A unique small-group tour in the countryside of Provence, France with Kathy and Charley Wood |
A Week in Provence with The Luberon Experience
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If this type of vacation appeals to you, you'll enjoy The Luberon Experience, a week-long, small-group tour in the most scenic area of Provence, France. During the past 18 years, we've traveled all over Europe: 22 trips involving 12 countries and over 130 weeks. In 2004 we were fortunate to be able to live in the Luberon for almost seven months, and this area truly captured our hearts. It's the place we find ourselves returning again and again. We love sharing the Luberon with people who are looking for a different, very special vacation experience. The Luberon Experience - May and September 2010Saturday, May 15 - Saturday, May 22 (Women’s Week! - Two spots left) Saturday, May 22 – Saturday, May 29 (Full) Saturday, May 29 – Saturday, June 5 Saturday, September 18 – Saturday, September 25 Saturday, September 15 – Saturday, October 2 The Luberon Experience: A Very Different Kind of TourWe've observed the typical tour groups that visit Provence and other popular European destinations. These groups always travel in a big conspicuous bus, and they change hotels every day or two. The people look at the countryside through their bus windows, make quick stops at the top destinations, eat in tourist-oriented restaurants, and often stay in bland chain hotels. They "see" Provence, but they don't "experience" it. We designed The Luberon Experience as a unique and very different kind of tour. We've always been independent travelers. We wanted this to be the type of tour we'd like to go on. A tour that feels like traveling with knowledgeable and fun friends. A tour that doesn't seem like a tour! Our groups are small, never more than twelve people. We stay in one place for the entire week, a small and beautiful hotel in the picturesque hillside village of Bonnieux, one of the most beautiful villages in France. Each day's explorations focus within a 30 minute drive where the area is rich with discoveries. Our schedule is stimulating and varied, but also relaxed and flexible, including one day in the middle of the week when we split into two groups to travel "Beyond the Luberon" and visit other areas of Provence. Each week's plan can be adjusted based on the weather, the preferences of each group, and an unexpected opportunity like a festival in a neighboring village or an invitation to lunch at a friend's home. Our trip attracts travelers whose style and interests are similar: people who want quality over quantity, who want to do more than sightsee, who want to absorb the culture and beauty around them. We really enjoy the variety of people who join us, ranging in age from early 20's to active seniors. Our groups include couples, friends and family members, solo travelers, and small groups. Over the past four years we've had people from the USA (30 states and counting!), Canada, Australia and New Zealand. We personally lead all our groups, sharing special places we've discovered and have come to love. We eat in small and unique settings, sometimes in the homes of our friends. And our groups travel in two private vehicles, which also gives us more flexibility. We don’t all always have to do the same thing. Take a few minutes to learn more about the Luberon, our approach to travel, and a typical week with The Luberon Experience. Experience other special places in Europe with usEach year we also offer a few other "Experience" trips to beautiful areas of Europe that we love. In 2009 we traveled to the Bavarian Alps of Germany and the Salzkammergut region near Salzburg, Austria. In 2010 we'll spend two weeks in the Cotswolds in England and a week back in the Salzkammergut. These trips have many of the same features our travelers enjoy on The Luberon Experience: an immersion week in an incredibly beautiful rural area rich with discoveries; a small group of no more than 12 people; accommodations in a comfortable traditional guesthouse; a warm welcome from local hosts; and varied opportunities to experience a unique regional culture. We'll enjoy our meals in a variety of settings, featuring local specialties. For more information about these trips, see www.european-experiences.com. News about the Luberon and The Luberon ExperienceWe've announced our 2010 schedule: five weeks in the Luberon (May and September), two weeks in the Cotswolds of England (June), and one week in the Salzkammergut near Salzburg, Austria (early July). Our prices remain the same as 2009 and now include the costs of the mid-week "Beyond the Luberon" day. We offer a 10% discount to any returning client and their traveling companions, and a 5% discount if two trips are booked in the same year. We just launched our new website www.european-experiences.com to include our new trips to the Salzkammergut (Austria) and the Bavarian Alps (Germany). The new site includes lots of photos of the Luberon and our Luberon Experience groups. Our new site was featured on Pauline Kenny's Slow Europe website and James Martin's Europe Travel blog. We recently announced plans for two new "Experience" trips to areas of Europe that we love: The Bavarian Alps of Southern Germany and the Salzkammergut region of lakes and mountains in Austria. These two trips will run back to back in June 2009. For more information, see here.
We've just added an Amazon store to our website. This store shares the books, movies, music and products that most remind us of Provence, along with some travel accessories we've found useful. We personally own everything we recommend in the store. Take a look around!
Kathy and Slow Travel founder Pauline Kenny were at the Vacation Home Expo (April 12-13 in Atlanta). Pauline and I spoke on "Slow Travel ... We're Moving too Fast." Charley and I were at the Slow Travel booth for the weekend, and had fun meeting people and talking about Slow Travel and The Luberon Experience. In addition to her role as a faculty member in the College of Business Administration at the University of Tennessee, each winter Kathy teaches the popular non-credit evening class, "Planning Your European Vacation." With our daughter Kelly, we have also given talks to several area groups about our family travels in Europe. We enjoy encouraging and helping others to pursue their dreams of traveling in Europe. The Luberon was beautifully portrayed on the big screen in the 2006 release A Good Year starring Russell Crowe. Much of the movie was filmed around the village of Bonnieux where our Luberon Experience week is based. Our group has a private tour and tasting at Château la Canorgue, the main setting for the movie. Read about the movie A Good Year. See photos of locations in the Luberon featured in the movie here. The Luberon Experience was recommended by USA Today! (November 3, 2006) The reporter spent a day with us on one of our September trips, and the hard-copy paper included a photo of our group at a wine tasting. Read USA Today’s extensive coverage of the Luberon. The Luberon Experience was recommended by James Martin on the Europe for Visitors website. (October 22, 2006) See the Europe for Visitors story. |
Copyright © 2006 - 2010 Kathy Wood |