YOUR PROGRAM

Day 1 :

Arrival in Paris and transfer by coach towards Giverny. Stop lunch. Visit of the Monet Foundation (house and gardens), the world of the painter and gardener Claude Monet. For over 40 years, until his death in 1926, Giverny was his home, his site of creation and his masterpiece. A world of senses, of colors and of memories, the house in which the artist and his family lived notably contains his studio-sitting room and his exceptional collection of Japanese prints. The gardens are composed of the Clos Normand, with its flowerbeds, and the Water Garden, planted with oriental vegetation and weeping willows, its Japanese bridge painted green and its waterlilies. Then, proceed to the very close Impressionism Museum: Since 2009, the aim of the « Musée des Impressionnismes » has been to promote appreciation of the origins, geographical spread and influence of Impressionism. It enables visitors to discover the history of Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, while also revealing their impact on 20th-century art. Each season at the museum is structured around two temporary exhibitions. Departure towards Rouen. Check-in and installation in your hotel rooms. Dinner. Overnight stay.

Day 2 :

Breakfast. Full day of visits in Rouen. Guided tour of the historical centre of Rouen and its fascinating heritage are a « must-see »: the gothic cathedral which has the tallest church spire in France and a wealth of art, history, and architectural details; churches and mansions, restored half-timbered houses, well-maintained public gardens… It’s also named « the city of 100 bell towers » after the words of Victor Hugo. Lunch. In the afternoon, entrance and guided tour of the Museum of Fine Arts of Rouen, that houses one of the most outstanding public collections in France. It features paintings, sculptures, drawings and arts objects from every school, ranging from the 15th century to the present day. Meanwhile, the sheer variety of the collection, the breadth of the artistic movements represented and the presence of key works by great masters from Ingres to Monet make the museum a high temple of 19th century painting. Géricault, Delacroix, Corot, Gustave Moreau, Degas and Monet are represented by several of their masterpieces, and the donation by François Depeaux (1909) established Rouen as the home of France’s biggest Impressionist collection outside Paris. Return to your hotel. Dinner. Overnight stay.

Day 3 :

Breakfast. Departure by coach with your guide to the Etretat cliffs. Monet spent most of February 1883 at Etretat, a fishing village on the Normandy coast. He painted twenty views of the beach and the three extraordinary rock formations in the area and concentrated on his own changing perception of it at different times of day.  Continue towards Le Havre. Located at the mouth of the Seine, the City of Le Havre, classified a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2005, had always been a strategic point for access inland to Paris. Visit the MuMA of Le Havre, also called Musée André Malraux. The first thing you notice about it is its breath-taking coastal setting. Le Havre has nurtured artists like Monet, Dubuffet, Friesz, Dufy and Braque. From the Impressionists to the Fauves, the museum’s collections have been enriched by gifts such as works from the studio of Eugène Boudin and the Marande donation. Thanks to it, the collection of Impressionist works is today one of France’s largest, and the public can now enjoy works by Renoir, Pissarro, Sisley, Degas, Courbet and Corot. Lunch at the restaurant of the Museum, with amazing view on the sea. Continue to Honfleur. Entrance and visit of the Eugène Boudin Museum and the Maisons Satie. The houses are home to a scenographic and musical trail that pays tribute to the musician and composer Erik Satie, born here in 1866. Road back to Rouen. Dinner. Overnight stay.

Day 4 :

Breakfast. Departure towards Paris. Entrance and visit of Orangerie Museum, which presents an overview of developments in painting from the late 19th century to the 1930’s. Museum of impressionnism located in the Tuileries Garden next to the Concorde Square, it houses pieces of Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley,… The “Water Lilies Cycle” shows the highlight of the site : 2 rooms specially concepted to welcome 8 paintings of Claude Monet wrapping you prodigiously in the atmosphere of his property of Giverny in Normandy, and his famous et son basin of Nymphaeas. Lunch. In the afternoon, guided tour of the Marmottan Museum, which houses one of the city’s largest Impressionism collections: 100 of Claude Monet’s masterpieces (from Impression, Sunrise to the water lilies) as well as numerous works from the artist’s personal collection (Gauguin, Renoir, Sisley, Degas, etc.) ‘Grand dame’ of Impressionism Berthe Morisot is represented by a number of oil paintings, pastels and watercolours. The Musée Marmottan Monet’s temporary exhibitions, held regularly, are one of the highlights of Paris’s cultural season. Departure transfer by coach towards the airport for your return flight.