The one job today is to be ready and relaxed. Everything - packing, laundry, all errands - must be done the night before. The day of travel is for resting before a long overnight flight. Nothing else.
Europe 2026
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Mostly Confirmed
TBD / Needs Decision
Travel Day
Free / Flexible
📖 Record pending
📖 Trip Record in progress — each day is getting a “What Actually Happened” block. ⏳ = pending fill-in · ✅ = captured. The plan stays; the record grows underneath it.
🗺️ Full Route OverviewOpen in Google Maps →
Pre-Trip
All✓List
For All 11 Travelers
📋 Pre-Trip Checklist - Don't Forget This Stuff
Documents · Money · Phone · Health · Home · Packing - start now, not the night before
Action Required
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📜 Documents (do these first)
- Passport valid through Jan 28, 2027 - most EU countries require 3+ months past return; play it safe with 6. Renew NOW if you're close.
- International Driver's Permit - required for renting a car in Italy and France. It's basically a translation of your US license into 10 languages, issued by AAA (the auto club). Walk into any AAA branch with your US license + a passport-style photo, pay ~$20, takes about 30 minutes. Worth getting even if you don't plan to drive - it's a useful backup photo ID.
- Make 2 copies of your passport - one in your bag, one in checked luggage. Also store a photo in cloud (Google Drive/Photos).
- Print or save offline: lodging confirmations, flight boarding passes, train tickets (QR codes - TGV Bordeaux→Paris, Paris→Nantes, etc.), Vatican tickets, any tour confirmations.
- Check the CDC + State Dept pages - no shots required, but worth a glance.
💳 Money & Cards
- Notify your bank + credit cards of your travel dates so they don't freeze your card on Day 1 in Florence.
- Bring a no-foreign-transaction-fee credit card as your primary (Chase Sapphire, Capital One Venture, etc.). Pulls about 1-2% better than US debit at point of sale.
- Pull €200-€300 cash per person before leaving, or grab from a Bancomat ATM at FCO arrivals - skip the airport exchange counters.
- Carry a backup card stored separately from your main wallet in case of loss/theft.
- Tipping is light in Europe - round up or 5-10% at sit-down restaurants. Tips often included ("coperto" in Italy).
📱 Phone & Tech
- International data plan or eSIM - Airalo, Holafly, or Saily eSIMs run ~$15-40 for the month and beat carrier roaming. Verizon/AT&T day passes add up fast at $10/day.
- Universal power adapter (Type C/F) for Italy + France. Bring 2 - one for the room, one for charging on the go.
- Power bank (10,000+ mAh) for long sightseeing days.
- Download offline maps in Google Maps for each city (Florence, Rome, Bordeaux, Paris, Nice).
- Google Translate - download Italian + French language packs for offline use.
- Group chat ready - WhatsApp, Telegram, or a Text group. WhatsApp is way more universal in Europe than iMessage - the rest of the world basically lives on it. Just make sure everyone's on the same one before wheels up.
- Test that your camera/phone storage isn't already full.
💊 Health & Comfort
- Refill prescriptions for 5+ weeks (34-day trip + buffer). Keep in original bottles in carry-on.
- Pack OTCs from home - Advil/Tylenol, allergy meds, antacids, melatonin for jet lag. European pharmacies ("farmacia") are great but everything's a brand you don't recognize.
- Walking shoes - broken in BEFORE you leave. Florence days hit 22K steps, Vatican 18K. New shoes = blisters by Day 3.
- Vatican dress code: knees AND shoulders covered (everyone, all genders). A light scarf works in a pinch.
- Sunscreen, sunglasses, hat - Italy in early July averages 88°F.
- Reusable water bottle - most Italian cities have public fountains with potable water.
- Compression socks for the transatlantic flight (AA 720, ~9 hrs).
- Travel insurance with medical coverage - most US health plans don't cover abroad. Allianz, World Nomads, or your credit card may include it.
🏠 Home Before You Leave
- Pet sitter lined up
- USPS mail hold + Amazon/package delivery hold
- House sitter, alarm activated, or a neighbor with a key
- Thermostat to "away" mode - don't AC an empty house for a month
- Clean out the fridge of perishables
- Confirm a stateside emergency contact has your itinerary + lodging addresses
🎒 Packing Smart
- Carry-on only is strongly preferred. Three reasons: (1) European intra-trip flights and trains have tight bag limits and steep checked-bag fees - Ryanair, EasyJet, Vueling, and even some Trenitalia routes can ding you €40-70 per checked bag, per leg; (2) cobblestones, narrow train aisles, and 5-floor walk-ups all punish heavy luggage - every wheel and stair will be felt; (3) lost-baggage risk drops to zero, and you skip the carousel at every transfer. 34 days, 8+ accommodation changes - traveling light is the single biggest comfort upgrade.
- Aim for one 22" carry-on rollerboard + one personal item / day pack. If you absolutely need a checked bag, keep it lightweight and soft-sided.
- Carry-on must-haves: passport, prescriptions, one change of clothes, phone charger, adapter, eye mask, neck pillow. If your bag gets delayed, you're still functional.
- Layered, quick-dry clothing - Italy hot, Normandy/Riviera variable, Paris everything. Lean on rewearing + a mid-trip laundry stop.
- Small day pack for sightseeing (anti-theft features if you're particular).
- Light rain jacket or packable poncho.
- Liquids ≤ 100ml each in a clear quart bag for the cabin.
- Leave 15-20% of the suitcase empty - you WILL buy wine, olive oil, leather, and pastries on the way home.
⏱️ Pacing & Dining Philosophy
- 1-2 anchors per day, with plenty of open/flex time. Cherry-pick must-sees, leave room for unstructured wandering.
- Dinners are always out — no cooking dinners at the hub.
- Tourist-trap tell: tout out front + picture menu + English-only + no locals. Real-thing tell: handwritten/chalkboard menu + locals present.
- Most dinners across Italy + France are still TBD - recommendations welcome.
🚶 Pacing Notes
- Build in bathroom breaks on long driving / walking stretches.
- Any dietary or medical considerations are handled directly within the family group - not on the public binder.
🚗 Cars on the Ground
- Italy (Tuscany / Rome transit): 3 rental cars including a VW Caddy as the luggage vehicle, plus Renaults. Pre-reserve automatics - harder to find in Europe.
- France (Bordeaux / Dordogne hub): 3 rental cars based out of the Montguyon hub.
- Paris: no cars - Metro, RER, taxis, walking.
- All bookings flow through Laura (travel agent). Logistics binder received (Court Travel PDF, Jun 18) — full Konecny record locators on the private family page. Strikes happen in Italy and France but get published in advance - Laura is watching.
✅ Bookings & Anchors
- Full Konecny record locators for all flights, trains, cars, and hotels live on the private family binder page. Other parties’ identifiers stay in the Court Travel PDF (Laura). Cross-reference there for any booking detail.
- Court Travel master PDF received Jun 18 - all major bookings confirmed.
- Lascaux IV 12:30 - confirmed (Court Travel master).
📆 Suggested Timeline
Now → 8 weeks out: passport check, IDP at AAA, travel insurance, prescription refills lined up.
4 weeks out: notify banks, set up eSIM, download offline maps + translations, confirm pet/home sitters.
1 week out: print confirmations, charge devices, lay out packing pile, double-check the day-by-day itinerary on this site.
Day-of: passport, phone, wallet, meds. Everything else is replaceable.
4 weeks out: notify banks, set up eSIM, download offline maps + translations, confirm pet/home sitters.
1 week out: print confirmations, charge devices, lay out packing pile, double-check the day-by-day itinerary on this site.
Day-of: passport, phone, wallet, meds. Everything else is replaceable.
🇮🇹 Italy - Florence & Rome (All 11 Travelers)
Sat27June
Charlotte (CLT) → Overnight Flight → Rome (FCO)
Departure Day - Charlotte to Rome (Overnight)
The one job today: be ready and relaxed · Leave house ~3:00 PM · AA 720 departs 7:05 PM · land 10:20 AM Rome time
TravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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The One Rule
Timeline
- ~3:00 PM - leave the house for the airport. International flight - leaving ~3 gives margin.
- ~5:00 PM - arrive Charlotte (CLT), ~2 hrs before departure.
- 7:05 PM - American Airlines Flight 720, CLT → Rome (FCO), departs. Overnight flight, ~9-10 hrs.
- (next morning) ~10:20 AM Rome time - land. Continues on the June 28 card.
Flight Details
- American Airlines Flight 720 - CLT (Charlotte) → FCO (Rome Fiumicino)
- Departs: Jun 27 at 7:05 PM (Charlotte) · Arrives: Jun 28 at 10:20 AM (Rome) - overnight
- Konecny party in row 29 (record locator on the family binder page).
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- How the departure + overnight flight actually went (on time? row 29 as planned?)
Sun28June
USA → Rome (FCO) → Coastal Drive → Gigliola Hub
Land FCO · Rental Cars · Scenic Coastal Drive North to the Hub
Land ~10:20a · cars ~11:21a · lunch N of Rome · Orbetello · dinner stop · hub ~8:30-9p · sunset ~9:30p (~10h)
👟 5K-9KTravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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✈️ Konecny Family Flight
- American Airlines Flight 720 - CLT (Charlotte) → FCO (Rome Fiumicino)
- Departs: Jun 27 at 7:05 PM (Charlotte) · Arrives: Jun 28 at 10:20 AM (Rome) - overnight flight
- Konecny party in row 29 (4 of 11 travelers). Record locator + named seats on the family binder page.
- Other travelers' flights coordinated by Court Travel.
Day Sequence
- ~10:20a - Land Rome Fiumicino (fyoo-mee-CHEE-no) (FCO)
- ~11:30a - Luggage + pick up rental cars (VW Caddy + Renaults; 3 cars). Konecny Hertz 5-day Renault, drop Jul 2 at Florence SMN 10:00 AM. Confirmation on the family binder page.
- Scenic coastal drive north toward Tuscany - lunch N of Rome · Orbetello (or-beh-TEL-loh) stop · dinner stop before the hub
- ~8:30-9p - Arrive Gigliola (jee-LYOH-lah) hub · sunset ~9:30p
- No fixed hub arrival time - worst case grab a hotel and roll in next day
- Hub is set up and ready on arrival
Watch For
- Heads-up: EU biometric entry (fingerprint/photo on first arrival) can add unknown time at the border - pacing today is built loose for it
- 11 people + luggage across 3 cars - confirm seat assignments before customs
- Jet lag day - keep the hub dinner low-key
🏠 Lodging
- Villa in Gigliola (Tuscany Airbnb) - Host: Holidu · first night only
- Via San Paolo in Mercatale 220, Gigliola, Tuscany 50025 →
- Check-in: 3:00 PM Jun 28
🔄 Plan adjusted (Jun 29): The Gigliola villa had no working A/C — in a Tuscan heat wave, a dealbreaker. The group relocated after the first night to Villa Feudo, Cerbaia for the remaining Tuscany nights (Jun 29 – Jul 2).
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Known: relocated to Villa Feudo, Cerbaia after night 1 — Gigliola had no A/C (already noted above). Pending: how the coastal drive + stops actually went; biometric-entry wait time at FCO.
Mon29June
Gigliola → Pisa → Viareggio → Gigliola
Long Slow Morning · Pisa Photos · Viareggio Beach Town Dinner
Day after arrival - deliberately light · ~12:40p drive Pisa · 4:40p Viareggio · 9p dinner · back ~10p
👟 8K-14KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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The Plan
Long slow morning at the hub (it's the day after arrival - the “long morning” line is doubled on the binder page on purpose). Then a day trip to Pisa (PEE-zah): stand outside the Leaning Tower in the Piazza dei Miracoli (pee-AHT-zah day mee-RAH-koh-lee), take photos, keep moving. No tower climb, no church interior, no tours. Then drive ~20 km up the coast to Viareggio (vee-ah-REJ-joh) for the afternoon and dinner on the Versilia coast.
Pisa - What to Actually Do
- Go for the “classic” photos - holding the tower up, leaning against it, the whole tourist set
- No tower climb · no church interior · no tour - it's an outside-the-tower stop
- 🅿️ Parking: €2/hr near the tower, or free on the outskirts + €1 bus into the center
- Tower, Cathedral, and Baptistery all share the Piazza dei Miracoli - quick walking loop
Viareggio - Local Beach Town, Not the Guidebooks
- Viareggio is a non-guidebook local beach town - it's the dinner anchor, not Pisa
- Calamari + Tuscan white wine recommended
- Wide sandy beaches, Liberty-style seafront architecture, palm-lined Passeggiata a Mare
- Working Tuscan fishing port - the seafood is the reason to be here
Timing
- ~12:40p - depart the hub for Pisa (~1 hr drive)
- ~1:45p - arrive Pisa; lunch + Leaning Tower photos in Piazza dei Miracoli. No tower climb, no church interior, no tour.
