Luxury European Family Adventure

Doff your hat to England upon arrival at the airport, where your chauffeur will welcome you and transport your family in style to your luxury accommodation in a townhouse residence at The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences – a renowned family-run hotel in the heart of Mayfair. After a restful morning, the kids will love doing a Mini Cooper sightseeing tour, chauffeur-driven, around some of London’s highlights as well as some hidden gems. The classic Mini Cooper is Britain’s iconic automobile of the 1960s.

What a day this will be, with three incredible experiences around London, with your chauffeur at your disposal all day, with the first stop the Tower of London. Your private guide will take you through this iconic tower that has had many uses during its 900-plus years, it has been a fortress, a royal palace, a prison, a jewel house, and even a zoo. Your guide will enthral the kids with stories from the Tower, including the Crown Jewels, which were mostly made for the coronation of Charles II in 1661, the famous ravens, and the grim history of Tower Green. The kids will receive a booklet to fill out during the tour. The chauffeur will drive you to Borough Market for a private foodie tour. This is the oldest market in London, established in Roman times, and has a veritable feast of local and international products which you sample on the tour. Your family’s creative juices will be flowing on a Street Art Experience in vibrant East London guided by a local artist.

See some of the area’s art before visiting a workshop where you will all let your inner Picasso free creating both an individual piece, and a combined artwork by all the family that you get to take home.

Your driver will take you to Buckingham Palace for a private tour, which could include the legendary Changing of the Guards ceremony, which is held on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Stroll through St James Park, take a peek at famous Downing Street, then visit the remarkable Westminster Abbey where many Kings, Queens and other royals, including William and Kate – now the Prince and Princess of Wales. Your drive will transfer you to the train station for your just over two hour business class ride on the Eurostar to Paris. Your english speaking chauffeur will be waiting for you at the train station and will drive you to your hotel in Paris – Hôtel Grand Powers – where you will stay in two deluxe connecting rooms.

Bonjour Paris! Your chauffeur will pick you up at your hotel and be with you for the day. First stop is a private cruise down the Seine. Hop on board a Venetian luxury boat, sit down, relax and enjoy the ride as the sights of Paris drift by – the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Les Invalides, while sipping a glass of champagne (adults) juice or soda (kids).

At the end of the cruise, meet your professional photographer for a one-hour photo session around the Eiffel Tower. The photographer will take many photos of you and the family in this most romantic and historic locations.

In the afternoon, your chauffeur will drive you to the Musée de l'Orangerie where a private, guide and art teacher will show you the highlights of the museum, including Claude Monet’s Water Lilies.  After the Museum, be transferred to a private art workshop where you will all create a giant family reproduction of Water Lilies using pastels. Each member of the family will choose a part of the painting he/she wants to work on, and by following the instruction of the art teacher, you will end up having a family Impressionist masterpiece when all the pieces are assembled.

One of the best known and loved buildings in the world awaits this morning.   Your drive will take you to the Eiffel Tower, where a private, fully licensed guide will take you up Paris’ tallest and most iconic monument, stopping at each of the Iron Lady's three floors. With interesting stories and captivating fun facts, you and your children will enjoy every minute of this tour, from the swaying observatory on the first floor all the way to Eiffel's small apartment on the top floor.
 

In the afternoon, your chauffeur will drive you to pastry baking class. Your private, experienced chef will introduce you to the delicious world of French pastries, and cover some of the basic baking rules. After this short introduction, you and your children will be kneading the dough, adding fillings and toppings and putting them in the oven to create your own homemade French pastries – from chocolate éclairs to choux à la crème and more. At the end of the workshop, you will walk out with a bag filled with your very own self-made pastries.

On your final morning in Paris, your chauffeur will drive you to the Louvre, where your family will have a private guide who will take you through its stunning galleries to see nine of its most famous highlights, including the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory of Samothrace (Nike). Your young treasure hunters will engage in a captivating quest to find Mona Lisa treasure through a series of puzzles, clues and riddles, and learn fun facts about the Middle Ages, the Italian Renaissance and objects dating as far back as Ancient Egypt on the two-hour tour. For the successful hunters, a treasure awaits.

From the Louvre, your driver will take you to the airport for your flight to Venice, where your English-speaking boat driver will welcome you for the cruise to the stunning Baglioni Hotel Luna, where you will stay in a two-bedroom Family Junior Suite. This elegant property is very close to the famous St Mark’s Square.

Wake up in the ‘city of love’ with its canals and history dating back to 697. Transfer by boat ready for your private gondola tour, exploring the inner canals, the Grand Canal and under the Rialto Bridge. If you children ask, the gondolier will even sing to you. Dock at the Rialto Bridge then find hidden gems on a guided walk on foot. See the Bovolo Staircase, the Teatro La Fenice and, last but not least, St Mark’s Square and the legendary Bridge of Sighs.

In the afternoon, enjoy an art workshop with a private art teacher, learning to make a traditional carnival mask. This fun-filled hands-on workshop is held in a private atelier in the heart of Venice. After a brief introduction on the history of Carnival Masks and what they each represent, each member of your family will choose a mask style made in paper-maché: will it be the leper doctor with its traditional long nose, or something a little more discreet? You will have all the material at your disposal to decorate your mask: feathers, glitter, paint etc. What a keepsake this will be.

In the morning, your guide will take you to the Venetian Lagoon where a guide will be waiting on a private Venetian speedboat to take you out to some of the beautiful islands of the Venetian Lagoon. First stop is Murano, famous for its glassware. Let your guide tell you all about the art of glass making and watch the artists as they create beautiful glass objects. After a short walk on the island, jump back in the boat and head to the charming and colourful island of Burano. The kids will be able to run around and have fun while still learning about the traditions and heritage of this quaint little island. Everyone in your family will get to taste the local ‘S’ shaped cookie, which is truly a delight.

Fuelled on cookie energy, go to the marina to meet a private instructor to teach you how to ‘Row like a Gondolier’. After a quick safety step aboard the special learner’s gondola, which is a lot more stable than the traditional black gondola you see everywhere on the canals. Practice the rowing technique, then learn how to steer. The training takes place in a small bay, and when everyone is ready, you and your family will take a trip down the smaller canals of Venice, just like any real gondolier. On the way, you will visit a wonderful hidden gem – a secret gondola museum and squero (gondola reparation atelier) and enjoy a few snacks and refreshments. After your activity, your boat driver will drive you back to your hotel.

Bid a tearful farewell to idyllic Venice but not before one last experience with your family. Your boat driver will take you to St. Mark's Square, where you will meet your private guide for a tour of the major highlights of this most famous of all Venetian squares. Pinch yourself when you go inside the Doge’s Palace, which was once the heart of Venetian politics, and then spend time at St Mark’s Basilica. After looking at its peculiar façade and golden mosaics, skip the line and enter this holy place, which still holds the remains of St. Mark the Evangelist. Back outside, be mesmerised by the beauty of this iconic square, with the bell tower and the buildings surrounding the square. 

The tour ends with special skip-the-line access to the top of the Campanile. A game booklet and a gift will be given to each child to ensure they have fun while learning. Depending on your flight schedule, your boat driver will drive you to the airport, taking the fondest of memories home with you.