Sample Itinerary · France

Wine Tour of Central France

Lyon · Burgundy · Bordeaux · Loire

Duration
9 Days · 8 Nights
Accommodations
4-Star or Higher
Transport
Private Driver-Guide + high-speed rail
Best For
Wine · Food · Châteaux

Plan a Similar Trip



← All France Itineraries

This is a sample itinerary — for inspiration only. Every Juniper trip is designed from scratch around you. Many clients travel a very similar route — if this resonates, book a free consultation and a specialist will build something just like it (or better) specifically for your travel style, dates, and group.

1
Day One

Arrive in Lyon

Lyon

Welcome to France’s gastronomic capital. Your driver meets you at Lyon–Saint Exupéry Airport (LYS) and transfers you into the city’s Presqu’île district between the Rhône and Saône rivers. Check in to your hotel.

Afternoon: Lyon food tour with a private guide — the bouchon tradition (Lyonnaise sausages, quenelles de brochet, praline tart) through the traboules (covered passageways) of Vieux Lyon. The city has the highest density of restaurants per capita in France. Welcome dinner at a specialist-selected bouchon.

Arrive Lyon
Lyon food tour + bouchons
Welcome dinner

Overnight: Lyon

2
Day Two

Burgundy Côte d’Or

Burgundy · Lyon

Full day in Burgundy with your private driver-guide. The Côte d’Or (Golden Slope) — the 37.3 miles strip of hillside vineyards between Dijon and Santenay that produces the most revered Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the world. Morning: Gevrey-Chambertin and Vosne-Romanée — the villages where Grand Cru Burgundy begins. Private tasting at a family domaine.

Afternoon: Beaune — the wine capital of Burgundy. The Hôtel-Dieu (Hospices de Beaune, the 15th-century hospital with the polychrome tile roof whose annual wine auction sets Burgundy prices). Second tasting at a Meursault or Puligny-Montrachet producer (white Burgundy). Return to Lyon by evening.

Drive to Côte d’Or · 2hrs
Gevrey-Chambertin tasting
Beaune Hospices + Meursault

Overnight: Lyon

3
Day Three

Beaujolais + Lyon

Beaujolais · Lyon

Morning: Beaujolais — the rolling granite-soil hills north of Lyon where Gamay produces wines that range from the light Beaujolais-Villages to the serious cru wines of Morgon, Fleurie, and Moulin-à-Vent. Private tasting at a cru Beaujolais producer. The landscape is gentler than Burgundy — smaller villages, more intimate.

Afternoon: return to Lyon for free time — the Musée des Confluences (science and anthropology museum at the junction of the Rhône and Saône), or Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse (the covered food market). Final Lyon evening. Tomorrow: high-speed rail to Bordeaux.

Drive to Beaujolais
Cru Beaujolais tasting
Les Halles Paul Bocuse

Overnight: Lyon

4
Day Four

high-speed rail to Bordeaux

Bordeaux

Morning: high-speed rail from Lyon Part-Dieu to Bordeaux Saint-Jean (approximately 4 hours, the one train segment of the trip — comfortable, scenic through the Massif Central). Arrive Bordeaux early afternoon.

Check in to your hotel in the center of Bordeaux — the entire 18th-century waterfront is UNESCO-listed (the largest urban World Heritage Site in the world). Afternoon: walk the quays along the Garonne, the Miroir d’Eau reflecting pool, and the Place de la Bourse. Evening: dinner in the Saint-Pierre quarter — canélés and entrecôte bordelaise.

high-speed rail Lyon → Bordeaux · 4hrs
UNESCO waterfront + Miroir d’Eau
Bordeaux dinner

Overnight: Bordeaux

5
Day Five

Médoc Châteaux — Left Bank

Médoc · Bordeaux

Full day on the Left Bank with your private driver-guide. The Médoc peninsula north of Bordeaux — the Cabernet Sauvignon heartland. Your specialist has arranged private visits at two classified châteaux (the 1855 Classification estates that define fine Bordeaux). The Château visits include cellar tours, barrel-room tastings, and vineyard walks.

The Médoc landscape is flat, wide, and deliberate — the châteaux are designed to be seen from the road, each one a statement of its owner’s ambition. Lunch at a château or in the village of Margaux. Return to Bordeaux by evening.