- ~3:30-4:00p - drive Pisa → Viareggio (~22 km, 25-30 min)
- ~9:00p - dinner in Viareggio · drive back to Gigliola, arrive ~10:00p
🍽️ Dinner - Le Terrazza Bistrot (Laura’s top pick)
Le Terrazza Bistrot — Viale Europa 13, Viareggio — sea-facing restaurant on the Versilia coast. Laura (travel agent) rec: “lots of sea-facing options — this is a really good option.” Book as soon as group size is confirmed; seaside spots fill fast in late June. — 🍽️ See Eat tab
🏠 Lodging
- Villa Feudo, Cerbaia (Tuscany Airbnb) 🔄 relocated here Jun 29 — original Gigliola villa had no A/C
- Base for the remaining Tuscany nights (Jun 29 – Jul 2)
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Did dinner land at Le Terrazza Bistrot? Verdict for the Eat tab?
Tue30June
Gigliola → Florence → Gigliola
Florence - Booked Guided Tour: Duomo + Accademia + Walking Tour
~45 min drive · 4-5 hr skip-the-line guided tour incl. lunch · open afternoon · dinner in Florence (TBD)
⚠️👟 15K-22KBooked📖 Record pending
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⚠️ Discrepancy with Court Travel master file
⚠️ Discrepancy with Court Travel master file - agent file shows only Accademia skip-the-line entry tickets ×11 at 12:00 PM (guide + transportation excluded). The Duomo guided tour described below is not in the agent file. Confirm with Laura whether the guided tour is a separate booking, or whether the day is actually just the Accademia 12:00 PM entry.
✅ Per the Jun 20 meeting: the group declined the ~$2k guided Duomo tour; the booked anchor is the Accademia (David) skip-the-line tour, with the Duomo done self-guided. Still confirm the exact Accademia booking (entry vs. guided) with Laura.
✅ Per the Jun 20 meeting: the group declined the ~$2k guided Duomo tour; the booked anchor is the Accademia (David) skip-the-line tour, with the Duomo done self-guided. Still confirm the exact Accademia booking (entry vs. guided) with Laura.
The Booked Anchor (see flag above)
🏛️Florence
🗿David
⛪Duomo
- Florence (flo-RENCE; Italian: fee-REN-zeh) - Three-in-one guided tour, booked and paid: Duomo + Accademia (Michelangelo's David) + city walking tour
- 4-5 hours, skip-the-line, lunch included inside the tour
- Tour starts ~10:30a - the value is bypassing the 2-hour Duomo line in the heat
- Michelangelo's David - 17 feet tall, carved from a single marble block two other sculptors had abandoned. He was 26.
Day Timing
- ~7:30a - breakfast at the hub
- ~8:00a - drive to Florence (~45 min)
- ~9:00a - arrive Florence, prep
- ~10:30a - booked guided tour starts (4-5 hrs, lunch inside)
- Afternoon - open / flex
- Evening - dinner in Florence (TBD), drive back to hub late
Why Only One Florence Day
The trade-off: Siena + San Gimignano (Jul 1) cover more of the Renaissance picture, and a second Florence day would steal from Rome or Tuscany. The booked guided tour is what makes a single day work - it bypasses the worst lines and packs the must-sees into one shot.
Optional Late-Afternoon Add
- Boboli Gardens (BOH-boh-lee) - optional, late afternoon. Stairs + walking + river crossing. Skip if energy is low.
- Piazzale Michelangelo at sunset is not in the binder - keep as a flex note only if time and energy allow after dinner.
📚 Prep for the Kids
Teach the daughters what “the Renaissance” is before this day - explosion of art, science, architecture, and banking that ended the Middle Ages, funded by the Medici. Michelangelo, Leonardo, Botticelli, Galileo all walked these streets.
Driving Logistics
- ~45 min drive from the Gigliola hub
- 🅿️ Parking Option 1: Porta al Prato - tram to downtown in 5 min
- 🅿️ Parking Option 2: Fortezza da Basso garage - ~€1.60-2/hr or ~€20 full day
- Both avoid Florence's ZTL (restricted traffic zone) - do NOT drive into the city center
🏠 Lodging
- Villa Feudo, Cerbaia (Tuscany Airbnb) 🔄 relocated here Jun 29 — original Gigliola villa had no A/C
Open Questions
- Florence dinner - assign someone to choose + book a spot in Florence for the post-tour evening
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Final format: Accademia-only or guided? How the day actually ran; where dinner ended up.
Wed1July
Gigliola → Siena → San Gimignano → Gigliola
Siena + San Gimignano - Renaissance Towers Day
Booked Siena walking tour 10:01a + lunch · afternoon free in Siena · drive 3:11p to San Gimignano · evening tour · dinner TBD (San Gimignano or Siena) · ~9:30p back to hub
👟 10K-16KBooked Anchor📖 Record pending
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Siena (see-EH-nah) - the Quintessential Renaissance Town
- ~8:15a late breakfast at the hub · ~9:30a drive to Siena (~1 hr)
- ~10:00a - Booked Siena walking tour (~1 hr) + lunch reservation. Confirm exact start time against the binder. The smallest/shortest of the trip's booked anchors.
- Must-see: the Lorenzetti “Allegory of Good and Bad Government” fresco in the Palazzo Pubblico (City Hall) on the Piazza del Campo
- After the tour: peel off and free-roam Siena for the afternoon
- Torre del Mangia (TOR-reh del MAN-jah) - ~500 steps, optional for the able-bodied; skip if anyone's hurting
- Siena Duomo - ornate black-and-white-striped cathedral
San Gimignano - Medieval Skyscrapers
- ~3:00p - drive Siena → San Gimignano (jee-mee-NYAH-no), ~20 mi from the hub
- Medieval “skyscraper” town - hilltop silhouette of stone towers, walled, walkable
- Vernaccia di San Gimignano (vehr-NAH-chah) - the town's white wine, drink it where it's made
- Evening tour + dinner
- ~9:30p back to the Gigliola hub
Driving Logistics
- ~1 hr Gigliola → Siena
- 🅿️ Parcheggio Santa Caterina in Siena - modern, open 24 hr (recommended)
- 🅿️ Parcheggio il Campo - alternative, closer to the main square
🏠 Lodging
- Villa Feudo, Cerbaia (Tuscany Airbnb) 🔄 relocated here Jun 29 — original Gigliola villa had no A/C
Dinner Jul 1 - TBD
No cooking class. Dinner Jul 1 is TBD — likely in San Gimignano or Siena.
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Tour + lunch as booked? Torre del Mangia climbers? Dinner town + spot.
Thu2July
Gigliola → Florence SMN → Rome (Frecciarossa)
Drive to Florence · Drop Cars · Frecciarossa Business to Rome · Trastevere Dinner
10a Hertz + Sixt drop at Florence SMN · 10:33a Frecciarossa #8507 Business · 12:15p Rome Termini · Mercedes V-Class vans to Via Ulpiano 29 · evening Trastevere
👟 8K-14KTravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Day Sequence (Per Court Travel master)
- Morning - pack up, breakfast, final spin around Gigliola hub
- Drive to Florence Santa Maria Novella (SMN) - self-drive in the three rental cars
- 10:00a - drop rental cars at Florence SMN (Hertz for Morris + Konecny vehicles; Sixt for the Mummert vehicle)
- 10:33a - Frecciarossa #8507, Business Class, Florence SMN → Rome Termini (1 hr 42 min)
- 12:15p - arrive Rome Termini. Two Mercedes V-Class vans with English-speaking driver, WiFi + water, hold a name sign at Platform 1.
- ~12:45-1:30p - vans deliver the group to the apartment at Via Ulpiano 29, Roma (Prati, near Vatican)
- Drop bags - keys may be available early; official check-in 3p. Someone stays with bags if not secure.
- Afternoon - free / rest / settle into Rome (Prati is very walkable)
- ~6:30p - walk to Trastevere (trahs-TAY-veh-reh) for dinner
- ~9:00p - walk back to the hub
📄 Bookings (Konecny party)
- Frecciarossa #8507 Business Class - Florence SMN → Rome Termini, dep 10:33a / arr 12:15p - group-of-11 booking via Court Travel
- Two Mercedes V-Class vans from Termini to Via Ulpiano 29 (driver holds name sign at Platform 1)
- Hertz rental cars (5-day Renault block, Morris + Konecny) returned at Florence SMN 10:00a. Konecny conf on the family binder page.
Trastevere
Trastevere is Rome's “restaurant district” - cobblestoned, lively, authentic. Across the river from the historic center, a short cab ride or a 20-25 min walk from the Prati hub.
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment in Rome - Host: Daplice
- Via Ulpiano 29, Roma, Lazio 00193 (Prati neighborhood, near Vatican) →
- Check-in: 3:00 PM | Check-out: 10:00 AM
- 4 nights: Jul 2 - 6
Why Rome
Rome is 2,800 years of continuous civilization stacked on top of itself. The Colosseum + Forum (Jul 5) and Pantheon (Jul 4) come on dedicated days. The Vatican is the spiritual center of 1.3 billion people. For the kids, understanding what happened in these places before walking in transforms everything.
📍 Colosseum on timeline 📍 Pantheon on timeline📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Train/van handoff smooth? Trastevere dinner — where, and was it Eat-tab-worthy?
Fri3July
Rome - Vatican Day
Cherry-Pick Morning · Vatican Museums 3:16 PM Timed Entry · Sistine → St. Peter's
Spanish Steps / Trevi / St. Peter's Square / Castel Sant'Angelo · 1:05p lunch · 3:16p Vatican · 4:49p sunset picnic at Pincio Terrace
⚠️👟 14K-20KBooked Timed Entry📖 Record pending
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Morning - Cherry-Pick (Don't Over-Plan)
🎨Vatican
- ~10:30a walk toward the Vatican from Prati
- Pick-and-choose menu: Trevi Fountain, St. Peter's Square / Basilica exterior, Castel Sant'Angelo
- ~1:00p - lunch
Vatican Museums (Timed Entry, No Guided Tour)
- Vatican entry time - confirm exact time from the ticket (listed as 3:16 PM). Timed entry booked, all 11 travelers.
- No guided tour - the group decided a guided Vatican tour wasn't worth it for a non-Catholic group. Museum timed entry only.
- Route ends at the Sistine Chapel (Michelangelo's Last Judgment) with a direct pass-through into St. Peter's Basilica - skip the basilica entry queue
- St. Peter's Basilica - the largest church in the world
Sistine Chapel Reality Check
- Shoulders + knees covered (everyone, all genders) - a light scarf works in a pinch
- No photos
- No talking
- Keep moving - guards push the crowd through
Evening - Pincio Terrace (sunset picnic)
- Heads-up: as of 2019, Rome no longer permits sitting or eating on the Spanish Steps — the steps are patrolled and fines run up to ~€400. See & photograph the steps on the move, then carry the pizza-in-teglia + charcuterie + wine up to the Pincio Terrace overlook on the edge of Villa Borghese for the sunset over Rome.
- ~5:00p - walk past the Spanish Steps (photos, brief pause), then up to Pincio Terrace for the picnic and sunset.
- Kids trivia: the “Spanish Steps” get their name from the Spanish embassy to the Vatican across the street.
- Dinner TBD - keep it neighborhood-grade, not tourist pizza
🏛️ Vatican - Learn More
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment in Rome - Host: Daplice
- Via Ulpiano 29, Roma 00193 (Prati - near Vatican) →
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Timed entry as ticketed? Pincio picnic happen? What got cherry-picked in the morning.
Sat4July
Rome
Colosseum & Arena Private Tour (10 AM start) · Pantheon + Campo de' Fiori · Cousin Dinner
10:00 AM-1:00 PM booked Colosseum + Arena private tour (meets at apartment) · afternoon Pantheon + Campo de' Fiori · evening cousin dinner
👟 10K-16KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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⏳ Day Reshuffle - Per Jun 20 Meeting
Colosseum set to 10:00 AM per the Jun 20 meeting; the Court Travel PDF had listed a PM slot — Chris is verifying the actual time. Keep this flag up.
Day reshuffle: Colosseum + Arena is now the morning anchor (~10:00 AM-1:00 PM); Pantheon + Campo de' Fiori moved to the afternoon; cousin dinner with Belinda Ward (Nana)’s cousin (E. Giansiracusa) is the evening anchor. Roman Forum remains a self-walk on Jul 5.
Day reshuffle: Colosseum + Arena is now the morning anchor (~10:00 AM-1:00 PM); Pantheon + Campo de' Fiori moved to the afternoon; cousin dinner with Belinda Ward (Nana)’s cousin (E. Giansiracusa) is the evening anchor. Roman Forum remains a self-walk on Jul 5.
Morning - Colosseum & Arena Private Tour (Booked)
🏟️Colosseum
- 10:00 AM-1:00 PM · "Tour of the Colosseum and its Arena" - 3-hour private tour, skip-the-line, includes arena-floor access + headphones. Includes 2 one-way transfers. Meets at the apartment.
- Colosseum background: held 50,000-80,000 spectators · ~400 years of combat
- No Roman Forum in this booking - Forum is a self-walk on Jul 5.
