Approaching Europe
CONTRAST TOURS
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IT IS BASED ON THE 2026 TOUR
THIS TOUR WILL TAKE PLACE IN MAY 2027
STARTING IN 2027, THE PROVENCE TOUR IS DIVIDED IN 2 PARTS.
EACH PART IS SHORTER THAN THE 2026 VERSION
MAKING THE TOUR MORE ACCESSIBLE FOR ALL
AND OF COURSE IT IS POSSIBLE TO DO BOTH PARTS
AND HAVE A FULL EXTENDED EXPERIENCE
THE PROVENCE WINE TOUR - ARLES, MAY 2027
MAY - , 2027
In collaboration with Savi's Wine, Seaboard Wine, Wine and Words.
Limited to up to 12 participants
Plus, Thierry the other driver, intellectual on demand, and myself.
Plus, Thierry the other driver, intellectual on demand, and myself.
ABOUT THIS TOUR:
Arles and the Rhône River
Arles, playing on its bulls fight history.
Arles, Roquette District
Terrace in one of the AirBnBs in Arles, this one may be yours
First night in Arles
Visite at Domaine Richeaume, Sylvain the Wine Magician
Montagne Sainte Victoire
Chateau Romanin
Grand Blanc Vines at Domaine Milan
Our Hotel in the Rhône Valley, a 16th Century castle.
Inside the Castle
Dentelles de Montmirail from the extreme overlook
In the Grotte Chauvet.
Gorges de l'Ardèche
Pont d'Arc
Gorges de l'Ardèche
Dinner at the Castle
Chez Moi
Domaine Richeaume
Pink Flamingoes in Camargue
View from the rooftop of Domaine Scamandre
View on the Mont Ventoux from the Edge of the Dentelles de Montmirail
Mont Ventoux, looking toward the Alps, Italy.
Robin Grangeon, Domaine du Parandou
Cairanne, the Dentelles de Montmirail and the Mont Ventoux, seen from Patrick' Galant's vineyard
Elegant Lunch with Chateauneuf du Pape White.
Chateau Rochecolombe plot in Clos Monjault where their Côtes du Rhône Villages Saint Andéol is produced, soil similar to the ones found in Chateauneuf du Pape
Roland Terrasse, owner and vintner of Chateau Rochecolombe
Supreme Wine Tasting Experience with François-Xavier Vidil at Maison Aimé Arnoux
Dinner with Provençaux in Vacqueyras
This Wine Tour in Provence takes place in the region where I grew up, and eventually started my career as a photographer. I am extremely proud of the program during these two weeks together, and I am certain that it will provide you an authentic, if luxurious vision of Provence, most likely different from what you may have read or experienced before.
This is where wine production started in France in Roman times, and where you will find the richest collection of roman and pre-historic vestiges. History and Art are omnipresent in this tour, that often operates as a time machine. For instance, we'll go 38,000 years back, visiting the oldest cave paintings site in the Western World, a fascinating experience, opening our minds to a vision of very early European life, that defies intuition.
Of course this being a wine tour, we'll have quite a few visits with some of the best winemakers of France's South East, Provence. The producers I represent there are second to none, and will open their house and heart for us, and they include my own brother. We will share meals together, and unforgettable teaching moments. The quality of the food experience during the tour is crucial, and while this is a wine tour, it is also a truly gastronomic one, marked by excellence and authenticity.
All the hotels we go to are of the 4 stars category or equivalent, and provide rare charm and character, including a unique 16th Century castle/hotel with a star level table preparing its own organic produce. This year we stay in AirBnBs in Arles for a more comfortable and more immersed stay in the town.
I am also breaking new ground with this tour this year, bypassing Paris in order to offer a shorter and more affordable trip. I am also excited to include Lyon now in this tour, as this is where we will finish it, and you know, it is challenging to it poorly in Lyon!
I am delighted to welcome Mary Mehlich in this tour. She is the owner of Wine and Words in Washington NC, and has had a long career in the wine industry, thanks to her incomparable palate, wine knowledge and charming talent.
