All tours on this holiday have now departed. Future departure dates will be confirmed in due course.
Toulouse
Montauban
Toulouse
Abbaye des Capucins
Cahors Bridge
Abbaye des Capucins
Abbaye des Capucins
Albi
Montauban
Abbaye des Capucins
Montauban
Abbaye des Capucins
Albi
Abbaye des Capucins
Abbaye des Capucins
The superb four-star Abbaye des Capucins Hotel on the banks of the Tarn in lovely Montauban
Authentic southern French local character – a treat for Francophiles
Rich red wine – Cahors wine is delicious and distinctive local cuisine
Impressive cathedrals – Toulouse boasts two
The charming medieval city of Albi
This tour explores three little-known and fascinating regions in South west France that are a true Francophile’s delight. Travel from the limestone cliffs and delightful medieval hilltop towns of the Lot Valley to the majesty of the rose city Toulouse and history-rich Cahors, Albi, and home town of Toulouse-Lautrec. From our base in the heart of the lovely town of Montauban on the banks of the River Tarn, this new Christmas tour offers a wonderful variety of scenic and historic sights that are sure to delight.
Day 1: Travel by Eurostar from St Pancras to Paris and onwards to Montauban by TGV. On arrival, transfer by coach to the Abbaye des Capucins Hotel, located just across the River Tarn in the city centre. This evening enjoy a welcome drink and cold plate at the hotel on arrival.
Day 2: Morning guided walking tour of Montauban. Afternoon free at leisure.
This morning a guided tour will help us get our bearings for our week in this quintessentially French region. The laidback city of Montauban, on the banks of the River Tarn, was originally a bastide built by the Count of Toulouse in 1144. Our guided walking tour will show you the main sights before time to wander at leisure around the old city centre with its pink-brick houses. The evening is free to enjoy Montauban Lantern Festival.
Day 3: Full day tour to Cahors.
For such a small town squeezed into a loop of the River Lot, Cahors has had a long and turbulent history - passing through Gallic, Roman, and English hands is just the start of it. The best known sight here is the 14th century Pont Valentré – a beautifully well-preserved example of a medieval bridge. In the afternoon we drive to Chateau Eugenie near Cahors for wine-tasting.
Day 5: Full day free in Montauban with Christmas Lunch at the hotel.
The lovely South west climate will mean that working up an appetite for Christmas Day lunch will be a pleasure.
Day 7: Full day to Albi.
The rose-red town of Albi was the birthplace of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and so is home to a museum, housed in the impressive 13th century Palais de la Berbie, containing a comprehensive collection of his work (entrance included). The simple but impressive Gothic Cathédrale Ste-Cécile dominates the skyline - it is thought to be one of the largest brick buildings in the world.
Day 8: Transfer from the hotel to Montauban Station for return train to Paris and onwards by Eurostar to St Pancras.
NB: Exact order of excursions may vary according to local conditions and tour manager's discretion.
Please note the maximum group size on this tour is 35 passengers.
INCLUDED
NOT INCLUDED
PLEASE NOTE: As with most trains, passengers are responsible for carrying baggage onto and off the train. Baggage can be stored on overhead shelves or at the entrance to the carriages.Trollies are available at St Pancras and Lille, but bags do need to be carried on to the platform.
Travel Editions recommends a luggage delivery service called thebaggageman, where your suitcase can be picked up from your home before departure and delivered straight to your hotel; therefore removing the worry about carrying your cases onto and off the trains. Please click here for more information and we have arranged a 10% discount exclusive to Travel Editions clients off the thebaggageman service. Tel: 01844 264890
A recent review received with regards to their service:
"I just wanted to say very many thanks for the service I received recently. I was travelling to the Netherlands and my suitcase was picked up from home as arranged, delivered to my hotel and then returned to me a day after I had got home! The promised date was actually a week later so I was most surprised - and delighted - to get it so promptly. I am a woman travelling alone and my journey involved changing trains five times both ways - lugging a heavy suitcase through stations is not my idea of fun, so having all this stress taken from me meant I could enjoy my journey.
This is the second time I've used your services and I have recommended you to many friends and fellow travellers. I shall definitely use you again." should the occasion arise, which I hope it will!