- Start time set to 10:00 AM per Jun 20 meeting — Chris is verifying against the voucher. Adjust if the booked slot differs.
Afternoon - Pantheon + Campo de' Fiori
⛪Pantheon
- ~1:00p - lunch near the apartment after the tour
- ~2:30p - Pantheon - tickets required. Built 125 AD. Still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome - 1,900 years later. Confirm whether a timed-entry booking is in the binder (Pantheon now requires timed tickets).
- ~3:30p - Campo de' Fiori - lively market square; flowers, produce, drinks; afternoon piazza wander
- ~5:30p - back to the apartment, regroup before dinner
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment in Rome - Host: Daplice
- Via Ulpiano 29, Roma 00193 (Prati - near Vatican) →
🍽️ Evening - Cousin Dinner
Cousin dinner with Belinda Ward (Nana)’s cousin — E. Giansiracusa (Ward-side, Rome). This is the Jul 4 evening anchor (moved from Jul 5 per the Jun 20 meeting). The Jul 5 Enosteria del Gallo reservation stays, reframed as the group’s last-night Rome farewell dinner.
Reservation still needs to be booked.
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Actual Colosseum start time (voucher said?); cousin dinner — happened, where, headcount.
Sun5July
Rome
Roman Forum Self-Walk · Flex Afternoon · Group Farewell Dinner
Morning Roman Forum self-walk · afternoon flex · 7:00p Enosteria del Gallo — group’s last-night Rome dinner (table for 13, confirmed)
👟 8K-14KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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⏳ Day Notes
Per the Jun 20 meeting: the cousin dinner moved to Jul 4. Jul 5 is now Roman Forum self-walk + flex + the group’s last-night Rome dinner at Enosteria del Gallo (still confirmed, table for 13).
Morning - Roman Forum (Self-Walk)
🏛️Roman Forum
- Roman Forum - self-guided walk after yesterday’s Colosseum tour. The Forum was the political, religious, and commercial heart of ancient Rome for ~1,000 years. Ticket access typically comes bundled with Colosseum entry - carry yesterday’s tour materials and confirm Forum access window with the guide on Jul 4.
- Pace it slowly - it’s mostly exposed sun; bring water and hats.
Afternoon = Flex / Catch-Up
Buffer afternoon - anything you didn't get to earlier in the week. Menu to pull from:
- Trevi Fountain at night
- Piazza Navona
- Borghese Gardens
- Catacombs + aqueducts
🍽️ Evening - Enosteria del Gallo (Group Farewell Dinner, Confirmed)
7:00 PM · Table for 13 · Conf #2215
Vicolo di Montevecchio 27, Roma 00186 (near Piazza Navona) · Phone: 06 687 3781
Booked by Jennifer Mummert via OpenTable. 10-minute grace period - call if running late. 2-day cancellation policy - no-shows / late cancellations subject to €10 per person.
Source: Katie Parla’s Rome guide (cousin’s reference) · 🍽️ Full Eat tab for map + all Rome picks.
Vicolo di Montevecchio 27, Roma 00186 (near Piazza Navona) · Phone: 06 687 3781
Booked by Jennifer Mummert via OpenTable. 10-minute grace period - call if running late. 2-day cancellation policy - no-shows / late cancellations subject to €10 per person.
Source: Katie Parla’s Rome guide (cousin’s reference) · 🍽️ Full Eat tab for map + all Rome picks.
Cousins now dine Jul 4 — confirm whether the Jul 5 table drops from 13 to 11, or whether the cousins join both nights.
Notes
- Pompeii is dropped - not in the binder or meeting.
- Bordeaux travel is Jul 6, NOT Jul 5. No transit framing on this day.
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment in Rome - Host: Daplice
- Via Ulpiano 29, Roma 00193 (Prati - near Vatican) →
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Enosteria del Gallo — table of 13 or 11?
- Which night was the "3-minutes-off-the-square" win — the square + the restaurant name (this validated the tourist-trap framework; belongs on the Eat tab too).
🍷 France - Bordeaux / Dordogne Hub (All 11 Travelers)
Hub: Montguyon area - Right Bank wine country, ~1 hr NE of Bordeaux airport, ~30 mi N of Libourne. Deliberately chosen to be equidistant between Oradour, Sarlat, Le Pin, and Bordeaux city. Three rental cars. | 🏠 17 Route de Libourne, Montguyon 17270 → · Airbnb host · Check-in: 3 PM · Check-out: 11 AM | See Jul 6 card - binder commune name (Montguyon / Montliu / Montlieu-la-Garde) still to reconcile.
🍷 Bordeaux Hub - Day Trip DistancesOpen in Google Maps →
Mon6July
Rome → FCO → Bordeaux → Hub
Fly to Bordeaux · Pick Up Cars · Drive to Hub
11:30a Mercedes V-Class vans Via Ulpiano → FCO · Volotea V72703 3:20p FCO→BOD · 5:30p arrive · 6:30p Avis pickup · hub for the night
👟 4K-8KTravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Day Sequence (Per Court Travel master)
- ~8:00a - last Rome spots if anyone wants them
- 11:30a - two Mercedes V-Class vans depart Via Ulpiano 29 → FCO (replaces the earlier "train to FCO" assumption)
- 3:20p - Volotea V72703 FCO → Bordeaux-Mérignac (BOD), 2 hr 10 min
- 5:30p - arrive Bordeaux Mérignac (BOD)
- 6:30p - Avis pickup at Bordeaux Airport. Konecny vehicle: Nissan X-Trail "Sfmr" or similar - Standard 5-door MANUAL with A/C (only manual on the trip). Confirmation + deposit on the family binder page. (Note: this leg requires a manual-transmission driver.)
- Dinner near hub on the way in - hub house for the night
📄 Bookings (Konecny party)
- Volotea V72703 FCO → BOD, 3:20p → 5:30p. Konecny record locator on the family binder page; other parties’ identifiers live in the Court Travel PDF.
- Avis Bordeaux Airport - 5-day rental, drop Jul 11 12:00p at Bordeaux Saint-Jean station. Konecny conf on the family binder page.
- Konecny rental is a MANUAL transmission. Only manual on the trip - confirm at least one driver is comfortable with stick before pickup.
Pack Discipline
- Strictest carry-on day of the trip - intra-Europe flight on Volotea.
- Volotea bag policy is tighter than legacy carriers - verify carry-on dimensions before check-in
- Download offline Google Maps for Bordeaux region before landing
🏠 Lodging - Montguyon Area Hub
- House in the Montguyon area - Airbnb host
- 17 Route de Libourne, Montguyon 17270 →
- Check-in: 3:00 PM | Check-out: 11:00 AM
- 4 nights: Jul 6 - 10
Open Question - Hub Commune Name
- Reconcile: Montguyon vs. Montliu vs. Montlieu-la-Garde. The binder mostly says Montguyon; the Jul 10 vineyards page says “Montliu.” Prior planning had it in the Montlieu-la-Garde area (“Mount Louie”). They are nearby but not the same commune. Confirm which is the actual lodging address.
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Volotea bag-fee reality; manual-transmission Nissan verdict.
- Hub identity: reconcile Montguyon vs Illats — which was the actual house? (Jul 7 note says "Bordeaux/Illats hub"; lodging block says Montguyon. Fix whichever is wrong once confirmed.)
Tue7July
Hub → Oradour → Angoulême → Hub
Oradour-sur-Glane (oh-rah-DOOR soor GLAHN) + Angoulême
👟 6K-10K🔄 Plan Changed📖 Record pending
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🔄 Plan adjusted — this day did not happen as planned.
Oradour-sur-Glane was dropped — too far from the Bordeaux/Illats hub for the day's round trip. The historical context below is kept for the record; the Normandy D-Day leg (Jul 16–19) still carries the occupation → liberation throughline. Actual Jul 7 activity: TBD — to confirm with Chris.
Oradour-sur-Glane was dropped — too far from the Bordeaux/Illats hub for the day's round trip. The historical context below is kept for the record; the Normandy D-Day leg (Jul 16–19) still carries the occupation → liberation throughline. Actual Jul 7 activity: TBD — to confirm with Chris.
What Happened Here
🕊️Oradour Ruins
🚗Rusting Cars
June 10, 1944 - four days after D-Day - the SS Das Reich division marched into this quiet village and killed ~600 inhabitants (~6 survivors). Men were shot in barns. Women and children were locked in the church and burned alive. The French president ordered the town left exactly as-is as a living museum.
It has been decomposing in place for 80+ years as a permanent national memorial - rusting cars, collapsed buildings, personal belongings still inside homes.
Day Schedule
- ~7:30a leave the Montguyon hub
- ~9:00a arrive Oradour-sur-Glane
- Group anchor: tour the village + on-site museum + lunch
- Afternoon splits by interest (see below)
Afternoon Splits
- Cognac branch: ~2:00p leave → afternoon Martell (Cognac) tour + tasting → drive back; dinner near the hub. Wine-people pull.
- Angoulême branch: ~2:00p leave → Angoulême (on-goo-LEM) tour (comic-book capital of Europe) → drive back; dinner near the hub
- Third option: back to the house for a pool day
🏠 Lodging
- House in Montguyon ("Mount Louie") - Airbnb host
- 17 Route de Libourne, Montguyon 17270 →
Why We're Going
This site has been on the bucket list for years. Without understanding the history, you're just looking at rubble. For the kids especially, this is a history lesson no classroom can replicate: real personal artifacts, real names, real lives interrupted mid-sentence. Sewing machines still on tables. Cars parked where they were that morning. Combined with Normandy later, this creates the trip's most powerful throughline: occupied France → Nazi atrocity → Allied liberation.
📍 See on timeline📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Known: Oradour dropped (distance). Pending: what the day actually was (pool day? Cognac? Angoulême? other).
Wed8July
Sarlat-la-Canéda (sar-LAH lah kah-nay-DAH)
Sarlat Market Day + Overnight
MUST be Wednesday (market day) · Truffle capital · 2.5 hrs from hub · Stay overnight in hotel
👟 8K-14KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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The Plan
🏘️Sarlat
🧀Market
Drive ~2.5 hrs east into the Dordogne. MUST be this day - Wednesday is market day. Sarlat is the truffle capital of the world and the gastronomic heart of France. One of France's great food markets filling medieval streets. Morning exploring + eating. Spend the day there. Stay overnight in hotel in Sarlat - dramatically more beautiful at night when the honey-colored limestone glows under lamplight.
What to Buy & Try
- Black Périgord (pay-ree-GOR) truffles - the world's most prized, hunted locally
- Foie gras - duck and goose. This is its homeland.
- Duck confit - slow-cooked, preserved in its own fat
- Walnut products - oils, cakes, liqueurs (Périgord is walnut country)
- Cabécou (kah-bay-KOO) - tiny local goat cheese rounds
- Bergerac (behr-zhuh-RAHK) wine - excellent value, often overlooked
Why Sarlat
Best-preserved medieval town in France. UNESCO zone - honey limestone, narrow alleys, Renaissance architecture. The Dordogne is where French gastronomy reaches its soul: truffles, foie gras, duck, walnut everything. This is food at the source, not in a restaurant pretending. The market has run continuously for centuries.
Logistics
- ~7:15a leave Montguyon · ~9:00a arrive Sarlat (market closes 1p)
- Book Sarlat hotel/gîte in advance - fills up on market day
- Armagnac shopping - research premium/vintage sources in Sarlat ahead of time and buy during the market
- After the market closes: lunch, explore town, check into Sarlat hotel, dinner in town, walk, ~9:30p back to the hotel
- Next morning: Lascaux is only ~20 min away
🏠 Lodging - Hotel Montaigne, Sarlat (PAID IN FULL)
- Hotel Montaigne - 2 Place Pasteur, Sarlat-la-Canéda 24200
- 2 Place Pasteur, Sarlat-la-Canéda 24200 →
- PAID IN FULL via Court Travel (confirmation on the family binder page)
- Check-in 3 PM Jul 8 · Check-out 11 AM Jul 9
- Room block: 3 Double Rooms (6 guests) + 1 Family Room (Mummert, 4 guests) + 1 Basic Double Room (1 guest). Confirm which Konecny is in the Basic Double single - PDF doesn't name the solo guest.
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Market highlights + what got bought; standout meal in Sarlat.
Thu9July
Sarlat → Lascaux → Rouffignac → Périgueux → Hub
Lascaux IV + Grotte de Rouffignac + Périgueux
Two caves day · Lascaux IV 12:30 (timed) · ride into Rouffignac · lunch Périgueux (truffle capital)
👟 5K-9KTimed - To-Confirm📖 Record pending
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Lascaux IV - The Painted Cave Replica
🦬Lascaux IV
🐴Cave Art
- ~8:15a leave Sarlat · ~8:45a arrive Montignac-Lascaux (~20 min)
- 12:30 PM timed entry - Lascaux IV (confirmed via Court Travel master). Avenue de Lascaux, 24290 Montignac-Lascaux · +33 (0)5 53 05 65 65
- Arrive 15 min early - no late arrivals admitted. Cave temp 16°C (bring a jacket). No backpacks; soft baby carriers only.
