’ll visit Cigalus, a winery and biodynamic vineyard, and also the estate where Gerard Bertrand lives with his family. We’ll have a very unique opportunity to participate in a workshop where you’ll actually be part of making a biodynamic preparation. (Explaining the ins and outs of biodynamic farming is waaaay beyond the scope of this announcement so if you’re unfamiliar with it I recommend that you spend a few minutes searching the web and reading up on some of the many informative articles out there.) Anyway, after making the preparation, (it has to sit for about an hour before it can be used), we’ll “kill time” by visiting their barrel room and tasting the individual varietals that go into the Cigalus white and red blends before, of course, tasting the final bottled blends. The tasting should take just enough time for the preparations to homogenize so after that you’ll be able to participate in their actual application in the vineyards. As you will learn from your web research, in addition to organic principals, biodynamic farming is also strongly based on lunar and astrological influences. So if the stars don’t align (sorry, I couldn’t resist that), instead of spraying the preparations on the actual vines, we’ll just spray them off over some weeds or something so at least you’ll be able to see how it works.

~ After the biodynamic workshop at Cigalus we’ll head into the picturesque town of Narbonne for lunch on your own. Narbonne is the first major town outside of Narbonne-Plage (where L’Hospitalet is located) and the place most if not all of you will use as a departure point for either back home or to continue your overseas adventure. There’s tons to do here and tons of places to eat. We’ll drop everyone off and pick everyone up again in front of the famous indoor market which is smack dab in the middle of town and walking distance to everything. You can go into the market and have lunch at one of the many food stalls there, or walk across the canal two blocks away to any one of scores of small cafes, or for you oyster lovers, I’ll take anyone who wants to join me to the best oyster place in town for some of the best oysters on the half shell that you’ll ever have in your life. After lunch you’re free to hang out for a while and do some shopping, or find a cafe bar to relax in and have a drink while watching the world go by, or go to the train station to make arrangements for tomorrow’s outbound travel. The bus will pick everyone up again mid-to-late afternoon to return to L’Hospitalet but if you feel like lingering you can just cab it back for about 25 euros.

~ Once back at L’Hospitalet you’ll have several hours to get organized for your departure the next day before we meet again two final times. The first will be about an hour before dinner at the on-site restaurant for a final workshop on how to pair foods with the wines of southern France. We’ll sample some of the major varietals and then taste-test them along with some small bites of appropriately paired foods. After that we’ll meet for the winemaker dinner finale at L’Hospitalet where the chef will pull out the stops with a multi-course tasting menu paired with lots of their premium wines. The wine will flow!

~ After what will surely be a spectacular culmination of wine, food and camaraderie, you are welcome to call it a night or, for those of you who want to extend the experience a while longer, you are welcome to adjourn to the bar for a night cap or two with your new friends before retiring.

~ After breakfast the next morning most of you will want to head into Narbonne to take the train to your next destination. (Taxi fare from the hotel to the train station is about thirty euros so if two couples share a taxi it’ll work out to about ten bucks per person.) Options are unlimited at this point as you can pretty much take the train anywhere you want from here. You can take the high speed train to Paris in less than four hours, you can take the train to Toulouse and fly out of there, you can get a Eurail pass and bum around Europe for a while, you can take the train to Italy, or you can take the train back to Barcelona in less than three hours and fly out of there if you want to do a one city round trip. Whatever you do though, have fun! If commitments back home allow, I definitely recommend taking advantage of this opportunity to do some additional exploring.

HOUR BY HOUR ITINERARY

SUNDAY ~ May 18 or May 25 or June 1 or June 8, 2014

Fly into Barcelona on your own any time before evening (or the day or two before)

Check into Hotel Lleo any time before evening

06:30 PM ~ meet in hotel reception room for welcoming

08:00 PM ~ dinner at Los Caracoles

11:30 PM ~ back to Hotel Lleo for the night

MONDAY ~ May 19 or May 26 or June 2 or June 9, 2014

08:00 AM ~ breakfast included at Hotel Lleo

Free day in Barcelona until train leaves

04:15 PM ~ train departs Barcelona (exact departure time subject to change)

05:44 PM ~ train arrives Perpignan, France (exact arrival time subject to change)

06:00 PM ~ check into Comfort Hotel

07:30 PM ~ dinner at Le Tire Bouchon

09:30 PM ~ back to Comfort Hotel for the night

TUESDAY ~ May 20 or May 27 or June 3 or June 10, 2014

08:00 AM ~ breakfast included at Comfort Hotel

08:30 AM ~ bus arrives Perpignan

09:00 AM ~ depart Perpignan

10:00 AM ~ arrive Maury to visit Pertuisane and D66 Winery

11:15 AM ~ depart Maury

11:45 AM ~ arrive Tautaval for winemakers lunch and bandas fiesta

02:00 PM ~ depart Tautaval

03:15 PM ~ arrive Roquetaillade (via scenic D117 route) to visit Domaine de l’Aigle

