go holiday france

wine tours, culture & history tours, mixed tours with activities & creative courses.

go holiday france offers wine & vinyard tours, culture tours of the tragic

history of the Cathars, Roman history & architecture tours.

we create bespoke tours that can include visits to food markets, vinyards & mountain gorges. follow the Cathar trail, explore castles of Carcassonne, Montsegur & Rennes le Chateau. visit the Greco-Roman culture at Pont du Gard, Arles & Sete

or take a barge trip along the canal du midi.

accommodation is in our Napoleon 3rd Chateau or 5 self-catering cottages

visit : www.gopaintfrance.com for holiday painting courses in france

to enhance your holiday we can generate individual itineraries that can be booked on a daily or weekly basis for small groups & individuals. tours can be combined with creative courses & activity holidays e.g., wine & cooking, painting & language, photography & castle tours. experience the amazing countryside & people in this forgotten corner of the south of France.

corporate entertaining • individual tours • combination tours • holidays

For a creative holiday try a photographic course on www.gophotofrance.com

wine & gourmet food tours

please scroll down to view sample itineraries

go holiday france wine tours discover superb wines direct from the vignerons themselves; regions visited are Corbiéres, Limoux, Coteau de Languedoc & Minervois. Languedoc is now creating the most exciting wines in France, we take you to meet some small producers that we have built a special relationship with & whose vinyards you would otherwise be unable to visit.

culture tours

self-drive tours

hike & bike trips

Tours are based within what was called Occitania, the land of the Cathars, killed in the crusades. The region is a mix of vineyards, castles

& Medieval villages that are built into rock faces or next to the banks of clear, mountain rivers. Queribus, Carcassonne, gorge de galamus, Canal du midi & Rennes le chateau are places included in tours that reach to the Spanish border. The nature of the region is diverse with caves that date back to the very beginning of man himself to bustling modern market towns.

Guests exploring by themselves but who want more options on holiday can join courses & trips as well as being given researched routes to follow, with the best choices of cultural sites to visit, to suit all of their interests.

For both gentle & challenging walks

& rides, we offer great routes in the montagne noire & the corbiéres hills,

with visits to the medieval cité of Minérve & wine vineyard trails. Walks incorporate visiting the Cathar castles in the Pyrenees, built on the top of rocky ridges overlooking the old border with Spain. There are also lovely local routes for those wishing to relax & are ideal for all levels. We have stunning routes for those who want to explore & extend themselves or just enjoy the beauty.

horse-back trekking

There is no better way to explore the region than on horseback. Treks are organised in the mountains, throughout the vineyards, from the coast to the pyrenees, the river aude & along the canal du midi.

language tours

canal boat trips

hunting trips

Experience the French love of “la chasse” we have hunting trips for individuals or for groups to hunt in the mountains for wild boar, deer &

a variety of wild fowl on private estates.

Combined tours with tuition & visits to markets & wine caves. A journey with tuition through the region; to practice language skills & learn the dialect, grammer &

colloquial French.

Our chateau, self-catering cottages & gites are near the magnificent World Heritage Site of the Canal du Midi, built by Pierre-Paul Riquet, which meanders through the region. A small canal boat can be hired on a daily or weekly basis; also a trip in an original wine barge. Take it slowly & sleepily on a passage through the green countryside, passing the medieval villages & wine domaines. The experience is unique & a fantastic opportunity for artists to sketch & do water colour painting or photography enthusiasts to take stunning photographs of people & the tree-lined canal.

Trips & tours sample itinerary : choose what you want to do,

your holiday is designed just for you, these are some ideas.

1st Day: Arrive & relax. In the afternoon you could explore the immediate local area & we will show you maps where best to explore. Basically a relaxing afternoon in the sun followed by a four-course gourmet meal in the evening.