- Original cave discovered in 1940 by four teenagers following their dog. Over 600 paintings - horses, bison, aurochs, deer, a mammoth - approximately 17,000 years old. Not stick figures: perspective, motion, anatomical precision.
- Original permanently sealed in 1963 (human breath was destroying the pigments). Lascaux IV (2016) is a government-commissioned full-scale replica with millimeter precision. Stunning modern building in the hillside.
Grotte de Rouffignac - “Animal Flap Day”
Grotte de Rouffignac is the cave you literally ride into on a small electric train - deep into the limestone. The walls inside have mammoth engravings and a long ceiling frieze of more than 200 animals. The page nickname (“Animal Flap Day”) sticks because of how many beasts you stack up between the two caves.
Périgueux - Historic Capital of the Périgord
- Lunch in Périgueux (pay-ree-GUH) after the caves
- Historic capital of the Périgord - a major truffle-market town (Sarlat is the one usually marketed as the truffle capital, but Périgueux is the regional capital and a significant market as well). Truffle capital claim - used for both Sarlat (Jul 8) and Périgueux (Jul 9). Pick one or clarify distinction.
- Visit Saint-Front Cathedral - five Byzantine domes, like a small St. Mark's
- Drive back to the Montguyon hub, rest, dinner in the evening
The Detail That Changes Everything
The woolly mammoth survived on remote Arctic islands until about 2,500 years ago - these paintings were made by people who actually saw these animals alive. Not mythological creatures. Real neighbors. 15,000 years before writing was invented. For the kids: this is the oldest art gallery on Earth.
Open Questions
- Lascaux IV 12:30 PM - confirmed via Court Travel master.
- Rouffignac tour time - not on the Court Travel doc; book directly with the cave.
🏠 Lodging
- House in the Montguyon area - Airbnb host
- 17 Route de Libourne, Montguyon 17270 →
- Last night at the hub - check-out 11:00 AM Jul 10
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Lascaux 12:30 as booked? Did Rouffignac happen (was never booked on the master)? Périgueux lunch spot.
Fri10July
Hub → Pomerol / St-Émilion → Bordeaux (Tour de France finish) → Hub
St-Émilion / Pomerol Vineyards + Tour de France in Bordeaux · Split Day
Vineyards car (drinking adults): Le Pin, Pétrus, Trotte Vieille, Figeac · Town cars (JC + Konecny daughters): St-Émilion · Both converge in Bordeaux for Tour de France Stage 7 finish
👟 6K-12KSplit DayPartial📖 Record pending
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Vineyards Car (1 car · Drinking Adults)
🍇Pomerol
- ~8:20a leave hub
- Château Le Pin (sha-TOH luh PAN) - tiny 5-acre Pomerol estate, ~700 cases/year, $3,000-$6,000+/bottle. Among the rarest wines on Earth. Le Pin + Pétrus bookability - confirm directly; among the most exclusive estates on earth. Realistic fallback: St-Émilion + Trotte Vieille / Figeac.
- Pétrus (pay-TROOS) - the other legendary Pomerol (pom-eh-ROL) estate
- Château Trotte Vieille - St-Émilion Premier Grand Cru
- Château Figeac - St-Émilion Premier Grand Cru
- Both groups converge for the Tour de France finish in Bordeaux (Place des Quinconces)
Town Cars (2 cars · JC + Konecny Daughters + Everyone Else)
- ~9:15a leave hub
- St-Émilion (sant ay-mee-lee-OHN) town tour - UNESCO medieval wine town, walk the cobbled streets, monolithic underground church
- The whole Konecny family (JC + the two daughters, who are the designated non-drinkers/drivers) is in this group.
- Both groups converge for the Tour de France finish in Bordeaux
Tour de France - Bordeaux Finish
🚴Tour de France
2026 Tour de France Stage 7: Hagetmau → Bordeaux (175 km flat sprint stage). The finish/sprint/caravan spectacle is at Bordeaux, Place des Quinconces (plahs day kan-KONSS) - confirmed from the official route. Publicity caravan passes first (~20 min of free swag), then the riders arrive in a tight peloton sprint. letour.fr
Cadillac (kah-dee-YAK) - French town, not the car: sits on the Garonne on the southern approach to Bordeaux - the route may pass through or near it as a less-crowded roadside spot, but this is unverified. Only works as a viewing spot IF the official ASO stage map routes through it - verify on the stage map before committing. Primary plan is Bordeaux (Place des Quinconces).
Why This Day Is Special
Le Pin + Pétrus are among the rarest wines on the planet - not places tourists visit. The Tour de France is the biggest annual sporting event in the world by attendance (~12 million roadside spectators each year).
Open Questions
- Le Pin + Pétrus entry uncertain - among the most exclusive estates in the world. Confirm bookability with the estates directly. Realistic fallback: St-Émilion + Trotte Vieille / Figeac.
🏠 Lodging
- House in the Montguyon area - Airbnb host
- 17 Route de Libourne, Montguyon 17270 →
- Last night at the hub before Paris on Jul 11
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Le Pin / Pétrus — did the adults get in, or fallback to Trotte Vieille / Figeac? Which châteaux actually happened.
- Tour de France finish at Place des Quinconces — did both groups make it? The scene.
🗼 France - Paris (All 11 Travelers)
Apartment: 57 Rue Réaumur, Paris 75002 → · Airbnb host · Arts et Métiers - intersection of Metro Lines 3 and 4. Large luxury apartment - marble floors, king beds, central Paris. Home base for 5 nights (Jul 11-16). Check-in: 4 PM · Check-out: 11 AM. No cars - Metro, RER, taxis, walking.
Planning Philosophy: 1-2 anchor activities per day, with in-between time for organic exploration - walking, bookstores, experiencing culture, talking to locals. Stop and smell the roses.
☀️ Daylight note: Sun does not set until ~9:45 PM in Paris in July. 9 PM is still dusk - plan accordingly. | 💀 Catacombs: Skipped in Paris - we'll see Roman catacombs in Italy instead. Catacombs rationale inconsistency: Roman catacombs aren't actually scheduled in Italy (they appear only as an optional menu line on Jul 4/5). Either schedule the Roman catacombs in Italy or drop the "we'll do them in Rome" reason for skipping the Paris Catacombs.
🗼 Paris - Key LocationsOpen in Google Maps →
Sat11July
Montguyon → Bordeaux → Paris
TGV INOUI 12254 to Paris · Eiffel · Sainte-Chapelle · Notre Dame · Seine Cruise
~9a leave hub · 12:00p Avis drop St-Jean · 10:47a-12:55p TGV (Coach 3) · apartment · Eiffel · Sainte-Chapelle · Notre Dame · Bateaux Parisiens Seine cruise
👟 12K-18KTravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Day Sequence (Per Court Travel master)
- ~8a - leave Montguyon hub for Bordeaux Saint-Jean station
- 12:00p - Avis return at Bordeaux Saint-Jean station (NOT the airport) - timed AFTER the TGV departs; whoever is on the rental contract drops the car post-train. Reconcile: PDF lists Avis drop at 12:00p, but the TGV leaves at 10:47a. Either (a) the family drops the car earlier than 12:00p and walks to the platform, or (b) one driver stays back to drop. Confirm the actual flow with Court Travel.
- 10:47a - TGV INOUI 12254, Comfort Class, Bordeaux Saint-Jean → Paris Montparnasse (2 hr 8 min)
- 12:55p - arrive Paris Montparnasse (mon-par-NAHSS)
- Apartment by taxi/Metro, drop bags (4 PM check-in)
- Lunch
- Seine cruise - Bateaux Parisiens, Pier No. 3, Port de la Bourdonnais. 1-hour cruise; departures every 30 min, 10 AM - 10:30 PM (no fixed slot). Confirmation on the family binder page.
- ~2:00p - Eiffel Tower (Day 1 by design, “to get it out of the way psychologically”) ⏳ Eiffel Tower entry is NOT in the agent file (and the museum pass excludes it). Confirm whether the Eiffel visit is a separate booking, ticketless ground-level only, or a known gap.
- Sainte-Chapelle (sant shah-PEL) - finest stained glass in the world. Closes 7:00 PM. ⏳ The 4-day museum pass is active Jul 12-15. Sainte-Chapelle on Jul 11 falls OUTSIDE the pass window - needs a separate timed ticket, OR shift the visit into the Jul 12-15 window.
- Notre Dame - reopened. Closes 7:30 PM.
- Dinner out
📄 Bookings (Konecny party)
- TGV INOUI 12254 Comfort - dep 10:47a / arr 12:55p - Coach 3 (Konecny party). Record locator + seats on the family binder page.
- Morris / Mummert / Belinda Ward (Nana) also in Coach 3 (their record locator lives in the Court Travel PDF).
- Bateaux Parisiens Seine cruise (confirmation on the family binder page), Pier No. 3, Port de la Bourdonnais
- Avis rental return - Bordeaux Saint-Jean station, 12:00 PM
Bag Logistics
- Bags drop at apartment if possible
- Fallback: Montparnasse station lockers
- No cars in Paris - Metro, RER, taxis, walking
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment - 57 Rue Réaumur - Airbnb host
- 57 Rue Réaumur, Paris 75002 (Arts et Métiers - Metro Lines 3 & 4) →
- Check-in: 4:00 PM | Check-out: 11:00 AM
- Home base for 5 nights (Jul 11-16)
Open Question - Picasso Museum
- Picasso Museum is in prior planning but not on the binder Jul 11 page. Keep on Day 1, drop entirely, or move to a different Paris day? Decide.
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Avis-drop-vs-10:47-train flow — how it actually resolved.
- Eiffel: up the tower or ground-level? Sainte-Chapelle — this day or shifted into the pass window? Notre-Dame in? Picasso Museum in/out?
Sun12July
Paris
Musée d'Orsay - Full Day
Possibly the greatest art museum in the world · Van Gogh · Degas · Impressionists · Evening Seine cruise
👟 10K-16KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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The Plan
🎨Musée d'Orsay
🌙Starry Night
Full day at Musée d'Orsay (myoo-ZAY dor-SAY) - possibly the greatest art museum in the world. Plan for 5-5.5 hours. Study the key works beforehand so you know what you're looking at.
Day Timing
- ~8:00a - breakfast
- 11:00a - Musée d'Orsay timed entry (secured via the 4-day Paris Museum Pass / Paris Odyssey, active Jul 12-15)
- ~12:30p - lunch in the museum
- Afternoon - Orsay continued (closes 6p)
- ~3:30p - back to hub to rest
- Evening - dinner out
- Evening — night Seine boat ⏳ Only ONE Bateaux Parisiens Seine cruise is booked (Jul 11 evening; confirmation on the family binder page). The Jul 12 “2nd day of 2-day pass” Seine reference may imply a second unbooked ride — confirm one cruise vs. two.
- Evening - Eiffel Tower at night (closes midnight)
- ~9:00p - back to hub
Must-See Works - Study Beforehand
- Van Gogh: Self-Portrait - "the artist in blue"
- Van Gogh: The Church at Auvers
- Van Gogh: The Bedroom
- Starry Night Over the Rhône
- Degas: The ballerinas - multiple works, iconic
- Various Impressionist masterworks - Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, Manet
Afternoon
Return to condo for a nap after 5+ hours in the museum. Recharge before the evening.
Evening
Dinner out, then evening Seine boat ride (2nd day of 2-day pass). Paris at night - Parisian landmarks lit up from the river.
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment - 57 Rue Réaumur - Airbnb host
- 57 Rue Réaumur, Paris 75002 →
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- One Seine cruise total or two? Orsay must-sees that actually landed with the group.
Mon13July
Paris
Père Lachaise (Morning) · The Louvre · Montmartre
~8:30 AM Père Lachaise → 11:30 AM Louvre timed entry → evening Montmartre
⚠️👟 14K-20KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Morning - Père Lachaise Cemetery (~8:30 AM)
Père Lachaise (pair lah-SHEZ) - Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Édith Piaf, Chopin. Free admission. Hit it first thing while the cemetery is quiet and cool, then head straight to the Louvre.
Day Timing
- ~7:30a - breakfast
- ~8:30a - Père Lachaise (before the Louvre, ahead of the crowds; ~2 hr walk)
- ~10:45a - Metro toward the Louvre
- 11:30a - Louvre timed entry (secured via the 4-day Paris Museum Pass)
- ~2:30p - late lunch after the Louvre
- ~4:00p - brief return to hub / rest
- ~6:00p - Montmartre for dinner + Sacré-Cœur + Moulin Rouge district
Midday - The Louvre at 11:30 AM
🎨Louvre
🖼️Mona Lisa
The Louvre - right down the street from the condo. Pre-study, pick top ~10 works, then play it by ear. It will be ridiculously crowded in July.
- Mona Lisa: They have changed location/setup multiple times. Expect massive crowds around it.
