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European Experiences

Small group tours in Europe's most beautiful places: Provence, Tuscany, Cotswolds, Dordogne, Alsace, Cornwall, Puglia, Paris... and now Morocco.
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Now in our 19th year!

22/12/2024

𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿! Give yourself the gift of Travel this year and enjoy a 10% discount!

We're offering a special 𝟭𝟬% 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 on these two seaside trips, coming up in April 2025:

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 (10 nights, April 21 - May 1). The first week of this unique trip is based in Penzance, on the far southwestern tip of England and features dramatic coastal scenery, waterfront towns and villages, subtropical gardens, and prehistoric sites. A highlight is always our evening with the Mousehole Male Voice Choir. We then travel for two nights to the magical Isles of Scilly, 25 miles off the coast, returning to Penzance for our last night. You'll be enchanted by this unique and historic region of England! https://european-experiences.com/cornwall-england/

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 (7 nights, April 21 - 28). This popular trip is based in Bandol, a lively coastal town and port. Our group explores the lesser-known western coast of the French Riviera with experiences including day trips to Marseille and Toulon, visits to coastal villages and vineyards, boat trips to enjoy the spectacular scenery, meals of fresh and seasonal foods, and much more. Enjoy the sunshine of Provence on the beautiful, blue Mediterranean Sea! https://european-experiences.com/mediterranean-provence/

Contact us to learn more and enjoy a memorable European Experiences trip on the sea!

21/12/2024

After their Christmas Experience tour ended in Colmar (Alsace), Kathy and Charley headed for their second home in the Luberon, Provence for a too-short stay before Christmas. They've enjoyed wonderful meals and special times with good friends-- including several members of the European Experiences team!

We're looking forward to our 2025 season and welcoming our groups to Provence!

14/12/2024

Our 12-night European Christmas Experience has now (sadly!) come to an end. We enjoyed a memorable last day visiting three Alsatian wine villages in the countryside outside Colmar: Kaysersberg, Ribeauvillé, and Bergheim. We especially enjoyed Kaysersberg (pictured here), where there was a Christmas market. Kaysersberg is a very picturesque village of colorful, half-timbered houses, located at the base of the Vosges mountains and surrounded by vineyards. The village was attractively decorated for the holiday season. (We’ll be back in June with our Alsace Experience groups.)

Thanks so much to the 14 wonderful travelers who joined us for this adventure… and to all of you who followed along! We’ve now wrapped up European Experiences 2024 season. We’re looking forward to a little time off and to a new year of trips in 2025.

We’d love to have you join us for the European Christmas Experience next year (December 1 – 13) or one of our other trips. Give yourself the gift of travel! https://european-experiences.com

13/12/2024

Strasbourg is the 8th largest city in France and one of the seats of the European Union. It’s also Europe’s “Capital of Christmas,” as the first-ever Christmas market was held here in 1570. It’s about an hour north of our base in Colmar.

Our group enjoyed our day in Strasbourg, staying until after dark to see the fabulous Christmas lights. There are 11 different Christmas markets and lots of decorations! And lots of wonderful food! (It was crowded on Thursday, and we recommend not going on weekends!)

https://european-experiences..com/european-christmas-experience.com/

11/12/2024

What a wonderful day we had in Colmar! In the morning Kathy introduced several of the group to some beautiful areas we didn’t see last night; then some joined Charley to visit the Unterlinden art museum and others joined Kathy to visit the Bartholdi museum and the Hansi museum. And others did their own thing.

Later in the afternoon we had a wine tasting experience of five different wines at a winery in Colmar. And we enjoyed dinner of an Alsatian speciality: choucroute. We celebrated our third group-member birthday… and everyone in the dining room sang along! Happy birthday, Amanda!

https://european-experiences.com/european-christmas-experience/

10/12/2024

Bonsoir from Colmar! Our group arrived here in Alsace (France) this afternoon for the last four-night stop of our European Christmas Experience. The colors, decorations, and lights here are very exciting.

We saw something of the town on a walking tour with our guide Stephane and relaxed over a traditional dinner and some good wine. We enjoyed walking back to our hotel in the quiet evening. And we celebrated the second birthday in our group… Happy Birthday, Susie!

10/12/2024

Monday was our last day in Munich, and our Christmas Experience group headed in different directions based on our interests. We also had some free time before we met up for our last Bavarian meal together.

Three of us spent the morning at the Deutches Museum, the world’s largest science and technology museum, with 20 different exhibitions… something for everyone.

Seven of our group joined Charley to visit Dachau, the former N**i concentration camp, about 30 minutes outside Munch. Over 188,000 people were inmates here— living in inhumane conditions— and 41,500 were killed. Our group had an excellent guide, learned a lot, and were glad they had visited.

The rest enjoyed more of Munich on their own. Several made an afternoon stop back to the Hofbrauhaus.

We met up for a fun dinner at Donisl, walking one last time through the festive Marienplatz. We celebrated Clay’s birthday and have more birthdays the next two days

We’re now on our bus, traveling across Germany. Soon we’ll cross the Rhine River into France for the last stop of our European Christmas Experience… four nights in Colmar, a very special town in Alsace. Stay tuned!

https://european-experiences.com/european-christmas-experience/

09/12/2024

Always a highlight of our European Christmas Experience…. a special evening with Alexander at his kitchen studio Genusswerkstatt in the Haidhausen neighborhood of Munich.

