Paris & London Training Trip

Time to take a break! After a busy spring and summer, take a momentary reprieve and come with us to London and Paris! We’re organizing a small group experience focusing on the hidden gems of these two great cities that Mitch has discovered after two decades of guiding there.

The streets of London offer the best people watching in the world!

Napoleon III’s apartments are open again at the Louvre, and they’re spectacular!

Already seen Versailles? Come back this time to see the evening fireworks, complete with the gardens lit up at night and a Baroque orchestra in the Hall of Mirrors!

“A walk about Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of Life.”

– Thomas Jefferson

Our First TripEscape!

You’ve asked and we’ve answered. TripEscapes are our line of full-featured trips designed to offer the same kind of exciting and fun travel experiences that our intensive destination trainings offer, but with more time to explore on your own and relax. A TripEscape is a reward for a successful season, and a chance to take a breather with a great group of likeminded people. In short, it’s the TripSchool signature experience of fun, education and wow moments, but with time to relax and explore.

A TripSchool experience, with time to explore on your own and relax? Yes please!

All the highlights you haven’t seen yet, plus corners of London you’ve yet to discover.

The Secrets of London & Paris

Paris and London are where Mitch got his start as a local guide. And they’re two cities that have changed drastically in the last few years, and still remained quintessentially their own. This trip is organized around daily “walking experiences” that will include stories, food, shops and hidden secrets that Mitch has discovered over the past two decades. The idea is to show you the unique sides of these cities, while also leaving you room on the schedule to visit any must-sees you haven’t yet experienced.

A variety of experiences

The theme of this trip is variety. We’re going to have decadent meals with chandeliers and a chance to dress up, and also picnics with local meats and cheeses and wines at sunset. Breakfasts will be out in the city and might be a Full English, or a Croissant Taste Test! Every day will focus on neighborhoods and places that make these cities come alive in new and unexpected ways for you.

Eating in Paris is affordble! We’ll go to one of the new Bouillion restaurants in town where this wine and dessert can be yours for just a few euros!

“A bad day in London is still better than a good day anywhere else.”

– Unknown

Itinerary

London has changed so much! We’ll dive in to the old and the new.

  • We’ll begin July 16 with a welcome reception at the hotel at 2pm.
  • The Tower of London is included! It may be touristy, but it’s actually a fantastic experience. The history and humor of the Beefeater Tour makes the place come alive.
  • And we’ll visit a castle, of course! We’ll include the train ride and admission to the fabulous Hampton Court Palace. Nothing reveals Henry VIII’s opulence more, and if you want a taste of this gem of a palace and garden, then watch the recent film, The Favorite. Watch it!
  • We’ll have a local guide take us on a highlights tour of the city.
  • Classic London. We’ll make sure to share with you the museums, parks and monuments that make the city so iconic, like St. Paul’s, Big Ben, Parliament, and the National Portrait Gallery and Trafalgar Square. Along the way we’ll uncover some lesser-known gems hidden in plain view.
  • New London. Mitch will lead an expedition east, past Brick Lane and its incredible food and market, towards Shoreditch, which is filled with interesting markets, shops, foods.
  • Literary & Artistic London. This is a city that has expressed itself in art and writing for hundreds of years. We’ll stroll through Bloomsbury, and hit the British Museum.
  • If you’re leaving us in London, you’ll want to depart on the 20th.

For those who would like, for our free night we’ll organize an optional West End show!

Paris is eternal, iconic and yet filled to the brim with unknown neighborhoods, shops and beautiful experiences, hidden just below the depths.

  • If you joined us in London, we’ll take the Eurostar train to Paris the morning of the 20th, and begin our adventure in the city with a welcome champagne reception at the hotel at 2pm.
  • We’ll all start with a little highlights tour to the city, learning about sights around our Latin Quarter hotel, like the Sorbonne, Pantheon and Notre Dame. Then we’ll head out to Versailles, for a real wow moment: Baroque music in the palace, illuminated gardens, and evening Fireworks!
  • Food Tours. Mitch has designed two culinary walks that encompasses the city’s markets, food shops and includes tastings along the way.
  • Markets. From antiques to food, the city’s markets are a sight to behold. We’ll dive in and go treasure hunting.
  • Museums. We’ll include the Louvre or Musee d’Orsay, with a special primer from Mitch.
  • The Rue du Bac Experience. There’s no single street that exemplifies Paris’s journey more than this single street. Mitch will lead a walk past a wild taxidermy store, embalmed Catholic saints on display, exotic food markets, some of the city’s best pastries and odd shops and art galleries. There’s no better place to feel all the sides of the city.
  • Neighborhood Experiences. We’ll go to the corners of Paris exploring the Canal Saint Martin, Marais, Saint Germain-des-Pres, and Latin Quarter.

For those who want to, we’ll offer an optional trip to the Moulin Rouge!

Includes

4 nights hotel accommodation per city
Versailles Night Fireworks Spectacle (Paris)
Hampton Court Palace day trip (London)
Paid Admission
to museums and attractions, like the Louvre and Tower of London
All local guided food & walking tour experiences
Daily Breakfast adventures
5 Dinners
Mitch & Alan as instructors/tour directors
Transportation Passes
Eurostar between Paris & London

$1399 per city, with lodging

$949 per city without lodging, and $2898 including Eurostar en route.

Please note: We want this trip to be full-featured, but affordable. If you would like a lower cost trip, we are happy to remove some of the pricer inclusions to make it possible for you to attend!

Details

This is a walking-based tour. While we’ll occasionally use a van or bus, Europe is best experienced on foot!
The group size is small. 20 people max.
This trip is open to non-tour directors, too! Spouses and friends are welcome.
Pick one city or two! Your choice how long you’d like to spend.
This is not an intensive training. While educational in the TripSchool way, it’s meant to be relaxing, too!
Lodging
is based on double occupancy. Single supplement is available for $475 per person per city.
Trip Insurance is offered by our partner Travel Insured to protect your investment.


Booking your flight

Now is the perfect time to book your flight. Arrive in London and/or Paris by noon, in time to begin the day at the group hotel at 2pm. That’ll give you time to get settled and make it in from the airport. If you’re leaving from London, depart any time on the 20th. After Paris, depart any time on the 24th.