2nd Day: We drive to St Chinion wine, high in the black mountains. Lunch at the village of Rocobrun, overlooking a mountain gorge with a river flowing through it. Afterwards we up Gorge D’heric, higher in the mountains, to an ancient village right at the top or stay & swim in one of many rock pools. We meander back through the Languedoc National park.

3rd Day: We take a wine tour into the Corbiéres with visits to wine producers. We lunch in the medieval mountain village of Lagrasse & visit the cistercian abbey. We return home through Mount d’Alaric & walk along an ancient wine route.

4th Day: Excursion to Spain. The trip takes you over the Spanish border to the Salvador Dali museum. We drive back along the stunning Vermillion coast to Collioure, Banyuls sur Mer & other little artist’s villages. Return to the Chateau & maybe an “alfreco” buffet evening meal.

5th Day: We visit the Roman viaduct, “Pont du Gard” in a magnificent gorge, between limestone cliffs. After a picnic, we travel to Arles & the Roman amphitheatre & colosium as well as exploaring the myriad of tiny shopping streets. We drive back to Narbonne for a typical French Brasserie meal in a restaurant next to the food halls & canal du Robine.

6th Day: We take a slow barge trip along the Canal du Midi, picnic with wines & regional delicacies. We pass villages on our way, a book & hat museum, art gallery & we visit wine caves for afternoon sampling wine “degustations.” 4 course cordon bleu gourmet dinner.

7th Day: To get over all of the relaxing, we take an early morning train trip through the sea lakes & along the Cote de Vermillion to Barcelona to visit the architecture of Gaudi & to enjoy the bustle of this international city. We take a late lunch on tapas in las Ramblas & a train back to Narbonne & a light supper at the Chateau.

8th Day: In the morning we take a trip to explore the medieval Cité of Carcassonne & learn about the history of the Cathars . We lunch in the cité & in the afternoon we visit the castle at Lastours. Return to the Chateau & maybe an “alfreco” buffet evening meal.

9th Day: We visit the Roman town of Narbonne & the 100-year-old food market, buy fresh local foods & visit the cathedral & Roman horreum. Lunch is a feast of the regional foods bought at the market. There are many fabulous walking & cycling routes to be taken from the Chateau & we can help with detailed maps & routes that we have found.

10th Day: We explore the medieval Cité of Minerve sacked in 1210 in the Albigensian crusade. We lunch overlooking the prehistoric gorge & in the afternoon, go to the wine region of La Laviniere & Mont D’Aleric visiting wine producers & ancient villages whilst slowly winding back down to us through the forests of the Corbiéres mountains.

11th Day: A visit to the coast & the fishing port of Guissan; there is wind surfing & many other water sports. Long walks are taken on wooden platforms built out above the sea lake over ancient salt beds. We visit an artists fishing village at Bages overlooking the sea.

12th Day: A scenic trip where we take you to the mountains, to visit castles perched high above harsh, seemingly unapproachable rocky outcrops looking towards Spain. Queribus & Perypeteuse were built by the tragic Cathars, escaping the ravages of the

Albigensian crusade. We return through the Gorge de Galamus & a French family style supper.

13th Day: We drive through the beautiful Black mountains towards Toulouse, visit & lunch in the picturesque village of Caunes du Minnervois. We arrive at the proud city of Albi, where the Albigensian crusade started in the 1200’s. There is a wonderful cathedral as well as the Toulouse Lautrec museum; the city is a vibrant & sophisticated.

14th Day: We take a visit to a producer of Cremant (Champagne) & Chardonney at St Hillaire near Carcassonne. We lunch in the pretty market town of Limoux followed by a visit to Rennes le Chateau, visit the site & learn of the mysteries of Rennes. We return to the Chateau through the D’Aleric mountains & enjoy a cordon bleu gourmet dinner.

15th Day: The day of departure. We try to pack a lot into a short time, tired but also relaxed, we hope that your stimulating stay with us will make you want to return.

For more ideas for your active holiday please email us on :