We had a relaxing time in this cozy kitchen/dining room. Alex explained as he prepared each dish, Martin kept our glasses full, some of our group helped cook and serve, and others watched…. and we all enjoyed a delicious and leisurely four-course, gourmet meal of Bavarian and Austrian specialties.

Kudos to our cooks and helpers! And many thanks to Alexander and Martin!

07/12/2024

We traveled 1.5 hours from busy Munich to the lovely village of Oberammergau, at 2750 feet in the foothills of the Alps. The village is known for its painted houses, the longtime craft of woodcarving, and of course the Passion Play. The play was first performed in 1634 and now every 10 years.

We had a village walking tour with our guide Helga… she was born in the village and has been in the Passion Play all her life, three times as Mary Magdalene. We enjoyed lunch at the Hotel Alte Post and then free time to explore and browse the great shops.

https://european-experiences.com/european-christmas-experience/

06/12/2024

Guten Abend from Munich! A little rain doesn’t stop this intrepid group!!

We travelled by train from Salzburg, about 2 hours (a delay), then taxis to our comfortable and well-located hotel. Lunch at the Weisses Bräuhaus across the street and then a guided tour with Ameli. We finished with glühwein at the nearby Viktualienmarkt outdoor food market. And latera traditional dinner at the bustling Der Pschorr restaurant. We’re excited to be here in Munich for four nights!o

05/12/2024

What a perfect day for our day in the countryside outside Salzburg! We first visited the salt mine outside Hallein, where our group wore miners’ clothes to explore deep inside the ancient mine that generated Salzburg’s wealth hundreds of years ago. They ride astride a miners’ train, whooshed down two slides, and slid across an underground lake.

Next we took a twisty road across two mountains and through a canyon to the Salzkammergut region and the farm of Simon and Brigitta. We enjoyed a delicious homemade lunch and learned about their varied activities on their small farm.

Next we visited the lovely lakeside village of St. Gilgen, where their small and friendly Christmas market was set up on their main square. Thanks to Michaela of Salzburg Experience for hosting this special day for us!

We arrived back in Salzburg just in time for the Krampus parade down Linzergasse— right past our hotel!

https://european-experiences.com/european-christmas-experience/

05/12/2024

The bells at 12 noon!

04/12/2024

Our European Christmas Experience group enjoyed another special day in Salzburg. We explored the Dom Quartier, a fascinating complex of five different museums linking the Residenz, the Dom (cathedral), and St. Peter’s Abbey in the baroque center of Salzburg. (Several of the group especially enjoyed the dress-up area!)

We took the funicular up to Hohensalzburg, the Salzburg fortress dating back to 1077… spectacular views and much more to explore.

And later we enjoyed a private concert with two young musicians on saxophone and keyboard… classical music, Christmas music, jazz, and some Sound of Music favorites. Salzburg is a city of music!

04/12/2024

Salzburg is beautiful even in the rain, and our group enjoyed our day exploring this very special city. It was a day of many unique experiences.

We began our day at Mozart’s birthplace. He lived here for 25 of his 35 years and is definitely Salzburg’s favorite son. We next visited the Christmas museum and then had free time to browse the Christmas market and relax over a coffee at a traditional Austrian coffee shop.

After lunch at the Cafe Sacher, most of us went to the Augustiner-Bräu, an immense beer hall in a nearby neighborhood. A real Salzburg experience! And for a contrasting experience, we finished the day at the Mozart dinner concert, an elegant evening at St. Peter’s Stiftskeller, where a restaurant has operated since 803.

02/12/2024

Our 2024 European Christmas Experience group arrived in Salzburg this afternoon. We’re happy to have four nights here in this beautiful city. We had a walking tour (with a stop for gluhwein), some time at the main Christmas market, and a traditional dinner of wiener schnitzel and apfelstreudel.

We have a fun group and this Experience trip is off to a great start!

02/12/2024

We received this special note from frequent traveler Steve a few days ago: "Kathy, I wanted to take a moment to thank you and Charlie and Kelly and Jennifer for giving Linda and I the opportunity to explore so many places and meet so many wonderful people! I know European Experiences is a business but we have made so many friends along the way it seems like a family."

Steve and Linda (from California) first joined us for The Luberon Experience in September 2014 and have now been on nine European Experiences trips. They're always enthusiastic participants in our annual photo contest. And yes-- they do feel like family!

Thanks Steve for your note... it really meant a lot to us!

(Photo from the Return to the Luberon trip, 2018)

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Videos

Salzburg from the Hohensalzburg fortress

The bells at 12 noon!

Who’s up for a little hot chocolate sauce with their lunchtime Parisian profiteroles? https://european-experiences.com/paris-experience/

Who recognizes this delicious French dish, and who might have made it, on our Women’s Inside Paris trip? https://european-experiences.com/inside-paris/

A little taste of the ambiance in Afurada, a neighborhood of Porto, formerly a fisherman’s village on the Atlantic. Locals line up to enjoy the mouthwateringly fresh barbecue sardines, salads and potatoes, all washed down with Viño Verde, a fresh white wine from Northern Portugal. Join us for lunch here in 2025! https://european-experiences.com/portugal-experience/