Being a professional photographer with a career spanning over more than 50 years, photography and art have a strong place in my tours. The second driver, is my friend Thierry, a high school friend going back more than 50 years. He loves photography, and is the French intellectual on the tour, as well as an expert on Arles. We will have an extended stay there, and if you did not know, Arles is the French modern epicenter of photography. So if photography has interest for you, you are on the right page, and we are on the same one.
Please note that my tours in general, require the ability to walk. Europe and France in particular, is a place where you cannot, nor want to drive everywhere. It is important that you may be able to withstand a reasonable amount of walking, which will also help you absorb the over indulgence in which we abandon ourselves when it comes to food. We are in France after all!
This is where wine production started in France in Roman times, and where you will find the richest collection of roman and pre-historic vestiges. History and Art are omnipresent in this tour, that often operates as a time machine. For instance, we'll go 38,000 years back, visiting the oldest cave paintings site in the Western World, a fascinating experience, opening our minds to a vision of very early European life, that defies intuition.
Of course this being a wine tour, we'll have quite a few visits with some of the best winemakers of France's South East, Provence. The producers I represent there are second to none, and will open their house and heart for us, and they include my own brother. We will share meals together, and unforgettable teaching moments. The quality of the food experience during the tour is crucial, and while this is a wine tour, it is also a truly gastronomic one, marked by excellence and authenticity.
All the hotels we go to are of the 4 stars category or equivalent, and provide rare charm and character, including a unique 16th Century castle/hotel with a star level table preparing its own organic produce. This year we stay in AirBnBs in Arles for a more comfortable and more immersed stay in the town.
I am also breaking new ground with this tour this year, bypassing Paris in order to offer a shorter and more affordable trip. I am also excited to include Lyon now in this tour, as this is where we will finish it, and you know, it is challenging to it poorly in Lyon!
I am delighted to welcome Mary Mehlich in this tour. She is the owner of Wine and Words in Washington NC, and has had a long career in the wine industry, thanks to her incomparable palate, wine knowledge and charming talent.
Being a professional photographer with a career spanning over more than 50 years, photography and art have a strong place in my tours. The second driver, is my friend Thierry, a high school friend going back more than 50 years. He loves photography, and is the French intellectual on the tour, as well as an expert on Arles. We will have an extended stay there, and if you did not know, Arles is the French modern epicenter of photography. So if photography has interest for you, you are on the right page, and we are on the same one.
Please note that my tours in general, require the ability to walk. Europe and France in particular, is a place where you cannot, nor want to drive everywhere. It is important that you may be able to withstand a reasonable amount of walking, which will also help you absorb the over indulgence in which we abandon ourselves when it comes to food. We are in France after all!
ITINERARY:
* Tuesday May 19: Departure from RDU (or wherever you depart from). There are several routes to arrive in Arles, let's talk about this at booking.
* Wednesday May 20: Arrival in Paris most likely for you, and then fly to Marseille. Thierry and I will come get you in our vans at the Airport.
We should all be in Arles before noon, and AirBnBs are typically available around 15:00, so we'll go have lunch and then Thierry ans I will walk each of you to your apartment. And you will have some time to relax, shower etc.
We will all meet for a relatively early dinner (19:30), but before then we will have an aperitif, probably at our house.
Welcome dinner in town.
* Wednesday May 20: Arrival in Paris most likely for you, and then fly to Marseille. Thierry and I will come get you in our vans at the Airport.
We should all be in Arles before noon, and AirBnBs are typically available around 15:00, so we'll go have lunch and then Thierry ans I will walk each of you to your apartment. And you will have some time to relax, shower etc.
We will all meet for a relatively early dinner (19:30), but before then we will have an aperitif, probably at our house.
Welcome dinner in town.
* Thursday May 21: a rather late departure allowing you to enjoy Arles's streets in the morning light and coolness, and thanks to the fact that in Arles we are rather close to our daily destinations.
