Travelling in France... with a difference
France… a country that seduces travellers with its embedded culture of fabulous cuisine and impeccable wines served in a village square market or a Michelin star restaurant. Its colorful history. Its picturesque landscape dotted with châteaux that leave you wondering “who lives there?”. Whether you have four days or forty, we can find the right places and locations for you (be it a châteaux, chambre d’hôte B&B, villa or apartment) to discover what makes France the most popular destination in the world.
More and more travellers to France want their own “experience” – not just a fleeting sightseeing tour, as wonderful as they can be. The “tourists” of yesterday are becoming “travellers” today, looking for their own experiences away from the beaten-track style of visiting France. They’re looking at the kind of things we love to do from the extraordinarily expensive, like touring the Châteaux of the Loire Valley by helicopter, to the absolutely free, like joining the locals at the many farmers’ markets throughout the country or walking the villages of Paris.
The reasons why you should plan & book with experts
Our acquired knowledge of over 30 years enables us to open doors others can’t.
We take your French travel experience to another level by working directly with small ground suppliers, hoteliers and tourist offices in France.
We personally visit on a regular basis many of the regions, departments, cities, villages and sites in general and are constantly looking for the next upcoming destination.
We create your own personalised itinerary: your France travel experience is not an “off the shelf” product – it is tailor-made.
Your efficient itinerary considers the three pillars of decision making: cost, comfort and convenience.
Your seamless itinerary includes air and rail travel, car hire, private transfers, chauffeured day tours, cooking classes, cycling and walking excursions, adventure programs – the list goes on.
You have the security of dealing with experts in Australia, who have a real office and have been established since 1984. All of our clients have access to a 24/7 emergency help line.
Quite simply, we know what we’re doing and you reap the benefits of expert planning.
Meet the team
Director of France Vacations, Sonia’s passion for France started as a 10 yr. old when she lived and went to school in Paris. She speaks French fluently and knows the country intimately. Sonia has sought out those special places to go, stay, eat and experience what is so good about France. Her recent campaign to introduce the canals & waterways of France to Australians has been highly successful. She loves France so much, ask her about her property she has in Montpellier.
Trevor has developed a great interest for Battlefield experiences. His father landed on the Normandy beaches, early morning on D-Day, June 6th 1944. His great uncle was a veteran of WW1 trenches and his second cousin was a military historian who wrote several books on the long history of KSLI (King’s Shropshire Light Infantry). He also has a vast knowledge of France and travels there regularly. His interest also takes him to neighbouring Belgium and other regions of Europe.
Casey has just returned from France having attended a Provence workshop and experiencing our exciting, luxury barge products as well as covering some of our secret locations. She has quickly formed a love of Paris, its sights, its sounds including being in the audience of Paris’ new ‘Mugler Follies’ cabaret. From rail to sail, road or any other mode, Casey is able to design your personalised itinerary of France & Europe.
A most sought after consultant, who is also a highly coveted Cruise Master and has recently returned from a boutique barge in Burgundy plus witnessing the final day of The ‘Tour de France’ on the Champs Elysees. Whether its big sporting events or a back roads tour Heather has the knowledge to assist. Having commenced her travel career in 1979, our clients benefit from the vast amount of experience she has acquired.
Brielle has schooled and worked in France over a number of years and now resides close by in The Netherlands. She is a key source of knowledge and assists us with procuring unique product. She was instrumental in developing our France product and has worked on six barges in France. She speaks French and has a reputation of enjoying fine French wine.
Testimonials
We had the most incredible time in Montpelier. The apartment is amazing and in the BEST location. We loved the whole experience. The only regret is that we did not stay for longer! The weather was amazing – hot!! We loved it and enjoyed some of the surrounding areas. Thanks so much, we really felt as though we were at “home”.
The apartment is very well equipped, with everything you need to be comfortable. The service from the owner was outstanding – we were met on arrival and given loads of fantastic advice about what to do in Montpellier and the surrounding areas. I would certainly recommend this property, we had a fabulous time staying there. Montpellier is a very nice city in which to soak up the atmosphere of the south of France. There are some excellent restaurants, a fantastic farmers market, a nice opera house and plenty of things to do in the surrounding areas. I could go on…
Our holiday in France was a delight. Thank you for the great advise in the planning of our trip. Our destinations and accommodation were wonderful. The Canal du Midi is a great experience. Many thanks for your care in all our hard itinerary.
We say au revoir to the beautiful village of Uzès today and travel by train to Paris after returning our car in Nîmes. Our hosts have been incredibly generous to us as their guests for the past three nights. We visited Pont du Gard yesterday – such engineering marvel and in such good nick – those Romans were so clever. There have been so many highlights on our trip but Uzes ranks very high. We also visited Avignon and Arles while here and saw some great countryside along the way – beautiful autumn colours everywhere – awesome – Sonia never lies!
Just a quick note to say thanks for your help with our recent Europe trip. All things went like clockwork and took all the stress out of everything. Your recommendations on accommodation were spot on. Again thank you and well done!!
We arrived home last night after a fabulous trip which you helped make happen. Every part of the journey was wonderful, and we will have some terrific memories for our 25th wedding anniversary!! Each day was a highlight, filled with beautiful sights and wonderful food. We were made to feel so at home and cared for at the accommodation you selected for us. The apartment in the Marais was positioned extremely well to access all sights and many metros. Our tour guide in Provence was fantastic as he drove us around, covering approximately 180 km! We really didn’t want to come home – just wanted to continue our dream! The French were very kind and helpful, and we will definitely be going back to France hopefully soon. Many thanks!