Preliminary Itinerary
DEPART THE USA
Independent departures on overnight flights.
OPTIONAL PRE-TRIP NIGHTS IN PARIS
Included in all extra night packages: Arrival Meet & Greet; Private Transfer from CDG Airport to the hotel, accommodation and daily breakfast, hotel porterage.
OPTIONAL ONE-NIGHT PRE-TOUR PARIS EXTENSION:
December 2, 2026: Depart the USA on overnight flight
December 3: Arrive in Paris, Free Day, Pre-Night1 Accommodation from 3:00 p.m.
December 4: Breakfast, Free Day, 5:30 p.m.: Join Main trip program
OPTIONAL TWO-NIGHT PRE-TOUR PARIS EXTENSION:
December 1, 2026: Depart the USA on overnight flight
December 2: Arrive in Paris, Free Day, Pre-Night1 Accommodation from 3:00 p.m.
December 3: Breakfast, Free Day, Pre-Night2 Accommodation
December 4: Breakfast, Free Day, 5:30 p.m.: Join Main trip program
For Three Nights in Paris Pre-Tour, use the Two-Night Extension + the Early Check-In Option and plan your arrival in Paris on December 1, 2026
Room Check-In Information
- Standard check-in time is 3:00 p.m.
- If you will arrive early in the morning and want immediate access to your room, you must add the EARLY CHECK-IN Option when you complete your registration order.
- If you arrive before 3:00 p.m. without early check-in, the hotel will store your luggage, and you can start exploring Paris until your room is ready.
Extra night inclusions: Private Transfer from CDG Airport to the hotel, accommodation and breakfast.
International airfare.
ARRIVALS IN PARIS
Note: Hotel check-in is available from 3:00 p.m.
If you arrive prior to 3:00 p.m., the hotel reception will store your luggage so that you can begin exploring Paris.
MAIN TOUR BEGINS
5:30 p.m. Meet your Conservancy Travel Trip Leader in the hotel for our Trip Orientation Meeting, then walk to a nearby restaurant for our Welcome Dinner including limited choice menu with appetizer, main course and dessert; a glass of wine, beer or soft drink; water and a choice of tea or coffee.
For early morning arrivals, optional guaranteed check-in is available to purchase in your trip registration.
Dinner
PARIS AND CHATEAU VAUX-LE-VICOMTE
Depart the hotel on foot and take the Paris Métro to begin our guided visit of the Île de la Cité. Visit Sainte-Chapelle. Begun in 1239, its soaring stained-glass windows and delicate Gothic structure create one of the most extraordinary sacred spaces in Europe.
Examine the exterior of the newly restored Notre-Dame Cathedral. Construction began in 1163 and was completed in 1345. Damaged and restored several times over the centuries, it remains one of the largest and finest examples of Gothic architecture anywhere. If entry wait times are reasonable, we will step inside to experience the restored nave.
Lunch features traditional Breton-style crêpes, savory galettes followed by a sweet crêpe for dessert, a simple and quintessentially French midday meal.
This afternoon, drive into the countryside for a special holiday visit to Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte. Completed in 1661, the château is regarded as one of the great masterpieces of 17th-century French classical architecture and later served as inspiration for Versailles. Today, it remains the largest privately owned château in France.
Each year, the château is transformed according to a unique seasonal theme, with elaborate installations and imaginative creations designed by leading French decorators. Grand salons glow with candlelight, festive trees rise beneath painted ceilings, and tables are artfully set as if awaiting guests. The result is immersive and theatrical, a celebration of French artistry and holiday tradition.
As dusk settles, the visit culminates in a spectacular sound and light presentation projected onto the rear façade of the château, illuminating the gardens and architecture in a magical seasonal finale.
Return to the hotel in the evening. Dinner at leisure.
This evening, your large suitcase will be collected and transferred by private luggage truck to our hotel in Strasbourg, allowing you to travel by train with hand luggage only.
Breakfast, Lunch
Dinner
PARIS – STRASBOURG
Check out of the hotel and depart by private motorcoach to the Marmottan Museum, where, with our art historian, we explore masterpieces by Claude Monet and his circle of Impressionist friends.
Enjoy traditional cuisine for lunch in a lively Parisian brasserie.
In the late afternoon, board the TGV high-speed train from Paris to Strasbourg.
From the station, we’ll walk to our hotel, situated in the heart of historic Strasbourg. After check-in, we’ll stroll through the Christmas Market around the main square before a dinner featuring Alsatian tarte flambée.
You'll keep your hand luggage with you today.
The TGV train journey from Paris to Strasbourg is approximately 2 hours
The walk from the Strasbourg train station to the hotel is about 15 minutes, less than 0.5 miles.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
STRASBOURG
Set out on foot for a guided visit of Strasbourg, capital of Alsace. Begin in the quarter of Petite France, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where cobbled streets, half-timbered houses, and canals define one of the city’s most picturesque districts. Once home to tanners, millers, and fishermen, this neighborhood offers a tangible sense of Strasbourg’s medieval past.
Lunch features regional cuisine in a traditional Alsatian restaurant.
The afternoon and evening are at leisure to explore Strasbourg’s Christmas Markets, which fill the historic squares with seasonal lights and activity. Wander among wooden chalets offering handcrafted gifts, ornaments, and regional specialties such as pain d'épices, roasted chestnuts, and steaming mugs of vin chaud.