05:15 PM ~ depart Roquetaillade

06:30 PM ~ arrive Carcassonne; check into Hotel Le Don Jon in the medieval city

08:00 PM ~ dinner at Adelaide in the medieval city

10:30 PM ~ back to Hotel Le Don Jon for the night

WEDNESDAY ~ May 21 or May 28 or June 4 or June 11, 2014

08:00 AM ~ breakfast included at Hotel Le Don Jon

10:00 AM ~ depart Carcassonne (May 28 tour will depart at 11:00)

10:30 AM ~ arrive Bagnoles to visit Chateau Don Jon (May 28 tour will miss this stop)

12:00 noon ~ lunch in the Abbey caves in Caunes-Minervois

02:00 PM ~ depart Caunes-Minervois

02:30 PM ~ arrive La Liviniere to visit Chateau Gourgazaud

04:30 PM ~ depart La Liviniere

05:00 PM ~ arrive Narbonne-Plage; check into L’Hospitalet

06:30 PM ~ depart Narbonne-Plage

07:00 PM ~ arrive Gruissan for dinner at Le Grand Soleil

09:15 PM ~ depart Gruissan

09:45 PM ~ back to L’Hospitalet for the night

THURSDAY ~ May 22 or May 29 or June 5 or June 12, 2014

08:00 AM ~ breakfast included at L’Hospitalet

10:00 AM ~ depart Narbonne-Plage

11:15 AM ~ arrive St-Jean-de-Blaquiere for tour of Grenache vineyards + lunch at La Sauvageonne

01:45 PM ~ depart St-Jean-de-Blaquiere

03:00 PM ~ arrive Saint-Drezery to visit Puech Haut

05:00 PM ~ depart Saint-Drezery

06:15 PM ~ arrive Lignan sur Orb for dinner at Chateau Lignan

08:45 PM ~ depart Lignan sur Orb

09:15 PM ~ back to L’Hospitalet for the night

FRIDAY ~ May 23 or May 30 or June 6 or June 13, 2014

08:00 AM ~ breakfast included at L’Hospitalet

09:30 AM ~ depart Narbonne-Plage

10:00 AM ~ arrive Bizanet to visit Cigalus for biodynamic workshop

12:15 PM ~ depart Bizanet

12:45 PM ~ arrive Narbonne for lunch on your own

03:45 PM ~ depart Narbonne

04:15 PM ~ arrive L’Hospitalet

07:00 PM ~ wine and food pairing workshop at L’Hospitalet

08:00 PM ~ winemaker dinner finale at L’Hospitalet

11:00 PM ~ last night at L’Hospitalet

SATURDAY ~ May 24 or May 31 or June 7 or June 14, 2014

08:00 AM ~ breakfast included at L’Hospitalet

Taxi from Narbonne-Plage to Narbonne train station on your own schedule

COST:

$2,200 per person based on double occupancy. The single occupancy upcharge is $475. If you’re a single traveling with another single there are also rooms with two beds at nominal or no additional charge.

EXCHANGE RATE:

If the Euro to Dollar exchange rate exceeds 1.40 at the time of the tour we reserve the right to adjust the price accordingly. As of mid November the exchange rate was 1.35. Of course it’s impossible to predict but I personally think the exchange rate may continue to creep up so I would recommend being prepared to see a possible price increase of 5-10% as we get closer to the actual tour dates. Then again, maybe not!

DEPOSITS:

Reservations will not be guaranteed until a NON-REFUNDABLE deposit of $200.00 per person is received. Another non-refundable deposit of $500 will be charged 75 days prior to the trip and the final payment of $1,500 (plus the single occupancy upcharge if applicable) will be charged 45 days prior to the trip and becomes non-refundable at that point.

TRIP CANCELLATION INSURANCE

Please, please, please understand that we cannot issue refunds for any reason whatsoever. (This includes but is not limited to illness, a death in the family, loss of income or anything else.) If you want to get trip cancellation insurance in the event something comes up on your end that prevents you from going on the trip at the last minute, there are several on-line sites that can provide that service for as low as $100. Here’s a link to one site if you’re interested: http://www.insuremytrip.com/plans/index.html and here’s a link to a local San Diego travel insurance provider: http://www.csatravelprotection.com/. I cannot stress how strongly I recommend that you at least look into coverage as it seems like every trip we do there’s always at least one person who can’t make it at the last minute for one reason or another, and, while we always feel horrible about the circumstances surrounding it, at that point we are totally on the hook for your expenses whether or not you show up. We strive to make these tours as affordable as possible and simply are not in a position to absorb the costs of cancellations. Thanks for understanding.

INCLUDED IN COST:

1. All breakfasts

2. All lunches (including wine) except Friday afternoon in Narbonne

3. All dinners (including wine)

4. All hotels

5. Train fare from Barcelona to Perpignan

6. All transportation within France via luxury motorcoach

7. All winery tours and tastings

NOT INCLUDED IN COST:

1. Air fare to Barcelona

2. Free time activities in Barcelona

3. Taxi from Barcelona hotel to Barcelona train station

4. Optional extra cocktails or extra wine

5. A bottle of wine for you to share with everyone at Chateau Lignan Thursday night

6. Lunch Friday afternoon in Narbonne

7. Taxi from Narbonne-Plage to Narbonne train station

8. Train and air fare from Narbonne to back home