We will drive to and through the Alpilles, the lovely mounts north of Arles that seduced Alphonse Daudet, Van Gogh and many other artists.
Our destination will be Chateau Romanin, a 60 Hectares estate on the north side of the mountain range, east of Saint Remy de Provence, and which produces some of the very best rosés and whites in Provence. It is hard if not impossible to find as good, especially at these prices.
We are there in the Baux de Provence appellation, a rather new (30 + years old) appellation, that has already produced some stars with international recognition. Chateau Romanin is a biodynamic producer, and their white and rosés are stunning, extremely mineral and expressive, with an elegant balance and distinctive aromas. They also produce remarkable olive oils, and even a superb Marc of Provence.
We will visit the cathedral chais carved in the roc, and be explained why Chateau Romanin is there and what makes the wines so different from most other wines in the region and beyond. We will have lunch with Théo the wine maker, and the owner's son who happened to be Canadian, but linked to an American family (you know their brand!) which recently purchased this estate. Chateau Romanin offers a stunning view over the Rhône Valley up north, all the way to Avignon.
We will stop in Saint Rémy on the way back, exploring this charming very small town that has seduced legions of tourists before. We may have a drink there, and/or play pétanque after exploring the town.
Return to Arles for more street roaming before dinner in another special Arles restaurant.
* Friday May 22: our exact destination is Domaine Richeaume, see photograph on the right, one of the most revered producers in Provence.
The estate sits at the foothills of the Montagne Sainte Victoire, which was Cezanne's favorite subject, and mine too when I was living in a nearby village in pre-historic times, at the very beginning of my photographic career.
Domaine Richeaume is a ground breaking estate which has innovated and set trends in the region for the past 45 years. The production of the Domaine is absolutely stunning, with reds that are rich, deep, strong in fruit, notably black currant and fresh tasting, as well as delicious whites, exhibiting powerful finesse, and a delicious rosé which has irreducible fans here, and is coming back very soon. All the wines are biodynamic.
After the visit and tasting in the cellar, weather permitting we will have a picnic type of lunch with Richeaume's wines at the property with the owner, in the location shown on a photograph on the right, in the middle of the most valuable plots of the estate: Les Terrasses.
After lunch we will take a little road offering a stunning view on the Montagne Sainte Victoire, see photograph on the left, and if you all are in the mood for this, we will have a pétanque game mingling with the natives in the village where Cézanne painted a lot.
Light dinner in Arles.
* Saturday May 23: We will enjoy Arles a slightly late departure before heading to Camargue.
Camargue is the estuary of the Rhône river, the largest river in France. It is a swamp, not unlike the bayous of Louisiana, only under a different climate, and therefore with a vastly different vegetation and wild life, alligators are somewhat uncommon in Camargue! On our way to the Saintes Maries de la Mer, we will probably see pink flamingoes.
We will then have lunch in a charming seafood restaurant, home cooking style, in the Saintes Maries de la Mer, a very unusual seaside resort town, named after Saint Marie Magdeleine and the two other Maries, who are said to have landed there after escaping persecution in Palestine. This small town by the Rhône and the sea, is swinging at the rhythm of the Flamenco. This is where the Famous band "The Gypsy Kings" is from, and their music is always in the air in Les Saintes.
In fact, Les Saintes is the Mecca of the Gypsies, and May 23, 2026 is when they will be pouring into town for the annual fest of their patron. Expect music everywhere, and a lot to see, a once in a lifetime type of experience.
After lunch you will enjoy some free time to explore the place, absorbing its rather rare mix of "Gardian" (cowboy from Camargue), Gypsies vibes, Christian shrine atmosphere, omnipresent Toro culture, and beach resort, all that super dimensioned by the annual fest mentioned.
We will finish the day at Domaine Scamandre. Scamandre is a Domaine created from scratch by a couple of Parisian dentists (he has world notoriety) who fell in love with the region, and teamed up with a high caliber oenologist. They produce delicious organic wines following a very thoughtful process in which science plays a part . We will visit the domaine with Nadine Renouard who created it with her husband, and then will proceed to a festive evening with a game of pétanque, apéritif and delicious food.