- The Wedding at Cana - the painting OPPOSITE the Mona Lisa. Largest painting in the Louvre. Worth seeing and often overlooked.
Louvre duration: targets ranged from a tight 3-4 hour cherry-pick to a full 5-6 hour pass. Resolution: pre-study, lock the top-10 list at a pre-trip “Louvre meeting” at the Konecny house (big-screen, with the Mummert parent who has the art/drama background helping lead), then play it by ear at the museum - anyone wanting to leave early splits off via Metro or Citi Bike.
Why Louvre Jul 13, not Jul 14? Louvre is free on Bastille Day → mob scene. Going Jul 13 to dodge the crowds.
Why Louvre Jul 13, not Jul 14? Louvre is free on Bastille Day → mob scene. Going Jul 13 to dodge the crowds.
Evening - Montmartre
🎭Montmartre
Montmartre (mon-MART-ruh) - bohemian Paris, home of the Moulin Rouge (moo-LAN ROOZH). 125-140 years of artistic/alternative Paris. Artists, cafés, Sacré-Cœur basilica.
Moulin Rouge: Mentioned as a possible nighttime activity. Final decision still pending - revisit with the group.
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment - 57 Rue Réaumur - Airbnb host
- 57 Rue Réaumur, Paris 75002 →
Booking Links
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Louvre duration verdict (cherry-pick vs long haul); Moulin Rouge — went or skipped?
Tue14July
Paris
Bastille Day 🇫🇷 - Military Parade · Champs-Élysées · Fireworks
France's national day · Most crowded day in Paris · Free museums · Eiffel Tower fireworks at 11 PM
👟 10K-16KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Morning - Champs-Élysées Military Parade
🇫🇷Bastille Day
🛍️Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées (shahn-zay-lee-ZAY) military parade. Macron attends. The French are deeply patriotic - comparable to or exceeding American July 4th. Up to a million people on the streets.
The Champs-Élysées is 4-5 miles long and will be packed. MOST CROWDED DAY in Paris. Plan accordingly.
Midday/Afternoon - Shopping & Free Museums
- Shopping along Champs-Élysées - Hermès, Chanel, Sephora World HQ
- Some major stores may be closed for the holiday
- ALL MUSEUMS FREE on Bastille Day - opportunity to revisit or catch something new
Day Timing
- ~8:45a - breakfast
- Champs-Élysées (shahn-zay-lee-ZAY) · ~10:00a military parade begins
- ~12:00p - parade ends
- ~12:30p - lunch
- ~4:00-5:00p - shop the Champs (many stores may be closed for the holiday)
- Return + rest
- ~7:00p - dinner
- Optional late night: ~10:00p Eiffel Tower · ~11:00p fireworks · home late (longest day)
Evening & Night Notes
- Fireworks are optional. The older travelers plan to be done by 11p. The Konecny family is the likely fireworks contingent. Decide game-time.
- Optional late-night: Eiffel Tower fireworks ~11 PM - one of the greatest fireworks shows in the world
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment - 57 Rue Réaumur - Airbnb host
- 57 Rue Réaumur, Paris 75002 →
Why Bastille Day Matters
We are in Paris on the exact day of France's most important national celebration. The fireworks off the Eiffel Tower are watched by millions - one of the greatest fireworks shows in the world. All museums free. The streets are alive with energy. This kind of timing doesn't happen by accident.
📍 See on timeline📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Parade viewing spot; who stayed for the 11pm fireworks; how late the longest day ran.
Wed15July
Versailles (vair-SIGH) → Paris
Versailles OR Open Day · Farewell Dinner
Last day all together · Hall of Mirrors · Farewell dinner · Mummert family departs after this
👟 12K-18KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Morning - Versailles
🏰Versailles
✨Hall of Mirrors
- Train to Versailles (vair-SIGH) in the morning
- Hall of Mirrors - where the Treaty of Versailles was signed
- The palace itself, the gardens, the sheer scale of it
- Don't waste time hunting for oddities like the tennis courts
- Konecny family (the mother + older daughter) tasked with researching Versailles beforehand - cherry-pick the must-sees and hit the gates efficiently
Versailles or open day? Strong recommendation for first-timers - “second only to the Vatican.” Repeat visitors may opt to sit it out. The page is labeled “Versailles or OPEN DAY” so it can flex to a free Paris day for anyone who wants the rest.
Day Timing
- ~9:15a - breakfast
- ~10:30a - RER C from St-Michel (confirm whether there's a timed Versailles entry ~3:50 PM - if timed, adjust arrival accordingly; this morning flow only works for general admission)
- ~11:30a - arrive Versailles · tour Palace + Gardens
- ~5:00p - back to Paris hub · rest
- ~9:00p - farewell dinner
Farewell Dinner
Working plan: Hôtel de Crillon (oh-TEL duh kree-YOHN) on Place de la Concorde - historic, family-friendly, the prior planning pick. The binder just says “dinner” - confirm Crillon or land on an alternative, but book either way.
This is the LAST MEAL with the full group before the Mummert family departs. Make it count.
📍 See on timelineOpen Questions
- Versailles tour timing - confirm whether there's a timed entry (~3:50 PM mentioned in organizer's walkthrough) or general admission. The 10:41a train + all-afternoon flow only works for general admission; if timed, reflect the exact time on the card.
- Versailles tickets — covered by the 4-day museum pass. No purchase needed — just reserve the free timed entry slot at parismuseumpass.fr/en/reservation once the pass is activated.
- Farewell dinner venue - Crillon vs. alternative. Binder just says "dinner." Lock the choice and book either way.
🏠 Lodging
- Apartment - 57 Rue Réaumur - Airbnb host
- 57 Rue Réaumur, Paris 75002 →
- Last night in Paris apartment - check-out 11:00 AM Jul 16
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Who went to Versailles vs open day; farewell dinner — Crillon or where? The send-off.
⚓ France - Normandy & Brittany (Mummert family + Belinda Ward (Nana) depart Jul 16 · 6-person group continues)
Thu16July
Paris → Nantes (NAHNT) → Carnac (kar-NAK) → Dinan (dee-NAHN)
Mummert Family + Belinda Ward (Nana) Fly Home · TGV INOUI 8973 to Nantes · Carnac Stones · Dinan
Ward & Mummert AA787 CDG→CLT 11a · Morris+Konecny TGV 9:39a-11:54a Coach 2 · Hertz Nantes 12:30p · Carnac tour · Mercure Dinan 3p check-in
👟 8K-14KTravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Travel Sequence (Per Court Travel master)
- ~11a - Mummert family + Belinda Ward (Nana) fly home together - AA 787 CDG → CLT, 11:00a → 2:20p (joint booking under “Ward & Mummert” in the Court Travel PDF). They arrange their own ground to CDG.
- 9:39a - TGV INOUI 8973, Comfort Class, Paris Montparnasse → Nantes (2 hr 15 min). Coach 2 for Konecny + Morris. Record locator + named seats on the family binder page.
- 11:54a - arrive Nantes
- 12:30p - Hertz pickup at Nantes Railway Station (56 Bd de Berlin, 44000). Konecny vehicle: Peugeot 3008 "Igar" - Intermediate, Automatic. Confirmation on the family binder page. Drop Jul 20 10 AM at Paris CDG T1/T2F.
- Drive Nantes → Carnac (~1 hr 40 min)
- Carnac - formal guided tour of the standing stones
- Drive Carnac → Dinan (~2 hr)
- Mercure Dinan Port Le Jerzual - 3 PM check-in Jul 16 / 12 PM check-out Jul 17
Timing Watch
- Day is tighter than the previous Rennes routing assumed. Nantes → Carnac is ~1 hr 40 min and Carnac → Dinan is ~2 hr. Plan a brisk Carnac stop or shorten it to keep Dinan check-in reasonable.
Carnac - The Standing Stones
5,500 prehistoric stones placed in mysterious alignments stretching across the Brittany countryside. This is a pre-written-history site - we don't know how or why ancient peoples erected these megaliths. Older than Stonehenge. The stones sit on ley lines - proposed alignments between ancient sacred sites across vast distances.
Why Carnac Matters
📍 See on timelineHuge bucket list item for Grandpa. This is exactly the kind of place most tourists never see - mysterious, ancient, and deeply meaningful. A formal guided tour will explain the theories and history. For the kids: these stones were placed here thousands of years before the pyramids, and we still don't fully understand why.
Dinan - Medieval Overnight
Arrive ~5:30 PM. Dinan is one of Brittany's best-preserved medieval towns - cobblestone streets, half-timbered houses, ancient ramparts. A perfect place to decompress after the travel day before heading into Normandy.
Open Questions
- Home-bound Jul 16: Mummert family + Belinda Ward (Nana) fly together - AA 787 CDG → CLT 11:00a (Court Travel PDF holds the joint booking).
- Continuing past Paris: Konecny (4) + Collin & Ian Morris (2) = 6. TGV INOUI 8973 Paris→Nantes — Morris & Konecny only (Belinda Ward (Nana) is not on this train).
- Nana is Belinda Ward (JC’s mother). Used consistently as “Belinda Ward (Nana)” throughout the binder.
🏠 Lodging - Mercure Dinan Port Le Jerzual (PAID IN FULL)
- Mercure Dinan Port Le Jerzual - 26 Quai des Talards, Port de Dinan, 22100 · +33 2 9687 0202
- 26 Quai des Talards, Port de Dinan 22100 →
- PAID IN FULL via Court Travel (confirmation on the family binder page)
- Check-in 3 PM Jul 16 · Check-out 12 PM Jul 17
- Konecny room block: 1× Standard (King) + 1× Twin Standard (Two Twins) - 4 guests total
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- AA787 departure smooth for the five? Carnac guided tour happen (Grandpa's bucket-list item — capture his reaction); Dinan arrival time.
Fri17July
Dinan → St. Lô (san LOH) → Mont Saint-Michel
Settle into Normandy Base · Mont Saint-Michel (~5 hours)
Wake up in Dinan · Drive to St. Lô · ~5 hours exploring Mont Saint-Michel · Back to St. Lô
👟 8K-14KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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The Plan
- Morning: Drive Dinan → St. Lo (~1.5 hrs)
- Get settled at the Normandy rental house
- Drive to Mont Saint-Michel (~1 hr from St. Lo)
- ~5 hours exploring Mont Saint-Michel
- Return to St. Lo for dinner and sleep
Mont Saint-Michel
🏰Mont St-Michel
Mont Saint-Michel (mon san mee-SHELL) - UNESCO World Heritage Site. A medieval abbey perched on a tidal island, surrounded by vast sand flats that flood with the tides. One of France's most iconic landmarks - instantly recognizable, utterly unique.
The abbey dates to the 8th century. At high tide, it becomes an island. The narrow streets wind up to the church at the summit. Allow time to explore - it's a small village unto itself.
St. Lo - Normandy Base
St. Lo serves as home base for two nights (Jul 17-19). Centrally located for all the D-Day sites. The town itself was nearly destroyed in WWII - 95% of it was leveled during the Battle of Normandy. Known as "The Capital of Ruins."
🏠 Lodging
- La Capelle country cottage près des plages - Airbnb · host Emmanuelle (☎ 06 77 78 32 51)
- ✅ Address confirmed by host: La Capelle, 50000 Saint-Georges-Montcocq (Waze: "La Capelle, 50000 Saint Georges Montcocq"). Open wooden fence off the road up a tree-lined drive; entrance on the far side of the house. Host arrives ~6:30 PM, key on the door. Open in Maps →
- Check-in: 2:00 PM | Check-out: 11:00 AM
- 2 nights: Jul 17-19 (group arrives Jul 17 after Dinan - mismatch resolved).
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Tide state during the visit; how long the group actually lasted on the climb; dinner in St-Lô.
Sat18July
St. Lô → D-Day Circuit → St. Lô
Full D-Day Tour - 7 Stops · The Longest Day · Band of Brothers · Omaha Beach
Sainte-Mère-Église · Winters Statue · Carentan · Pointe du Hoc · Omaha · Port Winston · American Cemetery
👟 8K-14KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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The Route
✝️American Cemetery
🏖️Omaha Beach
- Sainte-Mère-Église (sant mare ay-GLEEZ) - First town liberated on D-Day. Featured in The Longest Day - the famous scene of paratrooper John Steele hanging from the church steeple.
- Winters Statue - Memorial to Major Dick Winters of Easy Company, 506th PIR. If you've seen Band of Brothers, you know why this matters.
- Carentan (kar-on-TAHN) - Key battle site from Band of Brothers. Easy Company fought here to link Utah and Omaha beaches.
- Pointe du Hoc (pwant doo OK) - Rangers scaled 100-ft cliffs under fire. Bomb craters still visible 80 years later. Featured in The Longest Day.
- Omaha Beach - Walk the actual beach. The cliffs, the terrain, the impossible scale. It becomes real in a way no movie can prepare you for.
