Seine River Guided Bike and River Cruise

At 5 pm, our tour guides will welcome you to Paris for embarkation. After you have moved into your cabin in peace, your tour guide will explain the itinerary. Finally, at 9 pm, it is time to cast off, and the VIVA sets course toward Normandy.

You will leave the Ile de France overnight and wake up in Normandy in the morning. Enjoy the ride on board in the morning. Your ship traverses the wide loops of the Seine, past pretty villages, lush green meadows, and thickly overgrown hills. You begin your stay on land in Normandy with a guided tour of the old town of Rouen in the afternoon. Rouen oozes medieval flair with a clock tower and a magnificent cathedral. The mighty towers of the cathedral tower over the roofs of the city. You'll also see "Du Vieux Marchée," where Jeanne d'Arc, the Maid of Orleans, was burned as a witch. Your ship will stay overnight in Rouen, so you can still stroll through the medieval streets of Rouen. An extraordinary spectacle awaits you in summer. As soon as the sun sets, the cathedral illuminates with a light show accompanied by suitable music (June 1st to September 15th). We recommend that you watch this free performance after dinner. It is only a 15-minute walk from the ship to the cathedral portal.

After breakfast on board, your e-bikes will be ready for departure not far from the jetty. You drive out of the city on small streets. Today you cycle on the "Route of the Romanesque Monasteries." You will cross two of the most beautiful river loops in the heart of Normandy. On the way, you will reach the magnificent ruins of the monastery of Jumièges. The 11th-century Benedictine abbey is one of the most impressive ruins in France. You can still feel their paramount importance today. At lunchtime, your tour guides will prepare a delicious picnic for you. Romanesque and romantic goes back along the Seine to the gates of Rouen. We will bring you into the city to the ship with a short transfer in the afternoon. In the evening, your ship continues towards the Atlantic.

In the morning, we will take you to the beautiful Côte d'Albatre, the most spectacular section of the Norman coast. The small seaside resort of Étretat lies magically between the steep chalk cliffs. The breathtaking beauty of this landscape opens up to you on a cliff path (easy hike). The imposing, needle-shaped formations have inspired many great artists, including Boudin, Monet, and Manet. After a leisurely break, you cycle on charming little streets, through Norman villages, past large farms with white cattle and small châteaux to Tancarville. From here, the transfer will bring you back to the ship in Caudebec-en-Caux.

Your ship arrives at Les Andelys early in the morning. Here the Seine loops wide and has washed steep cliffs out of the limestone. The mighty ruins of Richard the Lionheart tower above the river! Then there's the small half-timbered village at the foot of high, white cliffs. From Les Andelys, you cycle first along the Seine and then back over a high path to the graceful ruins of Richard the Lionheart. Your guide explains the importance and dramatic decline of the castle. Finally, walk the last few meters back to the ship. At noon our boat casts off and continues towards Vernon.

In the early afternoon, your ship arrives at Vernon Pier. Today we start with the e-bike at the postcard motif of the old half-timbered mill in Vernon. First, you cycle upstream on a former railway line to Giverny to Monet's water lily ponds and gardens. The world-famous impressionist lived here for 50 years, and his green and pink house is still there as if the painter had just left it. It is densely overgrown by a beautiful garden that the artist created, inspiring many of his pictures. After a stroll through the extensive complex, we follow the course of the Seine on side paths to the impressive La Roche Guyon castle, which protrudes deep into the white limestone. From his garden, you have a wonderful view of the Seine. Your guides will explain the history of the chateau to you. You have time to enjoy the amenities on board in the evening while the A-ROSA VIVA is in Vernon until the next morning.

Enjoy a full day on board the VIVA today on your leisurely cruise on the meandering Seine through the Ile de France to Paris. In the afternoon, listen to an informative talk from your guide about the country and its people and let yourself be pampered on board. Overnight and dinner on board.

In the morning, you will experience the green Paris by bike and reach the Tuileries Gardens.

In the middle of the gardens is the orangery, which houses Monet's impressive water lily cycle and shows other Impressionist exhibits. During a detailed tour, you will learn more about the painter Monet and his contemporaries. In the afternoon, the final highlight awaits you: a visit to the Musée Rodin. Paris has countless museums, many of which are among the most important and famous in the world. For our day in Paris we have selected a charming gem for you. The small Rodin Museum shows the unique art of France's most famous sculptor. The age of modern sculpture began with Auguste Rodin. Together with his student and lover Camille Claudel, he created works whose intense sensuality touches the viewer deeply. One of his masterpieces is "The Kiss", whose passion, frozen in marble, is so lively and moving that it fascinates every visitor. Rodin's pupil and muse Claudel was shattered by her sensitivity, which gave her the creative power for immortal works of art, but made her despair of life. A pretty, small park adjoins the museum, which shows other important sculptures by the master such as "The Thinker" and "The Citizens of Calais". In the evening, you will be served an excellent final dinner on board.

After breakfast on board, disembarkation takes place in Paris. We would be happy to recommend a hotel for an extension in Paris.

Of course, extending another night (or two) in Paris is advisable to experience this lively and fascinating city even more extensively.