* Sunday May 24: this will be another rather late departure allowing you to enjoy Arles in the morning, exercise a bit walking around the town etc on the French holiday.
Our destination today is Domaine Milan in Saint Rémy de Provence, which has gained a fair amount of recognition in modern, often "natural" wines, that are always very well made and addictive. We will have a visit of the vineyard with Natalie, an American Sommelier who married the French son of the family. A tasting will ensue, and then will do a picnic on location with local foods as well as Natalie and Théo.
From Domaine Milan, we will push to Le Pont du Gard. This Unesco World Heritage site, presents the tallest Roman aqueduct in the world, built in the 1st century and wonderfully preserved, a must see when you come to Provence(see photograph on the left).
Light dinner in Arles, maybe at my house or at Mary's apartment with multiple terraces.
* Monday May 25: after loading the vans, we will leave Arles, surely with immense sadness, but other adventures await.
We head north to the Rhône Valley, and on the way, we go to the Mont Ventoux, from which we will have a magnificent view.
On the way to the Mont Ventoux we'll stop for lunch at a very good restaurant at the very foot of the giant. Then the ascent will start, a substantial effort to visit the king of these quarters, the one that we will also see everyday from afar, towering everything.
This giant is famous for his testing climb in the Tour de France, which often sorts the ultimate winner from the rest of the peloton. At the peak we will be cousins with the clouds, and will have a breathtaking 360˚ view over the Rhône Valley, the Alps, all the way to the Mediterranean, and Italy on a bright day, see photographs on the right.
Apart from its magnificence, the view really helps grasping the geography of the entire region, and put everything in perspective.
Upon getting back in the flatter parts where mortals are, we will drive around Les Dentelles de Montmirail, a beautiful range of tall hills that will grace our views during all our stay at the castle.
And then we will arrive at our hotel nested in a 16th century castle in the heart of the Southern Rhône valley, see photographs on the left. This hotel is nothing short of magnificent, and will offer a unique chance to live for a few days in a luxurious alternative time span.
This hotel is also as organic as it gets, with organic beddings, and one of the best tables of the region, a starred level one, focused on produce from their own organic garden. Meals at the gastronomic restaurant offer a rather vegetal and light cuisine.
Pétanque.
Dinner at the castle .
* Tuesday May 26: Today we cross the Rhône river, to drive to Chateau Rochecolombe in Ardèche, on the right bank of the Rhône. Rochecolombe is a stellar organic vineyard, producing award winning wines. It is located in the northern tip of the appellation's geographic area.
This is a more than 60 Ha estate, run very efficiently, and providing every year the best value one can find in the Côtes du Rhône appellations. I think the Côtes du Rhône, tis mary's most popular wine in my portfolio.
We will meet Laeticia at the plot Rochecolombe has outside of the original castle property, and where the terroir allows the production of their Saint Andéol, which is like a cousin let's say, of Chateuneuf du Pape. We will then tour the castle's wineyard, understanding what makes Rochecolombe so unique, and see were the Côtes du Rhône is produced and where the Côtes du Rhône Villages is, thereby maybe understanding what is behind these cousin appellations. We'll then taste, from bottles, tanks and barrels, and have lunch with Laeticia and Roland the owner. The lunch will be catered by a gem restauranteur from the surroundings, friend of mine and Rochecolombe.
After lunch we will drive to the Grotte Chauvet, and after its visit we will drive down the Gorges de l'Ardèche, stopping at several breath taking belvederes.
The gorges are a magnificent site, where many caves can be found that were visited by our pre-historic ancestors, as early as 300,000 years ago. The most treasured of the caves is the Grotte Chauvet. It is a registered Unesco World heritage site, and contains some of the earliest known and best preserved figurative cave paintings in the world: 36,000 years old. It is not possible any longer to visit the actual grotte (later in the gorges, Thierry who has actually visited it, will be able to point out where the actual grotte is), but French authorities have built a perfect replica, which is the world's reference for conservation of parietal art.