- Port Winston / Mulberry Harbour (arr-oh-MAHNSH) - The floating artificial harbor that Winston Churchill designed. An engineering marvel - prefab concrete caissons towed across the Channel. See YouTube videos
- American Cemetery - 9,388 white crosses overlooking Omaha Beach. ABMC. Free. One of the most powerful American sites in the world.
🏠 Lodging
- La Capelle country cottage près des plages - Airbnb · host Emmanuelle (☎ 06 77 78 32 51)
- ✅ Address confirmed: La Capelle, 50000 Saint-Georges-Montcocq (near St. Lô) Open in Maps →
Why This Day Matters
June 6, 1944 - the largest seaborne invasion in history. 10,000+ Allied casualties on D-Day alone. Now the kids see the liberation - and the cost - up close. The throughline lands: occupied France → atrocity → liberation → sacrifice. This isn't a textbook sequence. We're walking through it.
📍 See on timeline📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Which of the 7 stops were made (all?); the moment that hit hardest — this is the throughline day, record it properly.
Sun19July
Chartres
Chartres Cathedral · Rose Window · Light Show
Rest day in Chartres · Cathedral (best Rose Window in the world) · Sancta Camisia (Mary's veil) · Chartres en Lumières light show at night · overnight
👟 5K-9KConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Chartres Cathedral
✨Chartres Cathedral
🌟Light Show
Chartres Cathedral (SHART-ruh) - 12th century Gothic masterpiece. Home to the Rose Window - considered the finest medieval stained glass in the world. Better preserved than Sainte-Chapelle. The famous labyrinth is built into the floor.
Chartres en Lumières (shart on loo-mee-AIR) - Permanent nightly light projections mapped onto 26 historic buildings. Not seasonal - every night from dusk. Fun fact: The Lumineers (the band) are named after this.
✨ The Veil of the Virgin (Sancta Camisia) — you CAN see it
🔄 Correction: The answer floated in the family was "no, you can't see it." That's wrong — the Sancta Camisia is on public display, free.
Where: the main piece sits in a gold reliquary inside a climate-controlled glass case in the chapel on the north side of the sanctuary (Chapelle Au Cœur de Marie, the old Martyrs' Chapel). Walk up the nave toward the choir, then around the ambulatory to your left. A smaller fragment is down in the crypt (crypt is guided/ticketed — the north chapel is the easy one).
What it is: a silk veil roughly six metres long — not a dress. Testing traces the cloth to 1st-century Syrian manufacture; tradition places it at the Annunciation and/or the Nativity.
Can't find it? Show a staff member: « Bonjour, où se trouve le Voile de la Vierge (la Sancta Camisia) ? »
The story: in the Middle Ages a cathedral's power came from its relic — higher rank meant more pilgrims and more building money. Chartres held one of the highest in Christendom: the garment Mary wore when she gave birth to Jesus, given to Chartres by Charles the Bald in 876 (he got it via Charlemagne, who got it from the Byzantine Empress Irene). When the cathedral burned in 1194 the relic went missing — then turned up intact three days later. The town read it as a sign that Mary wanted a new cathedral built. They went all in. That's the building you're standing in.
Tonight (Sun Jul 19) — the timing lines up
- Free entry. Cathedral open 8:30am–7:30pm (last access 7:15pm) — but tonight it's open until 10pm ("Soirées Autrement," Tue/Fri/Sun, Jun–late Aug; today qualifies).
- Chartres en Lumières projection-mapping show kicks in at nightfall (~9:45pm this time of year) — pair it with the late cathedral hours.
- Notre-Dame de la Belle-Verrière (the "Blue Virgin" window), south ambulatory — 12th-c. glass that survived the same 1194 fire. Worth 2 minutes.
- No circulation during Mass — the cathedral stays open but you can't move through the nave/transepts. Sunday has more services than a weekday.
- Luggage isn't allowed inside — relevant if you arrive mid-transit with bags.
- The floor labyrinth is under chairs today — it's only cleared on Fridays (Mar–late Oct).
Logistics
- Settle in / see the cathedral and Rose Window in daylight
- Dinner in town
- Evening: light show walking route (~9:45–10pm dusk in July)
- Boutique hotel overnight
🏠 Lodging
- The Originals Boutique – Hôtel des Poèmes de Chartres — arrived Jul 19 ✅
- Hôtel des Poèmes de Chartres on the map →
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Did the group find the Sancta Camisia in the north chapel (and did the "you can't see it" claim get formally retired)? Light show verdict; where dinner was.
☀️ French Riviera - Morris + Konecny (6 travelers) · Saint-Raphaël Base (7 Nights · Jul 20-27)
Plan v3 (7/22 planning + booking session): Boat day locked Thu 7/23. Monaco outbound TER BOOKED for Fri 7/24. St-Tropez ferry (Les Bateaux Bleus) Sat 7/25 with tentative Château de la Messardière lunch. Grasse perfume workshop 2pm Sun 7/26 (all 6, Collin's card). Pont du Gard scratched. Carcassonne overnight CUT → now a Jul 28 day-visit en route to a Toulouse airport overnight. Jul 27 = Les Baux + overnight Arles. Jul 29 = Reims Champagne day trip LOCKED.
🚩 Week-Ahead Red Flags (ranked) & Action Items
- La Messardière lunch (7/25) is “I think” status. Get a written confirmed reservation, party of 6 (clarify the “back-to-back seating” comment). Active film set Apr–Oct — reconfirm morning-of before boarding the ferry.
- Grasse booking (7/26) — ✅ BOOKED. Galimard Signature Atelier, order GW-1167203, 6 pax, 14h00–16h00, €594, conf to greta@konecny.net.
- Carcassonne overnight cancellation — no evidence Laura was called. Confirm the MGallery + La Barbacane cancellations before a penalty hits.
- 7/29 van — ✅ BOOKED (Hertz Mercedes V-Class, conf L657E510465, CDG 12:00pm–10:00pm, €234.35). Sabrage slot ~3:30–5pm at Pol Couronne still unbooked.
- Monaco return (7/24) — ANSWERED, and it changes the evening. Per SNCF Connect, the last train from Monaco toward Saint-Raphaël leaves ~21:06 (not ~11:45pm as hoped). Plan the casino session around it — details now on the Jul 24 card. Verify the exact Friday time + whether it stops at Agay on SNCF Connect the day before.
- Saturday ferry (7/25) — book TODAY. July sailings sell out 2–3 days ahead, especially morning slots. Round trip €43.50/adult. Full timetable now on the Jul 25 card. Last return from St-Tropez is 18:00 — that's the hard deadline.
- Boat-day connectivity (7/23) — meetings moved onto the boat, Wi-Fi unconfirmed. Ask the skipper tonight or set OOO.
| Owner | Item | Status |
|---|---|---|
| JC | Call Laura: cancel Carcassonne hotel + La Barbacane | ⚠️ unconfirmed |
| Greta | Grasse Galimard workshop — 2pm Sun, 6 pax (GW-1167203) | ✅ booked |
| Collin | Toulouse airport hotel (Residence Inn), 3 rooms | ✅ booked |
| Collin | CDG rental van 7/29 (Hertz V-Class, conf L657E510465) | ✅ booked |
| JC | Monaco train — outbound Agay, one-way, 2nd class | ✅ booked (~€56) |
| JC / anyone | Confirm last return train Monaco→Agay Fri night | ✅ Answered — ~21:06 last train (verify day-before + Agay stop) |
| Ian | Saturday ferry — times, boarding point, round-trip tickets (9:30 out / 16:00 or 18:00 back recommended — book online now) | Open |
| Ian | Boat marina location + parking + Wi-Fi question | Tonight |
| Chris / JC | Lock la Messardière lunch 7/25 | Tentative |
| Chris | Book Reims sabrage slot (afternoon) | Open |
| Chris | Laura: fix AF7405 time in AXUS (10:30am) | Open |
| All | Grocery haul for boat + charge power banks | Tonight |
Collin's single-card accounting: he's running the whole trip on one card (zero balance → categorize all transactions at the end) — route assigned bookings through his card. Open Qs: Messardière “back-to-back reservations” = two seatings or two tables? · Cannes Sunday in or out (affects Sunday departure time)?
Mon20July
Chartres → CDG → Nice → Saint-Raphaël
AF7310 to Nice · Alamo Pickup · Drive to Saint-Raphaël
10a Hertz drop CDG T1/T2F · AF7310 11:55a-1:35p CDG→NCE · 2p Alamo Nice · drive to Riviera base
👟 6K-12KTravelConfirmed📖 Record pending
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Travel Sequence (Per Court Travel master)
- Morning: Drive Chartres → Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (sharl duh GOHL) (~1.5 hrs)
- 10:00a - Hertz return at CDG T1/T2F
- 11:55a - Air France AF7310 CDG → Nice (1 hr 40 min). Konecny + Morris record locator on the family binder page.
- 1:35p - arrive Nice (NCE)
- 2:00p - Alamo pickup at Nice (NCE). Konecny vehicle: Peugeot 3008 "Igar" - Intermediate, Automatic. Confirmation + deposit on the family binder page. One-way fee collected locally. Drop Jul 29 5:00 PM at Toulouse-Blagnac (TLS) (actual planned return ~8:00 AM Jul 29 — early return OK, booked window unchanged; see Jul 28 card).
- Drive Nice → Saint-Raphaël (san rah-fah-EL) (~1 hr)
- Check into Riviera house - home base for the week
The Transition
This is where the trip shifts gears entirely. Three weeks of history, culture, logistics, and 11 people - and now it's the 6-person back-half group: Collin Morris, Ian Morris, Chris, JC, Greta, Sofia. The Mummert family has flown home Jul 16 (the younger Mummert has a camp commitment) and Belinda Ward (Nana) flew with them. The Riviera is the exhale. No agenda. Just beaches, good food, and decompression.
🏠 Lodging
- Villa pleine vue Mer et Estérel (Agay / Anthéor) - Airbnb · host Seve
- 138 Bd de l'Estérel, 83700 Saint-Raphaël (Agay) →
- Check-in: Jul 20 after 5:00 PM | Check-out: Jul 27 by 10:00 AM (hard drop-dead — Arles drive follows)
- 7 nights: Jul 20 - 27 (reservation confirmed · 4 adults + 2 children · 10-guest max, no pets)
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- Flight/Alamo/one-way-fee — any friction? First-night verdict on the Agay villa.
Tue21July
Saint-Raphaël · Riviera settle-in
Villa day · beach · unpack · lay of the land
Recover from the Chartres→CDG→Nice→Agay travel day · easy Riviera onboarding
👟 4K-8KFlexible📖 Record pending
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Loose plan
- Unpack, sort the villa, figure out kitchens / laundry / Wi-Fi
- Beach walk on the Anthéor / Agay coast
- Grocery run for the week (staples — the bigger boat-food haul is Wed night)
- Easy dinner in / on the terrace
📖 Trip Record — ⏳ pending
What actually happened — to be filled in. Placeholder questions below stay visible so we know what to capture.
- What the settle-in day actually became; first beach/coast impressions.
Wed22July
Saint-Raphaël · Villa
Planning meeting + boat-day prep
Grocery haul for tomorrow's boat · charge power banks · Collin + JC gate/fob recon
👟 4K-8KFlexible📖 Record ✅
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Day Sequence
- Planning meeting done · booking session done (Monaco TER outbound + Grasse perfume workshop)
- Tonight: grocery haul for boat food — bringing our own food/drinks (no catering add-on)
- Charge all power banks for tomorrow (long day offshore)
- Collin + JC: gate/fob recon drive — confirm the exit route from the villa before an early Thursday start
Confirm before end of day
- Ian: exact marina name + parking for the boat charter (Thu 7/23, 9:30a check-in) + Wi-Fi/coverage question for the skipper
- Confirm final boat headcount — if anyone opts out, sort the car-shuffle plan (who drives whom, whether a second car goes to the marina)
- ✅ Grasse Galimard workshop (Sun 7/26, 2pm) — booked, order GW-1167203
📖 Trip Record — ✅ captured
Planning meeting + booking session at the villa. Locked in one sitting: Monaco outbound TER (one-way from Agay, ~€56), Galimard perfume atelier Sun 2pm (GW-1167203, all 6), Residence Inn Toulouse Airport (3 rooms), Hertz V-Class van at CDG for the Reims run. Killed: Pont du Gard, the Carcassonne overnight, and a briefly-floated Grasse/St-Tropez date swap. Discovered mid-meeting: the AXUS 7:05pm Toulouse flight was a phantom (copy-paste from CLT→FCO) — real AF7405 is 10:30am. Evening: grocery haul for boat day; Collin + JC ran the gate-fob recon. JC's notebook became the itinerary of record; site updated same day.