Abbaye des Capucins
Converted and extended from a 17th century abbey, this charming, atmospheric and stylish hotel is a wonderful base to explore this lovely region and to spend Christmas. Facilities here include spa, bar, restaurant and very comfortable, stylish bedrooms with all modern amenities including wifi, a safe and hairdryer.
Pre-tour accommodation is available at the Premier Inn, Lodon Kings Cross St Pancras, about a 5 minutes walk from St Pancras International, at an approximate rate of £120 per room. Bookings can be made direct with the hotel on 0871 527 8672 or visit their website.
Overall the Christmas trip to Montauban and the Lot Valley was a success, the only let down being the included evening celebration Christmas Dinners in the Hotel which were of a poor standard . Beside the inconvenience caused by the adjacent building works and restoration of the Historic town bridge The Hotel Abbaye des Capucins otherwise was pleasant and the rooms were clean spacious and comfortable. The excursions were generally enjoyable made all the better by favourable December weather. The coaches were in most cases comfortable, the driver safe and friendly. The downside to the trips was that many of the villages although picturesque were closed up for the festive period and even the simplest of amenities such as a coffee/tea shop (notably Lauzerte) were not always available. The tours of Albi and Toulouse were splendid. It was unfortunate that flooding caused the cancellation of the Eurostar portion of our return trip, but we were most impressed by how Travel Editions efficiently and professionally handled the problem, arranging overnight accommodation and revised travel arrangements back to St. Pancras.
Review by Woolley who travelled 23-December-2023
Travel Editions feedback:
Thank you for your review. We have amended the 2024 itinerary following feedback on the places visited last year, as well as the quality of meals included. We're glad to hear that you enjoyed the tour and hope to see you again soon.
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2023
1. Your deft re-arranging of our jinxed return journey was impressive and appreciated. Thank you. 2. The hotel was excellent but the group meals on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were poor and unimaginative, despite the local wine. 3. Our guide, Gerard Venet, was affable, genial and knowledgeable but a bit too vague for me on forward arrangements eg where to meet particularly after the train rides and sometimes on the tour days. 4. The tour took us to some charming and unusual villages , pretty, but often shut because it was Christmas week presumably. There’s nothing more dangerous that a group of older people who haven’t been able to find somewhere for lunch. 5. In my view after the Christmas weekend, days1,3, and 4 of the tour were great. The one that needs a rethink is to Lauzerte, Moissac and Auvillar, charming places but largely closed which makes for a rather long day (see point 4). 6. Day 3 to Albi again in my view could be improved by dropping the visit to Cordes-sur-Ciel and just concentrating on Albi which is fabulous. 7. Hope that helps. I did enjoy it.
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2023
Travel Editions feedback:
Thank you for your very constructive comments which we have taken onboard when planning the 2024 itinerary. We are glad you enjoyed the tour overall despite the very inconvenient return travel issues.
Tour Manager Gerard was very good. Very knowledgeable and helpful.
Review by Braddock who travelled 23-December-2023
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2023
The stay at the Abbaye des Capucins included a cold plate on arrival, Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day dinner. I found these meals very disappointing especially the Christmas Day dinner which I found unappetising in constituents, presentation and taste. A very poor meal indeed. The room for the group meals had no decorations at all and some of the waiting staff seemed quite miserable. Fortunately the breakfast was excellent. Our room (146) was comfortable but had no storage space other than a hanging unit with 7 hangers. This unit had one shelf above, housing the safe, and a higher shelf for stowing the hotel's bath robes and slippers. There was a small very narrow shelf against another wall used for the room's kettle, cups, glasses and a small number of tea bags and coffee sachets etc. This lack of storage was inadequate for a stay of 7 nights as I was unable to unpack our cases. Access to the hotel entrance was impeded by the adjacent building work. Building materials and rubble encroached on to the drive to the entrance which was uneven and unpleasant. The building site fencing encroached on to the footpath along the road leading to the the hotel driveway. This meant walking to the hotel from the coach was dangerous especially for those in the group who had the slightest mobility problem. Potentially this is a good hotel for a tour group and is well located for the excellent trips. However, some extensive negotiations are needed with the hotel management to address the points I've raised. Travel and transport have been marked accordingly because of the Eurostar problem on 30th December which caused disruption and delays. Gerard Venet dealt with the situation admirably and we were most grateful to him.