Médoc drive
2 classified château visits
Barrel-room tastings

Overnight: Bordeaux

6
Day Six

Saint-Émilion — Right Bank

Saint-Émilion · Bordeaux

Full day on the Right Bank. Saint-Émilion — a UNESCO-listed medieval village surrounded by Merlot-dominant vineyards on limestone soil. The village itself is extraordinary — cobblestoned streets, the monolithic church carved from a single limestone cliff, wine shops in every lane.

Morning: private tasting at a Premier Grand Cru Classé estate. Afternoon: the underground quarries beneath Saint-Émilion (the limestone that was extracted to build the village became the cellars where the wine ages). Lunch in the village. Optional: a Pomerol producer (the tiny appellation adjacent to Saint-Émilion, home to Château Pétrus). Final Bordeaux evening.

Saint-Émilion UNESCO village
Premier Grand Cru tasting
Underground quarries

Overnight: Bordeaux

7
Day Seven

Bordeaux → Loire Valley

Amboise · Loire Valley

Morning: private transfer from Bordeaux to the Loire Valley (approximately 3.5 hours through the Charentes and Touraine countryside). The landscape shifts from Bordeaux’s flat gravel banks to the Loire’s wide river valley lined with châteaux and tufa-stone villages.

Arrive Amboise early afternoon. The Château Royal d’Amboise (the royal residence overlooking the Loire, Leonardo da Vinci’s final home at Clos Lucé is a 5-minute walk). Check in to your château hotel. Afternoon: Vouvray tasting — the Chenin Blanc appellation east of Tours, produced in caves carved into the tufa cliffs. Evening at leisure.

Bordeaux → Loire · 3.5hrs
Vouvray Chenin Blanc tasting
Château hotel

Overnight: Loire Valley

8
Day Eight

Loire Wines + Chambord

Loire Valley

Morning: Château de Chambord — the largest château in the Loire (440 rooms, da Vinci’s double-helix staircase, 13,000 acres of parkland). Then Chinon — the Cabernet Franc appellation along the Vienne river, producing the elegant reds that pair with the Loire’s goat cheeses.

Afternoon: private tasting at a Chinon or Saumur-Champigny producer, followed by a visit to a fromagerie for Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine (the ash-covered goat cheese log with the straw through the center). The wine-and-cheese pairing is the signature Loire experience. Farewell dinner at a château restaurant.

Château de Chambord
Chinon Cabernet Franc tasting
Loire goat cheese pairing

Overnight: Loire Valley

9
Day Nine

Depart

Tours · Paris

Morning transfer to Tours Val de Loire Airport or high-speed rail station (Tours to Paris CDG is approximately 2.5 hours by high-speed rail, connecting to international departures). Nine days through France’s three greatest wine regions — Burgundy’s terroir, Bordeaux’s grandeur, and the Loire’s elegance.

Your Juniper specialist remains reachable throughout departure day. Safe travels home.

high-speed rail Tours → Paris or flight
App support

Love this itinerary? Make it yours.

This is a sample luxury custom route — a starting point, not a fixed package. Many clients travel something very close to this, customized for their travel style, group, and dates. Book a free consultation and a specialist will build from here.

Accommodations
Boutique hotels, charming B&Bs, or historic castle stays — chosen based on your preferences and travel style.
Transportation
Private driver-guide, self-drive rental, or a mix of both — all transfers confirmed before you travel.
Experiences
Pre-arranged tours and activities built around your interests — entrance tickets sorted, no queuing.

Book a Free Consultation



See All France Itineraries

Activities on this itinerary

Your specialist pre-arranges the right luxury experiences based on your interests and travel style. These are the custom experience types available on this route — specific choices are made with you, not for you.

Lyon Food TourBouchons · traboules · gastronomic capital

Burgundy Côte d’Or TastingsGevrey-Chambertin · Meursault

Beaune Hospices15th-century hospital · wine auction

Cru Beaujolais TastingMorgon · Fleurie · Gamay

Bordeaux UNESCO WaterfrontMiroir d’Eau · Place de la Bourse

Médoc Classified ChâteauxLeft Bank · Cabernet Sauvignon

Saint-Émilion Village + TastingUNESCO · Merlot · underground quarries

Vouvray Chenin BlancLoire · tufa-cliff caves

Château de Chambord440 rooms · da Vinci staircase

Chinon Cabernet FrancLoire reds · goat cheese pairing

Les Halles Paul BocuseLyon’s covered food market

Château Hotel StaysLoire Valley · converted estates

Activities are selected and pre-booked with your specialist based on your interests — not all activities are included in every trip version. Availability varies by season.

