Paris
March 7-15, 2009

Overview
Features
Optional Excursions

Overview (Return to top)

Known as the “City of Lights,” Paris is perhaps one of the most romantic destinations in the world and also one of the most exciting and diverse. Vibrantly alive both day and night, there is much to experience in this cosmopolitan city to which people return time and time again to sample famous landmarks, cultural treasures, chic boutiques, and excellent restaurants. With the famous pink and blue waters of the River Seine running through its heart, this is a city of contrasts where there is always something new to discover. Striking monuments, museums, and magnificent buildings seem to appear around every corner, and at night Paris alights and bubbles over with festivities, cabaret shows, and jazz clubs. As the fashion capital of the world, the elegant, dazzling haute couture and shopping arcades are a dream come true. This beautiful city of parks, boulevards, bridges, monuments, and museums leaves one with long-lasting impressions and wonderful memories.

Priced from $1,649 plus air
GoNext

For reservations or additional information, contact:
Jan Breitman [jbreitman@alumni.iastate.edu]
Iowa State University Alumni Association

Phone: (515) 294-6526 direct or (877) ISU-ALUM toll-free
Fax: (515) 294-9402

Features (Return to top)

Land program includes:
• Seven nights first-class accommodations in Paris, France
• Continental buffet breakfast daily
• Luggage handling with related tipping
• Local taxes
• Attentive service from an experienced Go Next program manager and professional tour guides throughout
• Comprehensive pre-departure information

Airfare program includes:
• Round-trip transatlantic air transportation
• Round-trip transfers between the airports and hotels via deluxe motor coach, as well as related luggage handling and tipping
• Taxes and airline fuel surcharges

Optional Excursions (Return to top)

Paris City and Montmartre 
This excursion is a must! A panoramic drive will take you past the iconic sights for which the city is famous: the Champs-Elysées and Arc de Triomphe; Les Invalides, where Napoleon is buried; the Place de la Concorde and of course, the Eiffel Tower. Visit the magnificent Notre Dame Cathedral and Montmartre, a vine-growing village that attracts singers, writers, and painters from everywhere and is the home of the magnificent Sacré-Coeur Basilica.

Châteaux Country by TGV Train
Travel by high-speed train to the lovely Loire Valley. Here in the “Garden of France” is an extraordinary collection of castles built in the 15th and 17th Centuries. Visit the most romantic castle of all, the fairy-tale Châteaux de Chenonceau, with its splendid 200-foot gallery stretching across the Cher River. Leonardo da Vinci spent the last years of his life at Clos Luce in Amboise. It’s here you’ll marvel at amazing models of his inventions, his genius painstakingly brought to life.

Louvre Museum
Enjoy one of the largest art collections in the world.  This former royal palace is home to many masterpieces, including the famous Mona Lisa, the Victory of Samonthrace, and the beautiful Venus de Milo.

Moulin Rouge Dinner and Show
Enjoy an evening to remember at one of the most famous nightclubs in the world, the Moulin Rouge Cabaret. As evening falls the spirit of La Belle Epoque embraces you and the painted cancan dancers Toulouse-Lautrec come to life.

Versailles, Giverny & Monet’s House
This excursion is an unforgettable visit to one of the largest and most magnificent palaces in the world: Versailles. See the awe-inspiring Hall of Mirrors, scene of the signing of the 1919 peace treaty that ended World War I, and explore the sumptuous royal suites, their 1662 décor still intact. Follow the Seine River to Giverny to visit the charming house and spectacular gardens that inspired Impressionist artist Claude Monet. Stand in the garden where he painted his masterpieces, walk through his studio, and see the famous Japanese bridge. It’s an art lover’s dream!

Normandy
“Rendezvous” with a very special landmark in American history: the Allied landing beaches of World War II. Travel the Seine River Valley through Normandy to Caen and Bayeux. Visit the Museum of Arromanches, where the extraordinary exploits of the Allied forces are shown in real-life size. Continue to the beaches of Point du Hoc and the cemetery of St. Laurent at Omaha Beach.

Champagne Country
Welcome to the land of golden bubbles and the birthplace of champagne. Since the 11th Century the kings of France have come to Reims to be crowned in its remarkable cathedral. Visit this 12th-Century church, a supreme achievement in Gothic architecture.  Continue to Epernay, center for champagne production and the headquarters of Moet et Chandon and Mercier. End your day with a visit to Hautvillers, the village where Dom Perignon revolutionized local winemaking.