France

Sketchy Tours 2020

Schedule Travel to France!

This summer's tour availability is limited. For more information or to schedule a private tour contact us at [email protected].

Our Signature Tour

Sample Travel Itinerary

Depart USA the day before you expect to arrive in France.
Pickup at Bordeaux Airport
Two Nights in St. Emilion
Seven nights in Beynac
Depart and drop off at Bordeaux Airport

Early Bird Discount & Booking

With 6-8 months lead time and effective use of accommodations prices can be as low as $4,850 per person in a single occupancy room and with a second person in a double room it is possible to receive half off ($4,850 + $2,425= $7,275) for the second person.
Prices can be quoted with complete booking information including travel dates, the number of guests, and a few travel preferences.
Last minute rates can increase to $5,800, plus $995 for single occupancy, based on availability.

Space for these tours is limited once the initial booking is made and reservations are always based on availability.
Deposits and payments are fully refundable until bookings are made and in the event of trip cancellation by Sketchy Tours. Otherwise, all payments are non-refundable, travel insurance is highly recommended. (See complete Terms and Conditions).
Reservations: $500 per person deposit required.
Begin application process here.
Once your application is confirmed you'll need to complete the registration process here. This is done after your travel reservations are arranged.
Remember that departures from the United States arrive in Europe on the next calendar date.
Please coordinate travel arrival and departures with Sketchy Tours.
Email [email protected] or call 406-209-4225 with questions.

Tour Description

Two nights in St. Emilion & Seven nights in Beynac (see descriptions below).

Included

Travel Planning before and Assistance during the tour.
Two nights in St. Emilion at a Three Star hotel with a pool with peaceful gardens to sit and recover from travel, walk the village, and includes breakfast each morning.
Seven nights in the cliff side town of Beynac in at a fantastic villa with a pool and great views.
Ground transportation from pickup on June 17 (at 1:30) to drop off June 26 (at 11:30) is included in tour cost.
All Breakfasts, a welcome dinner in St. Emilion, and most dinners in Beynac.
Entrance Fees to Underground walking tour of Monolithic church, a UNESCO World Heritage site in St. Emilion. Chateau Beynac, Chateau Comarque, Lascaux 2, and Marqueyssac Gardens.
Sketching and conversation about art and culture is part of every Sketchy Tour. For this Friends & Family tour we’ll be sketching and talking about art all the time. We’re fascinated by it. That’s why we go here. Sketching on your part is optional.

Not included

Lunches and two dinners out.
Additional wine tour of Chateau Guadet in St. Emillion (requires reservations).
Additional entrance fees along the way.
Additional snacks from bakeries.
Late pickup because of transportation delays may require train or taxi to St. Emilion from Bordeaux airport or train station.
Additional night in Bordeaux near airport or train station for departures June 27 or later.

St. Emilion, a UNESCO World Heritage site for cultural landscape is a wonderful walkable village in the heart of the Bordeaux wine region. Along with its world-class vineyards and opportunities for tasting and purchasing Grand Cru wines at amazing prices, it is a remarkably well-preserved and pristine medieval village with three ancient Abbey’s, the largest underground monolithic church in Western Europe, a ceramics museum and many great views and vistas.

Beynac is along one of the many walking routes of France. It has a post office, restaurants, a bakery, a market, and a castle. From our accommodations in Beynac we visit castle ruins, standing castles, cave art sites, and a sculpted garden. The medieval market town of Sarlat la Caneda is 10 minutes away. Other sites we visit are no longer than 20 – 30 minutes away. There are always options for your itinerary from staying at our accommodations for the day, taking a walking tour on your own, adding on additional cave sites, vineyards, or other outdoor activities that the area has to offer such as canoeing or balloon rides

We always look for accommodations that are unique and indicative of the area and well appointed, with a good balance of bedrooms to bathrooms and facilities to enjoy; swimming, cooking, eating, and gaining an artist’s perspective of the world.

About Sketchy Tours

Sketchy Tours has offered a combination of art, culture and travel since 2011 through to southwest France, arriving in Bordeaux, proceeding immediately to St. Emilion for two nights and parts of three days to walk and see the sights of a UNESCO world Heritage site, then venturing up the Dordogne River to stay for a week in a villa with a pool for day trips to local, culturally significant sites. While art and sketching has been the focus of these trips the benefits of these tours has always been to gain an historic perspective of the region and the world, to visit historic places, to enjoy the French way of life, and to discuss and contemplate the role of art in the world.

Sketchy Tours began in 2010 with Beth Pfaff and Chaucer Silverson making a visit to Bergerac, France and later deciding to bring others to the region to share their insights. Launched in 2011, Sketchy Tours took form and has made 5 additional trips to the area with guests, learning more about the local history, great places to visit, and the logistics of traveling well to the region.