Pre- and Post-Meeting Optional Tours
| Please book your optional tours via the online registration form |
Please note that tours will depart and return from/to the Palais de Congrés
Convention Center.
PANORAMIC CITY TOUR OF PARIS
Tuesday April 12, 2005
13.30 - 17.30
Discover the main highlights of Paris! Visit the bustling Opera Square,
the rue de la Paix, the majestic Place Vendôme, the Grands Boulevards,
where the major department stores are situated, the Madeleine church and
the spectacular Concorde Square with its famous obelisk. Continue to the
Champs Elysées, crowned by the Arch of Triumph with the tomb of
the Unknown Soldier. From there, on to the residential Avenue Foch to
the Trocadero for a spectacular view of the Eiffel Tower before going
on to the imposing memorial of Les Invalides with the tombs of Napoleon
and his son l'Aiglon.
Return to the Right Bank of the Seine via the Alexander III Bridge and
continue along the Seine passing the French Academy, the Mint and the
Conciergerie - the prison where Marie-Antoinette was held.
The tour then continues on the Left Bank of the Seine and through the
Latin Quarter - traditionally the student area of the city. See the historical
University of Paris, the Sorbonne, the Luxembourg Gardens of Italian influence,
the Pantheon - where many of the great men of France are buried. Then
on to the Bastille with the new Opera House and the Notre-Dame, the impressive
masterpiece of gothic architecture, impregnated with the history of Paris
since its construction in 1163.
Drive through the Carrousel square and see the Louvre Museum with its
new glass Pyramid surging gracefully in the middle of eight centuries
of architecture.
Rate per person: Euro 22
VERSAILLES PALACE TOUR
Tuesday April 12, 2005
13.30 -17.30
The present palace was established by the Sun King Louis XIV in 1668
during the golden age of French royalty. The palace was the government
headquarters and the political center of France from 1682 to 1789 except
during the Regency period. Versailles was the largest Palace in Europe
and housed up to 20,000 people.
The guided tour includes the sumptuous main State Apartments and the Hall
of Mirrors, where 17 great mirrors face the tall arched windows overlooking
the gardens. Guests will have free time to wander in the magnificent formal
gardens, designed by Le N?tre, who broke the monotony of the original symmetrical
layout with expanses of water and creative use of uneven ground.
Rate per person: Euro 58
FLEA MARKET TOUR
Sunday April 17, 2005
14.00-17.00
Enjoy a bustling and exhilarating tour to expereince the true flavour
of Parisian life, with time for a good browse around and a bargain hunt
at the Flea market. Here, dealers sell everything from used kitchen utensils
to vintage jeans, from Art Deco clocks to signed eighteenth-century Secretars
- as the saying goes "everything but the kitchen sink"! Why
spend a fortune on souvenirs when this kind of treasure hunt can be so
much fun?
Rate per person: Euro 30
THE PICASSO MUSEUM & WALKING TOUR OF THE MARAIS
Monday April 18, 2005
09.00-13.30
Once an area of marshland as its name suggests, the Marais grew steadily
in importance from the 14th century by virtue of its proximity to the
Louvre, the preferred residence of Charles V. Its heyday was in the 17th
century, when it became the fashionable area for the richer classes. They
built many grand and sumptuous mansions as well as the "hotels"
that still dot the Marais today. By the beginning of the 17th Century,
the then Place Royale, now the famous Place des Vosges built by Henri
IV, had become the focal point of the Marais. A walk under the remarkable
arcades will allow you to discover its exceptional beauty. Strolling along
the narrow streets of the Marais is a must during your stay in Paris.
Several private mansions host famous museums such as Carnavalet (whose
exhibits trace the history of Paris from Roman times) and the Hotel Sal?
housing the Mus?e Picasso.
Visit the Picasso Museum.
Rate per person: Euro 43
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NOTE:
- All tours include entrance fees as per itinerary and touring
in an air-conditioned bus with service of an English-speaking
guide.
- Rates for all tours are based on minimum 30 participants per
tour.
- Tour rates are subject to change in the event of statutory increase
of VAT or museum entrance fees.
- Changes in routes, departure/arrival times may occur for reasons
beyond our control.
- Comfortable walking shoes are recommended.
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