Les Liaisons Délicieuses

Spa/Thalasso Sojourn in France - La Baule
with
Les Liaisons Delicieuses
Hotel Royal-Thalasso Barrière, La Baule

Let your mind unwind while you pamper your body and tickle your palette at the legendary, Belle Epoque Royal-Thalasso Barrière in La Baule, the diamond of the Côte d’Amour. The welcome at the Hotel is truly extraordinary with personalized, attentive, yet discrete service on all levels. Miles and miles of the beautiful Atlantic coast stretch out before you with paths for walking and biking. The Lucien Barrière resort has a casino, Tennis Club (35 courts), and golf courses (45 holes) but best of all connected to the Hotel is one of the finest centers of Thalasso Therapy in all of France. And, Chef Gilles Demaure’s food is heavenly and very healthy. In addition to Thalasso/spa treatments and cooking classes, we will visit the markets in La Baule, the salt marshes and town of Guérande and the amazing Eco-museum of Ocean liners in St. Nazaire.

Trip Itinerary

We will be met at the SNCF train station in La Baule Escoublac and be taken by van to the Hotel Royal-Thalasso Barrière in the late afternoon. After settling into our rooms, over-looking the sea, we have some free time to enjoy the health club, indoor pool, sauna, hammam or simply take a nap! A welcome cocktail and presentation of the program for the week will take place just before dinner, along with a local oyster tasting. A festive Welcome Dinner will be served in the restaurant, La Rotonde, at 8:30 pm.

After breakfast in La Rotonde, we will go to the spa for a full morning of 4 spa treatments to ensure our “Well Being.” After lunch, we will have time for a rest before our first cooking class with Chef Gilles Demaure followed by dinner in La Rotonde where we will feast on our creations.

We will begin our day with a visit to the salt marshes and the charming medieval village of Guérande, home of some of the very best salt in the world. We will have lunch at a local creperie and enjoy the delicious local buckwheat crepes. After lunch, we will return to the hotel for a full afternoon of spa treatments (4 each day!) Dinner will be in La Rotonde, which offers spectacular views of the sea.

After breakfast, Chef Gilles will take us on a visit to the markets in La Baule. There will be free time for shopping in La Baule and an early lunch at the Beach Restaurant, Le Ponton. After lunch, 4 more glorious spa treatments and then free time for a nap or a game of tennis at the Tennis Club before dinner at Le Rotonde.

Our spa treatments today will begin after breakfast followed by lunch on the beach at Le Ponton. After a walk or a nap, Chef Gilles will give us a second cooking class, sharing all of his secrets in his wonderful cookbook, La Table du Bien-Etre. Tonight, we will again feast on our own creations in the restaurant, La Rotonde.

This morning we will visit the Eco-museum of Paquebots (Ocean Liners) in St.Nazaire where most all of the ships were and continue to be made. Entering the museum is like boarding your ship for a transatlantic cruise and “on board” the experience continues, complete with a drink in the very bar that was on the SS France which some of you may have sailed on in the 60’s! Lunch will be back at the beach restaurant, Le Ponton, followed by an afternoon at the spa. Our Farewell Gala Dinner will be held this evening at the restaurant in the Relais et Château Hotel, Castel Marie Louise.

After breakfast, we will enjoy our final morning in the spa followed by a farewell lunch at La Rotonde. We will return to the train station after lunch for a train which will get us back to Paris in time for dinner in the City of Light. Au Revoir.

If thalasso/spa treatments are not of interest to you, golf or tennis could be substituted for the half days at the spa. The Royal Thalasso Barrière-La Baule has 45 holes of golf and a superb tennis club.

Accommodations & Cost

Accommodations: The Royal-Thalasso Barrière Hotel is a combined hotel, spa and restaurant. All participants stay in the Hotel’s seaview rooms. Each includes a private bathroom and direct dial phone service.

Included in the cost: Six nights accommodations; all ground transportation; all meals including aperitifs and carefully selected regional wines; all cooking classes and spa treatments as described; and all sightseeing and private visits as described above.

Not Included in Cost: Train fare to and from La Baule; alcoholic beverages except as specified in the program.

Cost: $4,590. per person double occupancy, Single Supplement $600. Important note: substantial changes in the value of the dollar may require changes in the price of the tour.

Deposit: $1,000 per person.

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