Review by Jones who travelled 23-December-2023
I congratulate Travel Editions for dealing with the debacle/delay due to the flooding of the Eurostar tunnel so well. Yes, we were held up 24 hours but your representative handled our return and made so many arrangements without fuss. Well done!
Review by Tjeknavorian who travelled 23-December-2023
My ranking for train is based on the coach ride from Paris to Montauban which was difficult for many passengers and also meant a long period without a real meal. I appreciate that this was due to a French rail strike. No real issue with the hotel other than the lack of porterage on arrival and departure plus the main lift seemed to be out of order for most of our stay. The brochure for this trip should really explain the nature of the visits more clearly as the villages and Cordes required some steep climbs which were beyond some of the group. Ramblers Holidays have a difficulty guide as a pre warning.
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2022
As ever we enjoyed our Christmas break, the long coach trip due to the train strike was not something we would have chosen, but it happened, we cannot be the only people inconvenienced by strikes. The hotel was lovely, as art lovers it was nice to find the public areas decorated with photography, sculpture and paintings and the monastery had some of the most quirky and, stylish furniture. Our room was very nice with an extremely comfortable bed and a modern bathroom. The only shortcoming was a rather small wardrobe, that was not really spacious enough to accommodate two people's clothes and we do not travel with vast suites of luggage. Gerard is an excellent guide, always keeping the group informed, sharing his love of history and art. He was our guide in Delft a few years ago, so it was very nice to discover that he would be taking care of us again. I think the fact that you have categorised the Montauban holiday as requiring good mobility if that is the right word is a good thing. Some of the hilltop villages required not only a good pair of legs, but a good pair of lungs. We panted our way onwards and upwards, stopping here and there to wonder how we were managing it, but it was great when we got down again to realise that we two 81 year olds had done it. Another very enjoyable Christmas holiday with you. Thank you
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2022
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2022
Review by McNeil who travelled 23-December-2022
There were a couple of problems with the electricity at the Hotel which I did report, but not taken seriously...the end result was a power cut on one evening. I think more experienced reception staff could have solved the problem immediately.
Review by Harrison who travelled 23-December-2022
I only list the train as satisfactory because our train from Gare Montparnasse to Montauban was cancelled and replaced with a coach. The journey was fine, very good driver and we arrived safely at 1 am. The tour manager was excellent, very knowledgeable and very helpful.
Review by Tomlinson who travelled 23-December-2022
The rating for flight/train/ferry is affected by the cancellation of the TGV on the final leg of the outward journey on 23 December. The ratings for accommodation and tours will be explained in detail in further comments to follow by email in the next few days.
Review by Clayton who travelled 23-December-2022
Striking French Trains resulted in very long coach journey, but hey, we arrived! Tour manager Gerard coped very well with this and an accident to one of the group. The Local guide in Toulouse was very wordy, and we walked a lot for not much to see; it would have been very useful to have been given a little map of the free bus that circles the town. Almost all the museums were shut, the one open one was on the other side of the river, but the city bus went near it. We were not there long enough to master the Metro..The hotel was very quiet and near the centre of town as well, a perfect combination. It also offered the best buffet breakfast I've ever had. I loved the hill villages but did wonder how we would have managed if it had been wet or icy (the weather was very good for us) All in all a wonderful trip.
Review by Wheeler who travelled 23-December-2022
Everything was perfect.
Review by Anonymous who travelled 23-December-2022
The old Capuchin monastery has two cloisters and the rooms are set overlooking them Very comfortable with large bathrooms. Christmas eve and Christmas day dinners were in the old chapel and 4 round tables of 9 accommodated the whole group.. The weather was warmer than anticipated and it only rained on the last day. The City of Montauban with its shops, bars and restaurants is only 400 metres from the hotel . Tours were excellent and many local cafes were open over Christmas. Gerard worked tirelessly and had to deal with a train strike in France resulting in the group travelling 600 kilometres in a coach booked for the station transfer in Paris.
Review by Watts who travelled 23-December-2022
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