I should emphasize that this is nothing short of a life altering visit. It is beyond fascinating to dive as profoundly as such a visit allows, in the actual lives and psyche of those early ancestors of ours. This is like stepping into a time machine, that will take us far, far back in history, to the really very early stages of humanity.
Light dinner with post paleolithic cuisine at the castle.
* Wednesday May 27: Very late start today, to meet Pierre Fernandez of Domaine Durieu, my Chateauneuf du Pape producer. We will meet first for a brief visit to a plot that they have on the nearby Plan de Dieu, mostly to see the difference in soil there with what we will encounter in Chateauneuf, where we will go after lunch.
Lunch will be at one of the very best restaurants of the region, a restaurant like what I would like to find more commonly.
We will look at several plots in Chateauneuf du Pape, that will give Pierre examples of soil to illustrate his description and explanation of the complexity of Chateauneuf's terroir. After this rather extensive field visit,, we will go to Domaine Durieu's tasting room for an in depth tasting.
After this thorough visit, we will explore a bit the village of Chateauneuf du Pape, see what remains of the castle and wander down the streets.
We will drive back to the castle through the gorgeous route that leads to Orange, a town that Romans considered one of the most important towns in Gaule. That route offers one of the most beautiful panoramic view on the Mont Ventoux and the Dentelles de Montmirail, the background of our daily excursions.
Pétanque
Light dinner at the castle.
* Thursday May 28: we are going to leave earlier than usual today, 9:00 sharp, in order to get to the location of the bubbly producer that we will have enjoyed during the tour, the Crémant de Die, which is an evolution of the Clairette de Die, one of the oldest bubblies in the world, that was elaborated in the 1st century, like the Pont du Gard, obviously no other correlation than the age.
My producer is probably the most distinguished one in the appellation, and his wines are made like Champagne. We will first visit some of the vineyard and that will be interesting as unlike all the other vineyards we will have seen before, here we will be in a low mountain type of vineyard, in the premise of the Alps. And we will visit the chai where Frédéric will explain the whole process involved in the making of his crémants.
All this will end by a tasting of the several crémants he makes.
Lunch will be in one of the very loveliest village I know in the region, at the foot of les 3 Becs, another iconic mountain that is often in the background at a distance, and that you can see in the photograph "Chez Moi" on the left.
After a thorough tour of this treasurable village we will go back to our castle for one last evening there.
One last Pétanque.
Castle dinner.
* Friday May 29: today we heartbreakingly, have to leave the castle. I was great for as long as it lasted, but clearly that could not last forever.
Before heading a bit north, we take one last trip to Vacqueyras to see my brother, and all along the way we will be graced again by the sight of the Dentelles de Montmirail that every day illuminate this part of the Rhône Valley with their unparalleled beauty. It is fitting that we top that region with him, because he makes the wines that statistically are voted #1 in the tour. François-Xavier directs the Domaine Arnoux et Fils, the oldest wine producer in Vacqueyras, and personally makes a few of the wines, notably the 1717 and the Vacqueyras blanc, 2 wines that I import in U.S. exclusivity, and are at the top of what this producer makes.
The 1717 is a wine emblematic of barrel aging, and that is what the visit with him will be about. You will taste the same juice aged in different barrels, modifying some of the parameters, and be able to taste the difference that makes. This is a fascinating study in which one can put his/her finger on the impact of a certain type of wood, the impact of the grain of the wood, the impact of the length of the aging and so forth.
After this rather lengthy class, we will hav lunch at the same restaurant that we enjoyed Wednesday, with a different menu made for this occasion, and of course with F-X and his wines.
After lunch we will head north to Lyon where we will enjoy one last evening and meal together, and in Lyon it can only be a fabulous dinner.