Thu23July
Boat charter · Cranchi Endurance 39 (SAILOC)
Boat Day (all day, 9:30a–5:30p)
Île d'Or → Estérel calanques → "French Caribbean" turquoise stop → Pampelonne Beach (multi-hour) · passes below Château de la Messardière
👟 3K-6KConfirmed
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Day Sequence
- 9:00a — leave the villa → be at the boat 9:30a (~25-min drive; exact marina TBC)
- On water until ~5:30p return
- Route: Île d'Or → Estérel calanques (swim / snorkel / paddle) → "French Caribbean" turquoise stop → Pampelonne Beach (multi-hour stop; optional jet-ski from beach providers)
- Passes below Château de la Messardière (White Lotus S4 hotel) on the way in
⛵ The Boat — Cranchi Endurance 39 (SAILOC)
- Cranchi Endurance 39 — 12.45m sport motor yacht (2003), twin diesel 660 CV · comfortable for the group of 6 (listed max 8 aboard)
- Aboard: sun awning, bathing platform + ladder + deck shower, fridge, snorkeling gear, GPS/VHF, USB + Bluetooth stereo, small cabin + heads (WC)
- Operator's cruising grounds: Estérel calanques · Îles de Lérins · Golfe de Saint-Tropez · Cap Taillat (route is flexible)
- Optional water toys: paddleboard €50/day · underwater sea-scooter €80/day (book with SAILOC; jet-ski was the beach-provider option at Pampelonne)
- ⛽ Fuel NOT included — boat is handed over full and must be returned full, or consumed fuel is billed at the end. Budget for a top-up.
- Security deposit: €2,000 (€1,500 if a skipper is aboard)
- Exact marina / departure port still TBC — Ian confirming (booking + questions via the SAILOC platform messaging)
🎖️ History underfoot — the other D-Day
The villa's stretch of coast IS a landing beach. Operation Dragoon, August 15, 1944 — the Allied invasion of southern France — came ashore right here: the US 36th Infantry Division landed at Camel Beach (Le Dramont / Agay), directly below the house. There's a landing memorial and an American monument at Le Dramont, visible from the water as the boat heads out. And the Île d'Or — the first stop — is the offshore tower island said to have inspired Hergé's Tintin adventure The Black Island. The trip's throughline closes its loop: Normandy's D-Day in the north (Jul 18), Provence's D-Day under our feet.
Bring
- Swim gear, towels, rash guards / long-sleeve UPF for the sun stretch, hats, sunscreen (reef-safe)
- Own food + drinks (grocery haul from tonight)
- Dry bag, power banks (all charged), waterproof phone pouch
Work + connectivity
⚠️ Work meetings were moved to this day. Wi-Fi on the boat is unconfirmed and offshore cell coverage is spotty. Plan for the meetings to be dodgy — tether from shore before departure if anything is time-critical.
🌬️ Weather + water
Mistral or rough seas can shorten or reroute the itinerary (skipper's call) — check the marine forecast the night before and expect the captain to adapt. Jet-ski at Pampelonne runs through beach providers as accompanied/guided sessions (no French boat license needed when guided; minimum ages apply — confirm with the provider on the sand). Bring a card + ID ashore for the Pampelonne stop.
Fri24July
Agay → Monaco / Monte Carlo (MON-ah-koh)
TER direct to Monaco · Casino de Monte-Carlo
10:54 TER Agay→Monaco (arr 12:25, no change) · casino gaming rooms open 2p · last train back ~21:06 (day-of ticket)
👟 10K-15KOutbound Booked
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Day Sequence
- Drive villa → Agay station (10 min, 2.8 mi)
- 10:54 — direct TER → Monaco-Monte-Carlo, arr 12:25 (1h31, no change at Nice)
- ✅ Outbound tickets BOOKED — one-way, 2nd class, from Agay (~€56 total for the group)
- 10:00a–1:00p — Casino de Monte-Carlo visitor tours (public rooms only)
- 2:00p–~4:00am — gaming rooms open → the men gamble from 2p on
- Girls track: Monaco sightseeing + lunch (menu below); regroup for dinner; train back together
Girls track — Monaco menu (arrive 12:25)
- Monaco-Ville / Le Rocher old town + Prince's Palace exterior (the 11:55am Changing of the Guard will just have ended — skip waiting for it)
- Oceanographic Museum — Cousteau's museum, built into the cliff; the aquarium is legitimately great
- Casino Square supercar-spotting — free entertainment, constant rotation of Ferraris/Bugattis
- Jardin Japonais (free) + Larvotto seafront stroll
- Lunch: Marché de la Condamine food hall — where Monaco locals actually eat; the anti-tourist-trap pick
Dress code (Casino de Monte-Carlo)
- No shorts, no flip-flops, no sneakers
- Jacket recommended for the gaming rooms; collared shirt + trousers should clear daytime entry, evening (Salons Privés) stricter
- Passport on you — required for entry to the gaming rooms
- Passport required for gaming-room entry, 18+ only (the gaming rooms are adults-only — daughters stay on the girls track), entry fee ~€19, no photos inside the gaming rooms, cloakroom available
⏰ The train home — this shapes the whole evening (verified 7/22)
- Per SNCF Connect, the last train Monaco → Saint-Raphaël departs ~21:06 (~1h45 with stops). There is no 11:45pm option.
- Realistic evening: casino from 2:00p → wrap the tables by ~7:00–7:30p → quick dinner or dinner on the early side → on the Monaco platform by 8:50p.
- Missing it means a ~1h15 taxi back to Agay, realistically €180–250+. Not a disaster, but decide before the second bottle, not after.
- Verify two things day-before on SNCF Connect: the exact Friday last-train time, and whether it stops at Agay (small stops are sometimes skipped late) — if it terminates at Saint-Raphaël-Valescure, it's a 10-min taxi back to the cars at Agay station.
- Buy return tickets day-of (machine or SNCF Connect app) — TER doesn't sell out.
Sat25July
Saint-Raphaël → Saint-Tropez (san troh-PAY)
Les Bateaux Bleus ferry · tentative lunch at Château de la Messardière
Passenger ferry from Vieux-Port · ~1 hr crossing · lands at the Estacade · last return 18:00 (lands 19:00) — hard deadline
👟 8K-14KFerry + Lunch TBC
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Ferry — Les Bateaux Bleus (passenger-only, no cars) — verified 7/22
| Direction | July sailings |
|---|---|
| Saint-Raphaël → St-Tropez | 9:30 · 11:30 · 14:30 · 16:30 (arr +1 hr) |
| St-Tropez → Saint-Raphaël | 11:00 · 13:00 · 16:00 · 18:00 (arr +1 hr) |
- Last return is 18:00, lands 19:00. Hard deadline. (The 23:00 night boat ran Fri 7/24 only.)
- Fares: €28.50 one-way / €43.50 round trip adult; kids 4–11 €12. Board 20 min before departure.
- Departs Vieux-Port Saint-Raphaël, quai Amiral Nomy — by the red-domed Notre-Dame-de-la-Victoire church, next to Casino Barrière. Parking du Vieux-Port ~200m away (paid).
- Book online now — July sailings fill 2–3 days out, mornings first.
- Mistral can cancel sailings — call TMR 04 94 95 17 46 the morning of to confirm the boat is running.
- Stranded fallback: ZOU! bus (€3, slow) or water taxi (€€€).
- Recommended play: 9:30 out → catch the Place des Lices Saturday market (runs to ~1pm) → lunch at la Messardière → 16:00 back (or 18:00 for the full day).
🍽️ Lunch — Château de la Messardière (tentative)
- Tentatively available for the 25th — "can get us in, I think." Restaurant had no Friday availability, which is what triggered the (rejected) date-swap idea.
- Confirm + lock this reservation. White Lotus S4 films there April–October — reconfirm access day-of.
- Note: 6-top may require back-to-back reservations (two seatings/tables) — clarify with the restaurant when booking.
- Backups: La Ponche (old town) or something port-side. Fallback mindset: "we can always just eat anywhere — we want to be close to the action."
- The château sits in the hills above town — ~10 min taxi from the port. When locking the reservation, confirm which restaurant at the hotel is seating outside guests, and pre-book the taxi window.
What to do in St-Tropez
- Old town / Place des Lices market (Sat morning market runs — nice if you catch the early ferry)
- Vieux-Port + Musée de l'Annonciade
- Pampelonne beach clubs (Club 55, Nikki Beach, La Réserve) — short taxi from port
- Citadel walk for the view back over the port
Sun26July
Grasse (GRAHSS) · Cannes optional
Galimard perfume workshop 2:00–4:00p (all 6) · pack for Riviera checkout
Signature Atelier, Studio des Fragrances Galimard · BOOKED order GW-1167203 · €594 total · Cannes optional drive-by
👟 6K-10KWorkshop Booked
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Day Sequence
- Morning: Cannes optional — drive-through en route if we bother (Carlton / Martinez / La Croisette). Group verdict: "kind of a nothing burger" — main White Lotus filming is at Messardière (St-Tropez), not Cannes. May still swing by "to say we've been there."
- 2:00pm–4:00pm — Signature Atelier at Studio des Fragrances Galimard · all 6 (Greta, JC, Sofia, Chris, Ian Morris, Collin Morris) · custom perfume to take home
- Late afternoon: drive back to the villa
- Dinner at the villa + pack — hard 10 AM checkout tomorrow, no wiggle
✅ Workshop BOOKED (Galimard)
- Signature Atelier — Studio des Fragrances Galimard, Grasse · Sun 26 July, 14h00–16h00 (English) · 6 participants
- Order GW-1167203 · booked 22 Jul · €594 total · paid by card (auth ID 467318) · conf to greta@konecny.net
- Address: Le Studio des Fragrances Galimard, 5 route de Pégomas, 06130 Grasse · ☎ +33 4 93 09 20 00
- Map → 5 route de Pégomas, Grasse
- Arrive 15 min early — the atelier seats groups on the hour.
If there's time before 2pm
- Fragonard historic factory in Grasse old town — free guided tour, ~30 min, no booking needed; good primer before making your own
- Grasse old town is a compact 45-min loop; the International Perfume Museum (MIP) is the deeper option if the group's into it
- If Cannes gets the drive-by: La Croisette + Carlton façade, park at the Palais des Festivals garage, 30–45 min max, then on to Grasse (~40 min)
Mon27July
Saint-Raphaël → Les-Baux-de-Provence → Arles
Depart Riviera · Les Baux stop · overnight Arles
10 AM hard checkout · ~1.5 hr to Les Baux · lavender fields en route · arrive Arles ~3–4p (amphitheater)
👟 6K-10KTravelArles Hotel TBB
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Day Sequence
- Check out by 10:00 AM (drop-dead)
- Drive to Les-Baux-de-Provence (lay boh duh proh-VAHNS) (~1.5 hrs)
- ✨ Watch for lavender fields en route — late July is past peak — most Provence lavender is being harvested by now. You may catch roadside fields en route; enjoy them if they appear, but don't detour hunting for them.
- Continue to Arles (ARL), arrive ~3–4p · overnight Arles
- Evening: walk the Roman Amphitheater (Arènes d'Arles) at golden hour
Why Les Baux + Arles
Les Baux is one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France — a limestone-cliff village crowned by a ruined château, with the Carrières des Lumières immersive-art quarry a short walk away. Arles is where Van Gogh painted Café Terrace at Night, and its Roman amphitheater is one of the best-preserved in the world (still hosts bullfights). Both replace the Pont du Gard stop (cut) and the Carcassonne overnight (moved to Toulouse).
🎨 Carrières des Lumières — the Les Baux anchor (verified 7/22)
A monumental limestone quarry turned immersive digital-art hall — floor-to-ceiling projections on 14m walls across 7,000 m². 2026 program: “Picasso, l'art en mouvement” (main show) with a Frida Kahlo short program, plus the new “Océan” underwater show in rotation. Shows loop continuously — one full cycle is ~45–60 min.
- Open daily 9:30–19:00, last entry 1 hr before close. Tickets ~€14–16.50 — book a timed slot online
- Free parking on-site; village lots are €5/day
- The quarry is naturally cool inside — the perfect midday heat escape, and 800m from the Château des Baux
- Suggested flow: arrive Les Baux ~11:45 → Carrières over midday (cool) → village + château ramparts after → roll into Arles ~4:30
Arles — evening + next morning
- Café Terrace corner (Place du Forum) — Van Gogh's actual spot: take the photo, don't eat there. Classic value-proposition failure; apply the 3-minute rule — the good kitchens are a street or two off the Forum.
- LUMA Arles — Frank Gehry's twisting steel tower, 10 min walk; striking at dusk if there's energy left
- Amphitheater at golden hour stays the anchor; Alyscamps (the Roman necropolis Van Gogh painted) is the next-morning option
Open items
- Arles overnight hotel — confirmed booked via Laura? Verify the reservation exists before leaving the Riviera. (Old plan was Carcassonne; that MGallery overnight needs cancelling.)