The people who will design your France trip

You work directly with a specialist who knows France deeply — not a call center or booking agent. Every consultation is with someone who has been there, knows which Burgundy domaine pours the village-level Pinot that drinks like a Premier Cru, which Bordeaux château offers the cellar tour that the public listings don’t show, and which Loire producer makes the Vouvray that converts people who think they don’t like Chenin Blanc.

Ireland · Scotland · Iceland · Portugal · France

Taryn Harrison

Juniper Tours’ most tenured specialist with 25 years of experience. CMSC certified and a former Peace Corps volunteer. Taryn brings the same detail-orientation to Portugal that she’s known for across Ireland and Iceland — she knows which Lisbon neighborhood hotel has the best terrace view, which Sintra entry time avoids the coach-tour peaks, and which Douro Valley quinta pours the reserve that doesn’t appear on the standard tasting menu.

25 Yrs
CMSC
France & Europe

Book a Consultation




Italy · Portugal · Spain · Switzerland

Lexi Blade

Florence and Salzburg-based with 8 years of experience across Southern Europe. Lexi covers Portugal, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland with the same firsthand knowledge she brings to every destination — sourced from living there rather than visiting. Her France itineraries are built around the restaurants that require a local’s recommendation, the Burgundy and Bordeaux producers who don’t appear in guidebooks, and the Provence villages that haven’t been found by the travel influencers yet.

8 Yrs
Florence Based
Southern Europe

Book a Consultation

About this itinerary

Which wine regions does this itinerary cover?


Three of France’s most important wine regions: Burgundy (Cote d’Or — Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from villages like Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanee, and Meursault), Bordeaux (Left Bank Medoc and Right Bank Saint-Emilion — Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blends from classified chateaux), and the Loire Valley (Vouvray Chenin Blanc and Chinon Cabernet Franc). Lyon serves as the gateway to Burgundy and Beaujolais. Your specialist selects the specific domaines and chateaux based on your wine preferences.

Do I need to be a wine expert for this trip?


Not at all. The tastings are led by winemakers and sommeliers who adjust to your knowledge level — from complete beginners to experienced collectors. The trip is designed around the pleasure of tasting, not the technicality of wine scoring. You will learn naturally by tasting across three distinct regions. If you are a serious collector, your specialist can arrange cellar visits and vertical tastings at estates that are not open to the general public.

What is the food like on a wine tour?


Lyon is the gastronomic capital of France — the bouchon tradition (small traditional restaurants serving rich Lyonnaise cuisine) is the foundation. Burgundy pairs its Pinot Noir with boeuf bourguignon, coq au vin, and epoisses cheese. Bordeaux has its own culinary identity built around canele pastries, entrecote bordelaise, and oysters from Arcachon. The Loire is known for goat cheese (Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine) and rillettes. Every dinner on this trip is specialist-selected and paired with the regional wine.

How does the transport work between wine regions?


Private driver-guide throughout — essential for a wine tour since you are tasting at multiple estates each day. The driver knows the vineyard roads, handles navigation and parking, and ensures you can taste without concern. Lyon to Burgundy is approximately 2 hours. Burgundy to Bordeaux is a high-speed rail segment (approximately 4 hours, Dijon to Bordeaux Saint-Jean) — the one train segment of the trip. Bordeaux to the Loire Valley is approximately 3.5 hours by private driver.

Other trips worth considering

11 Days

View Itinerary



7 Days

View Itinerary



7 Days

View Itinerary

“Professional, knowledgeable, available & kind.”

Dottie S.  ·  France Wine Tour  ·  Verified Google Review

Build your luxury custom Portugal trip with one of our top travel specialists.

30 minutes, completely free. Walk away with a clear picture of what your luxury custom Portugal trip could look like — dates, route, 4 and 5-star accommodations, and all.

Book a Consultation



See All France Itineraries