In Lyon we are staying in a 5 star hotel, nothing is too nice for you. The hotel is ideally located on the right bank of the Rhône river, on the edge of Lyon's very center. From there you can walk everywhere that matters, Lyon is yours.
See the Lyon hotel options.
* Saturday May 30: well folks, this is it, the new hours of the direct flight to RDU from Paris, now allows a reasonably timed departure from Lyon, and Air France makes a seamless connection in Paris. If your flight from Lyon is not too late, Thierry and I will drive you to the Airport, and later today you will be back home.
Should you want to stay another day in Lyon, or more, this could be arranged. Saturday would be a good day to explore the town and shop there, Lyon is interesting, like a cool Paris.
See Lyon hotel options for additional nights. I will stay one or two additional days in Paris, and will offer optional dinners then. There is already a group staying in Lyon until June 2nd.
Otherwise, we'll see each others again!
ABOUT THIS VOYAGE:
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Jean-Christian Rostagni
This is Your Hosts
Lineup:
to learn more about these characters, click on the thumbnail and then on "Open" in the lightbox in order to see what they are up to.
This trip is for those seeking an authentic French experience exploring Provence and the southern Rhône Valley. You may expect a trip that will take you in stunning comfort, quite further than what you may already know about Provence and the South East of France in general. All in the company of two deeply French characters, who will make sure you are feeling at your best every day.
DATES: May 19 - 30, 2026.
Limited to up to 11 travelers, plus Mary Mehlich, Thierry and myself, your travel companions, drivers, guides, photography assistant, interpreters and hopefully entertainers, competing for your love. Technically there could be 12 participants plus Mary, but that is the absolute max, and for now in order to preserve everybody's comfort and enjoyment, It seems better to limit the number to 11.
$ per person based on double occupancy, travel insurance and airfare are additional, if 12 travelers in apartment #3 in Arles, "Prestige" room in the Rhône Valley castle, and ""Standard room" in Lyon. $ if 11 participants, $ if 10 participants, $ if 9 participants, $ if 8 participants. Please see options page to see all room choices, alternatively and beyond the rooms listed here.
The single accommodation supplement is $ in apartment #1. Price includes hotel, meals, wine during meals, transportation, entrance fees when applicable, and should be considered all-inclusive, save for beverages in your room or at the bar, spa and other services you might want to enjoy that are not part of the group activities.
In Arles only apartment #3 is included in the standard tour price, and only apartment #1 is included in the single accommodation supplement. If you chose another apartment, including if these apartment are not available any longer, there will be an upgrade which is listed on that apartment's listing. If you see an apartment that does not have a price matching your situation, it is probably because it is reserved in priority for either single or double occupation. But please then contact me, and I will see what I can do for you.
Travel Insurance: you will be quoted a rate based on your tour cost and other parameters if you'd like. If you chose to get some Travel Insurance from Travel Insured International, a highly rated Travel Insurance Company with which I partner, you will get a 10% of your cost as a credit toward your Contrast Tours costs if you choose a trip plan, 5% on an annual plan to which you may add trip cancellation/interruption as well. See here.
Please read our Viral Policy. and the way of the meals.
And here is how your deposit and payments are handled.
Photography: I will happily provide photographic assistance and share my photographer's perspective throughout the tour.
During this journey you will be able to compare wines from many different appellations from France's south east, see what the differences are, and get to understand why there are such differences. Our meals will always be paired with wines from the wineries that I import. Those wines are imported by Contrast Wines, a sister company to Contrast Tours, and are available in wine stores and restaurants in NC, including of course at Wine and Words in Washington NC.
The exact itinerary is subject to modification due to scheduling and interest of the Tour considerations. Please note that this is an epicurean journey, and while I will attempt to satisfy special requests when possible and if mentioned at booking, I cannot guarantee being able to accommodate all dietary needs. Please make sure to address this before booking.
Please email me (use Contact Us button below) if you want to book or have any questions. You may also call me: 919-416-1111 or on my American cell: 984-312-5315.
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