Avalon has designed included activities with a choice of experiences. We invite you to select the tours, activities, and events that interest you most, so you can experience your cruise your way. There are three types of included shore excursion on every Europe cruise:
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Active
Embark on energetic excursions to keep you in motion and on the go - from a guided jogging tour of Amsterdam, to biking, paddling, and hiking your way through scenic locales.
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
Embark on energetic excursions to keep you in motion and on the go - from a guided jogging tour of Amsterdam, to biking, paddling, and hiking your way through scenic locales.
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
Day 1 PARIS, FRANCE (EMBARKATION)
Welcome to France. Your Suite Ship® is Ready for Boarding
Flights into Paris must arrive by 2:30 pm.
Guests must be on board ship by 5 pm.
Your day is free to explore the world’s most romantic city before starting your cruise on the Seine. Explore the City of Light today with some shopping, strolling, or with a croissant and café au lait to watch the world go by amid the Parisian cityscape.
EVENING/OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO VERNON
Day 2 VERNON
Monet’s Muses, Castle Courtyards, and Crêpes du Jour
Visit the Adventure Center for today’s activities with your Adventure Host.
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Take a Guided Tour of Giverny, home and inspiration of the master impressionist painter Claude Monet. Walk the grounds and see Monet’s charming residence, and the flower and water gardens captured in his masterpieces, OR:Join a Guided Visit to Bizy Castle—called “Normandy’s Versailles” for its magnificent courtyard, water garden, and stables.
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
While sailing, enjoy a traditional French luncheon of authentic French crêpes, followed by an onboard history presentation.
LES ANDELYS
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Take a Guided Walking Tour of Les Andelys—one of France’s most picturesque spots on the Seine, OR:
Active
Embark on energetic excursions to keep you in motion and on the go - from a guided jogging tour of Amsterdam, to biking, paddling, and hiking your way through scenic locales.
Join a Guided Hike up to the castle ruins of Château Gaillard—historic home of King Richard the Lionheart.
EVENING/OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO CAUDEBEC
Day 3 CAUDEBEC
Ancient Abbeys Along the Seine
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Take a Guided Trip along the Normandy Abbeys Route—where more than 100 medieval Benedictine and Augustine abbeys and churches were built along the Seine, OR:
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
Join a guided excursion to a V-1 flying bomb launch site
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
This afternoon, you may choose a Guided Optional Excursion to the old seaside town of Honfleur.
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
Onboard lecture about WWII hosted by your history expert.
OVERNIGHT DOCKING IN CAUDEBEC
Day 4 CAUDEBEC. EXCURSION TO NORMANDY
Heroic Bravery on Normandy Beaches and French Farming Traditions
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Join a Guided Tour of Normandy’s WWII landing beaches, visit significant U.S. sites, including Omaha Beach, the Pointe du Hoc monument, and the American Cemetery, OR:Take a full-day Guided Tour of the British and Canadian commemorative sites, including the British cemetery, Pegasus Memorial, the seaside town of Arromanches, the Juno Beach Center, and the Bény-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery, OR: Join “A Taste of Normandy” Guided Tour for an in-depth look at this rich agricultural region. See the famous Bayeux Tapestry, visit the beautiful village of Beuvron en Auge and taste Calvados at a local distillery.
EVENING CRUISE TO ROUEN
Day 5 ROUEN
The Cathedral of Notre-Dame, and a Heroine for France
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Take a Guided Walking Tour of Rouen—site of Saint Joan of Arc’s martyrdom—and see the medieval quarter with its 16th-century Astronomical Clock, and Notre-Dame Cathedral, OR:
Active
Embark on energetic excursions to keep you in motion and on the go - from a guided jogging tour of Amsterdam, to biking, paddling, and hiking your way through scenic locales.
Take a Guided Bike Tour to discover and explore the most famous monuments and the lesser known hidden gems of Rouen on two wheels, OR:
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
Take a full day excursion in the areas of Vimy Ridge and Beaumont-Hamel, where the Canadian Forces fought and prevailed over German forces during WWI.
EVENING/OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO CONFLANS
Day 6 CONFLANS
The Footsteps of Van Gogh, Bonaparte, and Louis XIV
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Join a Guided Visit to Auvers-sur-Oise, home and resting place of Vincent van Gogh, OR:
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Take a Guided tour of the opulent Château de Malmaison—home of Napoléon Bonaparte and his wife Josephine.
EVENING CRUISE TO PARIS
Day 7 PARIS
Cafés, Cathedrals and Canvases in the city of Light
Join your Adventure Host for today’s special activities.
Classic
Your local expert is ready to guide you through the history and heritage of local destinations. You’ll marvel at the legends, lore, and spectacular architecture of iconic and historic sites.
Discover the ancient heart of Paris on a captivating Guided Walk featuring the Palais-Royal, Louvre pyramid, ancient sites on Île de la Cité, the Left Bank, bustling Latin Quarter, and more, OR:Join a Guided City Tour, that shows you the iconic sites of Paris, such as the Louvre Museum, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, Opéra Garnier, and the famous Champs-Élysées, OR:
Discovery
We’ve found inspiring and interactive activities to speak to your interests - from cooking classes, to painting workshops - to immerse yourself in each culture you explore.
Take a WWII tour of Paris which will include a visit to the museum of Les Invalides, dedicated to the Ordre de la Libération which was created in 1940 by General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French Forces.
OVERNIGHT DOCKING IN PARIS
Day 8 PARIS (DISEMBARKATION)-LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
Say goodbye to the Avalon portion of your vacation after breakfast. An included transfer delivers you to the train station, where you join your Monograms package. Travel to London by high-speed Eurostar train (Standard class). Your Local Hosts will be on hand to help you make the most of your time.
Day 9 LONDON
Morning guided sightseeing includes all of London’s famous landmarks. Drive past the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben; Westminster Abbey, where Prince William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, were married; Whitehall’s mounted horseguards; the Prime Minister’s Downing Street; Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus. Then, visit St. Paul’s Cathedral (except on Sundays). Sir Christopher Wren’s masterpiece with its world-famous dome is an iconic feature of London’s skyline.
Day 10 LONDON
Your Local Hosts will help you make the most of your day. You could take a flight on the London Eye for fantastic views over the city, or visit Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of Queen Elizabeth II, where Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, were married, for a tour of the magnificent State Apartments. In the evening, see one of the dozens of celebrated West End shows, or enjoy dinner at a traditional London pub, followed by a relaxing night-time cruise on the Thames River. There are so many possibilities to make your stay unforgettable.
Day 11 LONDON
Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.
Start sooner, stay longer. Start your vacation earlier or stay longer with destination options before or after your Avalon cruise.