- Dinner reservation in Arles — café terrace on Place du Forum (the Van Gogh spot) is touristy; better options nearby
✈️ Return Flight — Jul 30
- American Airlines Flight 787 — CDG (Paris Charles de Gaulle) → CLT (Charlotte)
- Departs: 11:00 AM (Paris CDG) · Arrives: 2:20 PM (Charlotte CLT) — same day
- Konecny record locator on the family binder page (9 hr 20 min)
- Riviera → Arles (Jul 27) → Toulouse (Jul 28) → Paris CDG (Jul 29) → home (Jul 30)
🏡 Return Home - Carcassonne · Toulouse · Reims · Paris CDG · Charlotte
Plan v3 (7/22 booking session): Pont du Gard scratched. Jul 27 = Riviera → Les Baux → Arles overnight. Jul 28 = Arles → Carcassonne day-visit → Toulouse overnight near TLS. Jul 29 = fly TLS→CDG + Reims day trip (LOCKED) + Hilton CDG night. Same Jul 30 AA787 home. ⚠️ Carcassonne is now a Jul 28 stop, not an overnight — cancel the Hotel de la Cité MGallery overnight reservation (confs 8613AGR0506 / 8613AGR0504 + Court Travel Morris room) and the La Barbacane dinner, or the CC guarantee will be charged.
Tue28July
Arles → Carcassonne (kar-kah-SOHN) → Toulouse (too-LOOZ)
Carcassonne day-visit · late drive → Toulouse overnight (near TLS)
Arles→Carcassonne 2h20 · tour + lunch/dinner (crowds thin after 5pm) · ~1 hr to Toulouse, arrive ~9–10pm · Residence Inn Toulouse-Blagnac Airport BOOKED (3 rooms)
👟 8K-12KTravelHotel Booked
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Day Sequence
- Morning in Arles: café, one last Roman-ruin walk (Alyscamps if there's time)
- Drive Arles → Carcassonne (~2h20)
- Carcassonne: tour the citadel + lunch/dinner — crowds thin out after 5pm, so a late-afternoon/evening visit is the sweet spot
- Late drive Carcassonne → Toulouse (~1 hr), arriving ~9–10pm (fine — hotel is by the airport)
- Fuel BOTH rental cars near the airport tonight — both go back at TLS in the morning
- Overnight Residence Inn by Marriott Toulouse-Blagnac Airport — ✅ BOOKED, 3 rooms (late-arrival fine, CC guarantee holds the rooms)
🏠 Lodging - Residence Inn by Marriott Toulouse-Blagnac Airport (BOOKED)
- Check-in Tue Jul 28 3:00 PM · Check-out Wed Jul 29 12:00 PM · CC guarantee (Visa)
- 3 rooms / 6 guests, two confirmations:
- • Conf 81431759 — 2× Deluxe Studio, 1 King (2 adults each) · 358.40 EUR
- • Conf 81438328 — 1× Standard Studio, 2 Twin (2 adults) · 153.20 EUR
- Total for stay: 511.60 EUR · non-smoking
Best of both — Carcassonne visit, Toulouse sleep
v3 keeps Carcassonne — the largest intact medieval fortified city in Europe (UNESCO) — as a day-stop (walk the double walls, La Cité ramparts) rather than a pricey citadel overnight, then sleeps in Toulouse right by the airport so the morning AF7405 is a 15-minute hop, not a 1-hour scramble from inside the walls. Pont du Gard was scratched to keep the day sane.
La Cité practicals
- Park in the paid lots at the citadel base (walls are pedestrian-only); the classic full-fortress photo is from the Pont Vieux — golden hour, on the way out
- Cassoulet is the dish — Carcassonne is its heartland. For dinner, the Bastide (lower town) around Place Carnot eats better and cheaper than inside the walls; inside-the-walls dining is tourist-priced by default.
Open items
- ✅ Toulouse hotel BOOKED — Residence Inn Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, 3 rooms (confs 81431759 + 81438328)
- Rental return timing: the Alamo booking shows drop-off Jul 29 5:00 PM, but the plan is ~8:00 AM. Early returns are fine (no refund, no penalty) — but verify the TLS rental-return desk / key-drop is open by ~7:45 AM so the cars aren't stranded pre-flight.
- JC: call Laura — cancel the Hotel de la Cité MGallery overnight (confs 8613AGR0506 / 8613AGR0504 + Court Travel Morris room). CC guarantee only, but must be cancelled before a penalty deadline. Also cancel La Barbacane 8:30 PM dinner (+33 4 68 71 98 71). No evidence yet this was done.
- Carcassonne lunch/dinner — loosely plan; La Barbacane inside the hotel is now off (dinner there was tied to the cancelled overnight)
Wed29July
Toulouse (TLS) → Paris CDG → Reims → Hilton CDG
AF7405 TLS→CDG · Reims Champagne day trip · Hilton Paris CDG Overnight
8a depart hotel · AF7405 10:30a–12:00p · rent ONE van · straight to Reims (cathedral + sabrage + dinner) · back to Hilton, night van return
👟 6K-10KTravelReims LOCKED
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✅ Reims day trip is LOCKED (7/22 booking session).
Turning the CDG layover into a Reims Champagne day instead of another day in Paris. Fly in, grab the booked van (Hertz Mercedes V-Class, conf L657E510465, CDG pickup 12:00pm / return 10:00pm), drive straight to Reims with the luggage aboard (bag-drop at the hotel was explicitly rejected as a wasteful stop), do the cathedral + sabrage tasting + dinner, then drive back and return the van at CDG by 10pm. Sabrage venue verified: Pol Couronne (details below) — still to book the slot online (~15:45–16:00).
Turning the CDG layover into a Reims Champagne day instead of another day in Paris. Fly in, grab the booked van (Hertz Mercedes V-Class, conf L657E510465, CDG pickup 12:00pm / return 10:00pm), drive straight to Reims with the luggage aboard (bag-drop at the hotel was explicitly rejected as a wasteful stop), do the cathedral + sabrage tasting + dinner, then drive back and return the van at CDG by 10pm. Sabrage venue verified: Pol Couronne (details below) — still to book the slot online (~15:45–16:00).
⚠️ AXUS flight-time error
AF7405 is TLS→CDG dep 10:30am, arr ~12:00pm — ✅ verified. The 7:05pm time showing in AXUS is a copy-paste error; Laura to correct. Do not plan around the evening time.
Locked Jul 29 sequence
- By ~8:15am — return the Alamo Peugeot 3008 at TLS (mind desk hours; fuel up the night before so the morning is clean), then leave the Toulouse hotel for the airport
- 10:30a–12:00p — AF7405 TLS → CDG (verified)
- 12:00pm — land → pick up the booked van at CDG: Hertz Mercedes V-Class Premium Passenger Van (conf L657E510465), all 6 + luggage
- Straight to Reims (RANSS) with luggage in the van (no hotel bag-drop stop)
- Reims: Cathedral (coronation cathedral of French kings) + sabrage tasting at Pol Couronne (details below) + dinner in town
- Cristal magnums intent: Roederer has no cellar-door sales — buy at a Reims caviste (wine shop) instead. Call cavistes ahead — Cristal magnums are allocation items and a shop may need notice to hold two; budget roughly €600–900 per magnum. Pack in checked bags with wine sleeves (buy sleeves at the caviste); US customs allows 1L duty-free per adult and the duty above that is trivial — weight (50 lb) is the real limit.
- Grab biscuits roses de Reims (Maison Fossier) — the pink biscuits made for dunking in champagne since 1756. The Reims souvenir.
- Drive back → Hilton (CDG-area), drop bags → return the van at CDG by 10:00pm (booked return time)
🥂 Sabrage — Pol Couronne (verified 7/22)
- Boutique: 11 Cours Jean-Baptiste Langlet, 51100 Reims — literally steps from the cathedral; they'll even do the sabring outside facing Notre-Dame de Reims. ☎ 09 83 02 27 54
- Sabrage experience: ~60 min, ~€55/pp (Brut bottle) or ~€60 (Grand Cru bottle). One sabred bottle = 6 glasses — exactly our headcount.
- The bigger option (Collin's “book the bigger flight”): the Masterclass Luxe Sabrage — 3-cuvée tasting (incl. an Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru) + full sabrage, ~75–90 min. This is the one to book.
- Book online, pay on-site (card holds the slot, nothing charged); free cancellation to 48h.
- Target slot: ~15:45–16:00.
⏱️ The day, minute-math
Land 12:00 → bags + van ~12:45 → A4 to Reims ~14:30 → cathedral 14:40–15:30 (free entry, open to ~7:15pm — Smiling Angel on the west façade, Chagall windows in the axial chapel, coronation site of 25 French kings) → sabrage 15:45–17:15 → caviste + Fossier stop 17:20–18:00 → dinner 18:00–19:30 → depart 19:45 → Hilton CDG ~21:30, drop bags → van back at CDG by 22:00 (booked return). Tight but real. The designated driver skips the pours.
⚠️ Luggage-in-van security (Reims)
Because the bags stay in the van during Reims, park staffed / underground (e.g. Parking Cathédrale), keep nothing visible, and minimize time with the vehicle out of sight. This is the main risk of the no-bag-drop plan.
🚐 Getting there — driving vs TGV
CDG → Reims is ~145 km, realistically 1h15–1h45 by car (not "under an hour"). The sub-hour figure is the TGV from CDG's own station (~30-min direct to Champagne-Ardenne), which also solves drink-and-drive — but the van/luggage plan is what's locked, so the van it is. A designated non-drinking driver covers the sabrage tasting.
🥂 Champagne primer (Collin's briefing)
Champagne is a place, not a style — sparkling wine from anywhere else isn't champagne. Three grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier (Collin avoids Meunier). Blanc de Blancs = white grapes only (Chardonnay); Blanc de Noirs = black grapes pressed off the skins so it stays pale (Collin's pick). Rosé exists; there's no red champagne — it's always see-through.
Sweetness, dry → sweet: Brut Nature / Zéro Dosage → Extra Brut → Brut (the default) → Extra Dry → Sec → Demi-Sec → Doux. Demi-Sec and Doux are the dessert end. Rosé is usually Brut — color and sweetness are separate dials.
The hierarchy Collin sees: Krug is the peak (~$400, appointment-only; cellars are in Reims itself, not Épernay) with Cristal just under; Veuve Clicquot & Moët dismissed as mass-market. His rule of thumb: if it's advertised, it's a ripoff — the real quality hides in boutique houses. Call on Krug: skip the visit, buy a bottle in Charlotte for an anniversary.
Sabrage: the sabre is deliberately blunt — sharpness is irrelevant. You slide the blade along the bottle's vertical seam into the lip; the shock cracks the glass ring off clean. If someone's gifting one, buy for weight and balance, not edge. (A champagne sabre for Chris was floated.) Book the bigger flight (~7 pours) so the group actually learns the categories.
Open items — book now
- Chris: book the Pol Couronne sabrage slot online (target ~15:45–16:00 — Masterclass Luxe Sabrage) — card holds the slot, pay on-site — still unbooked
- ✅ CDG van BOOKED — Hertz Mercedes V-Class (conf L657E510465), pickup 12:00pm / return 10:00pm at CDG, €234.35
- Chris: ask Laura to fix the AF7405 time in AXUS to 10:30am (currently shows 7:05pm)
- Reims dinner reservation · which caviste for the Cristal magnums
- 7/30 hotel→terminal transfer (shuttle vs walk vs keep the car) — deliberately deferred
🏠 Lodging - Hilton Paris CDG (PAID IN FULL)
- Hilton Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport - Tremblay-en-France
- PAID IN FULL (confirmation on the family binder page)
- Check-in 3 PM Jul 29 · Check-out before AA787 11 AM Jul 30
- Morris + Konecny room block - 3 rooms / 6 guests total:
- • 2× Twin Deluxe (Morris & Konecny, 4 guests)
- • 1× Double Deluxe (King) (Konecny, 2 guests)
Thu30July
Paris CDG → Charlotte (CLT)
Fly Home - AA 787 CDG → CLT
11 AM departure · 2:20 PM arrival CLT · 9 hr 20 min
TravelConfirmed
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Day Sequence
- Hilton CDG → terminal shuttle (~3 hrs ahead of departure for international)
- The Hilton sits at Roissypole — take the free CDGVAL shuttle train (runs every ~4 min from early morning) to the departure terminal. Check the AA app for the exact terminal the night before. Weigh the wine-loaded bags at the hotel — 50 lb / 23 kg limit.
- 11:00 AM - American Airlines Flight 787 CDG → CLT
- 2:20 PM - arrive Charlotte (CLT)
- Konecny record locator on the family binder page · 9 hr 20 min
- Home same day. 34-day trip complete.
Soft Landing
Five-hour time-zone snap on the westbound - you land in the early afternoon and the body still thinks it's evening. Resist the nap, go to bed at a normal Eastern bedtime, you'll be 80% reset by Saturday.
⏳ World History Timeline - What You're Walking Through
The full World History Timeline — 116 events from Lascaux to today, six categories, with Wikipedia images — lives on its own page.
🪨 Deep Prehistory17,000 – 3,000 BC
🏛️ Ancient World3,000 BC – 500 AD
⚖️ Medieval500 – 1500
🎨 Renaissance1450 – 1600
💡 Enlightenment / Early Modern1600 – 1800
🚂 19th Century1800 – 1900
✨ 20th – 21st Century1900 – Today