The Painters Route

On the footsteps of Claude Monet and Vincent Van Gogh

Lifestyle Vacations cultural tour is a tribute to the Masters of Impressionism: Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet. It's a glorious celebration of the fine arts through the intimacy of the places where the artists lived and painted...

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The Painters Route guides you to Giverny and to Auvers-sur-Oise, two picturesque villages located about one-hour from Paris. More than a visit to Monet's house and to Auberge Ravoux where Van Gogh spent the last months of his short life, it will be an immersion in very special environments that invites to creation, reflexion, and meditation. The itinerary has been designed by Corinne A. Preteur. She personally escorts this VIP tour.

Giverny is closely linked to Monet and to the American impressionist painters. In this picturesque village, the painters found a source of inspiration in such a beautiful environment of chalk cliffs, fields, rivers, and light. Claude Monet lived for almost 43 years (1883-1926) in his house in Giverny. With an unlimited passion for gardening and colors, the Master designed his flower and water gardens like works of art. In walking through the house and gardens, you feel the atmosphere that reigned at Monet's home and the marvel at the floral compositions and, his greatest source of inspiration. You will visit his house, gardens and Japanese prints collection. The passion Monet felt for Japan led him to introduce Japanese touches into the completely original universe he had created in Giverny. The inspiration he drew from the Japanese art of gardens is clearly visible in the planning of the pond which he transformed into a spectacular « water garden » (elements of vegetation, water Lily pond, etc).

This morning visit is followed by a Michelin-starred 3-course lunch in Giverny. You will relax and enjoy your lunch in a beautifully restored Normand-style 1910 villa, decorated in a haven of peace and serenity. The wine is at extra-cost.

The afternoon tour guides you to Auvers-sur-Oise through the Vexin quaint countryside. Vincent Van Gogh spent the last period of his short life in this village, renting a hotel room in the Auberge Ravoux. Secured by the presence of his brother Theo, Van Gogh found the serenity and the inspiration which highly influenced his work: he painted more than 70 pictures within only 70 days. Auberge Ravoux is today a museum, a place of memory and meditation. You will visit it but also walk through the village narrow streets to the Romanesque/gothic church immortalized by Van Gogh, the house of Doctor Gachet, and the cemetery where Theo and Vincent Van Gogh are buried side by side.

Program price: US$450 per person (minimum 2 people, maximum 4 people).
It includes:
- round-trip transfer from Paris by private car or van,
- visits to Claude Monet house and Auberge Ravoux (entrance tickets included),
- guided walking tour in Giverny and Auvers-sur-Oise,
- gourmet lunch in a Michelin-starred restaurant in Giverny (wine in supplement).

Scheduled: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, April to October, except on public holidays.