Each of the city’s ten markets has its own character, from the historic Christkindelsmärik at Place Broglie to artisan stalls at Place Gutenberg. As night falls, the atmosphere deepens, and the city glows under thousands of lights. Strasbourg’s towering Christmas tree at Place Kléber provides a dramatic focal point for an evening immersed in Alsatian holiday tradition.
Dinner at leisure.
The city’s festive lights illuminate Strasbourg between 4:30 and 5:00 p.m. Pace yourself in the early afternoon so you have the energy to fully enjoy the markets in the evening, ideally between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m., when the atmosphere is at its most vibrant.
We know which chalet sells the collectible mug!
Breakfast, Lunch
Dinner
STRASBOURG – RIBEAUVILLÉ – COLMAR
Check out of the hotel.
Depart Strasbourg and drive south along the Alsace Wine Route. Passing through vineyards and picturesque villages, arrive at Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg, a 12th-century castle strategically perched in the Vosges Mountains overlooking the Alsace plain. The fortress blends medieval and Renaissance architectural elements and offers sweeping views across the region.
Continue to Ribeauvillé, a historic wine town long associated with Alsatian viticulture and once ruled by the powerful Lords of Ribeaupierre.
Lunch features local specialties, both cuisine and wine. Afterward, stroll through the village. While Ribeauvillé does not host a traditional Christmas market, it is renowned for its festive ambiance, with cobblestone streets and half-timbered houses beautifully decorated with seasonal greenery and lights.
Continue to Colmar and check in at our hotel, situated in the historic center.
We'll walk to dinner in a nearby restaurant.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
COLMAR
This morning, enjoy an art-historian led visit of the renowned Unterlinden Museum, home to the 16th-century Isenheim Altarpiece, one of the most significant works of Northern European art, celebrated for its powerful imagery, complex symbolism, and historical importance.
Next, explore Colmar on a guided walk through the historic center, where the Lauch River winds past brightly colored half-timbered houses. During the holidays, the city is adorned with seasonal decorations throughout its squares and streets.
The remainder of the day is at leisure to wander Colmar’s six Christmas markets, each set within a different square of the historic center. Traditional wooden stalls offer holiday décor, artisan crafts, and regional culinary specialties, from bredele butter cookies and pain d'épices to foie gras, Munster cheese, and Alsatian wines.
Pace yourself to enjoy the markets when the festive lights illuminate the city around 5:00 p.m. On weekdays, the markets are open until 7:00 p.m.
Breakfast
Lunch, Dinner
FREIBURG CHRISTMAS MARKET
Enjoy a morning at leisure to continue exploring Colmar’s Christmas markets, open from 11:00 a.m., and the historic center at your own pace.
This afternoon, drive east toward the Rhine River, crossing from France into Germany and entering the cultural landscape of the Black Forest. Vineyards and river plains gradually give way to wooded hills as we approach Freiburg.
Arrive in Freiburg for an introduction to the town’s history, followed by time to explore the Christmas market set around the soaring Gothic cathedral and historic town hall squares. Here, the atmosphere reflects distinct German Advent traditions, with stalls featuring woodcraft, candles, regional handicrafts, and seasonal specialties of the Black Forest. Remain as festive lights illuminate the darkening town, then return to Colmar in the early evening.
Dinner at your leisure.
Breakfast
Lunch, Dinner
KAYSERSBERG – OBERNAI – TRAIN TO PARIS-CDG
Check out of the hotel.
Depart Colmar and drive north along the Alsace Wine Route to Kaysersberg. Nestled in a narrow valley and overlooked by the ruins of an imperial castle, Kaysersberg is among the most picturesque villages in Alsace. Its Christmas market is intimate and centered on regional craftsmanship, with stalls offering handmade goods and traditional specialties, all set against vineyard-covered hillsides and half-timbered houses.
Continue to Obernai for our final meal together.
Afterward, take a short stroll through Obernai’s Christmas Market, known for its intimate scale and strong emphasis on gastronomy and artisan crafts. Set around the historic Place du Marché, where weekly markets have been held since 1310, and framed by elegant half-timbered houses and the Hôtel de Ville, the market reflects the culinary traditions of the region. A distinctive highlight is the white mulled wine made from local Alsatian varietals, a seasonal specialty rarely found outside the region.
We continue to Strasbourg and in the late afternoon, board a TGV high-speed train, arriving Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport Station approximately 7:00 p.m. Transfer to the hotel for overnight.
END OF PROGRAM
Your large suitcase will be picked up early this morning and transported to the Oceania hotel by private service. You'll keep only your hand luggage with you throughout the day.
After disembarking the TGV at the CDG train station, there is a walk of approximately 0.5 miles through the airport terminal connection passages to the designated meeting point. From there, we will transfer to the hotel by private motorcoach. The walk is mostly flat, free baggage trolleys and elevators are available.
As you prepare for your return flights, we recommend packing your Christmas Markets treasures in your checked luggage, as CDG airport security is known for rough handling of carry-on items. To avoid any issues, leave extra space in your luggage and consider bringing a shoebox with bubble wrap, waterproof bags, or similar protective materials. If purchasing food items, ensure they are securely packaged or shrink-wrapped and compliant with US import regulations.
Breakfast, Lunch
Dinner
DEPARTURE
Independent departures from Paris.
Hotel check-out by 12:00 p.m.
The hotel has an airport shuttle for a small fee. Reserve and pay for the shuttle at reception, when you check in to the hotel.
Uber is available and typically €8 –15.
If desired or needed for flight connections, an additional night at this hotel may be added to your registration order until the final payment deadline in August 5, 2026.
Breakfast
Transfer from the hotel to the airport.
