small group tours to Normandy Invasion Beaches
Paris and the Normandy Invasion Beaches 2020

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THE TRAVELING PROFESSOR PRESENTS A SMALL GROUP TOUR TO BENEFIT THE GARY SINISE FOUNDATION


PARIS AND THE NORMANDY INVASION BEACHES

Monday, September 14, 2020 to Saturday, September 19, 2020

For photos of our 2017 tour, click HERE For Our 2018 tour, click HERE for our 2019 tour, click HERE

Gary Sinise FoundationMeet Yannick Sterke, scheduled to be our guide by clicking HERE.

A visit to the beaches, cemeteries, and battle sites pays tribute to the acts of bravery our heroes displayed on June 6, 1944.  It brings with it a greater understanding and appreciation of the events surrounding that fateful day.  Walk in the sand at Utah and Omaha to get the vantage point of the liberators when their landing-craft ramps dropped into the surf.  Visit enemy bunkers.  Stare down the cliffs scaled by the Rangers at Pointe du Hoc.  Walk through liberated villages still scarred by the ferocious fighting. Stand on the hallowed ground where “The Bedford Boys” sacrificed all they could as the first wave of invaders at Vierville Draw. Everyone experiences different emotions upon seeing the field of crosses and Stars of David at the American Cemetery, but be assured of this - the memory of your visit will stay forever.

The mission of the Gary Sinise Foundation is "to serve the nation by honoring its defenders, veterans, 1st responders, their families & those in need". The Traveling Professor presents this memorable tour in concert with the mission of the Gary Sinise Foundation for those who wish to learn more about one of the most momentous events in American and world history.  Combined with a delightful visit to Paris, this trip will be talked about for years to come.

Look What You Get:

  • 5 Nights’ Accommodations in charming, clean, comfortable, quiet hotels in safe, central locations.  Spend a night in the heart of Paris, on the historic Left Bank during Parisian cafés, bistros, shops, and historic sites like Notre Dame and Luxembourg Gardens. The popular Grand Hotel des Balcons boasts a “Certificate of Excellence” from TripAdvisor.com.  In Normandy, headquarter in the historic village of Bayeux at the renowned Hotel Churchill for 4 nights.   Rooms have private bath, shower, hair dryers, safes, and free wireless internet connections.  Breakfast is included.
  • Professional Tour Guide Services.   Professional and licensed guides are dedicated to telling the story of June 6, 1944 and the events surrounding that day.  Their impassioned descriptions, insight, and explanations bring D-Day to life.   They answer questions, go to special places other tours rarely visit, and leave the traveler with an experience not to be forgotten.   In Paris, enjoy a Seine River cruise on the night before departure to Bayeux.
  • Transportation.   The Professor accompanies the group on a spectacular train ride to from Paris to Bayeux.  In Normandy, small private vans get us right on the beaches and to places where those big bus tours can’t go. Return to Paris via train.  We assure that this private tour offers the most intimate look possible, and provides the most adequate time at the Normandy Invasion Beaches and surrounding areas.  
  • VIP Paid Admission to the famous Bayeux Tapestries.  Be treated to a 2 hour professionally guided walking tour, all admissions included, of the charming village of Bayeux.
  • Optional Day Trip to Mont St Michel: For those who do not want to spend an entire 3 days on the landing beaches, a day trip to one of the most majestic sites in Europe - the stunning island in the sea of Mont St. Michel can be arranged.
  • Personalized Itinerary.  Although this itinerary primarily focuses on WW II and the Normandy Invasion Beaches, sufficient free time is provided to explore other options with the guidance and assistance of tour leaders.   
  • Small group size limited to 10-15 friendly, like-minded adult travelers.  Visit places big tour groups don’t go. Dine at intimate and authentic restaurants.  
  • Traveling Solo?  About 50% of our travelers are usually solo travelers.  Everyone feels welcome! 
  • Personalized, Attentive Service.  Your professional tour leader, Professor Stephen Solosky, takes care of the details, serving as the group’s private concierge.  EveryoneGary Sinise Foundation Tour is well-prepared and well-informed on all aspects of the tour.  Steve is available to address all questions and concerns regarding this small group tour at info@travelingprofessor.com or by phone at 413.528.2125. 
  • Best of All – The cost is only $2,499 per person, double occupancy.  Stay extra nights in Paris for only $149 per person, double occupancy.   This trip is perfect for solo travelers at a single supplement of only $695.
  • Why Does This Trip Stand Out from the Others?   With tour sizes strictly limited to up to 15 travelers. We get to locations other tours simply cannot get to.  Our private tour is flexible and lets the group spend as much time as they want at a location.   Expert, professional and licensed guides are knowledgeable and passionate about telling the stories of D-Day.  Our tours are always special, for instance, we are the ONLY tour company permitted on the grounds of the Brecourt Manor assault, we have been the invited guests of Gene Dewhurst to the Omaha Beach Museum, we have visited inside the rarely seen, still-intact Hillman Bunker, we can research and visit the grave sites of family members buried in Normandy as well as research those who participated in the invasion and report back to our travelers.
  • Honor Our Defenders and Veterans:  There is no better way to remember and honor our defenders and veterans by taking the pilgrimage to the Normandy Invasion Beaches and the final resting place of 9,387 American warriors.  A generous donation to the Gary Sinise Foundation is included as part of your payment for the trip.  Upon conclusion of the trip, the Gary Sinise Foundation will provide you with an acknowledgement of your donation.

TENTATIVE ITINERARY

Day 1

Each traveler departs from their home airport and meets the rest of the group in Paris at the Grand Hotel des Balcons.   Later that afternoon meet with your tour leader and our small group of travelers.  After a brief introduction enjoy an overview of Paris with a relaxing cruise down the Seine River.  With the Eiffel Tower sparkling in the background, sail past the Louvre, Notre Dame, and Orsay down the center of Paris.   Hotel:  Grand Balcons.

Day 2

After breakfast, depart Paris via train to Bayeux, our headquarters in Normandy.   Upon arrival check in, have lunch, and a professionally guided tour of Bayeux along with a visit to the famous Bayeux tapestries.   Bayeux provides good dining, shopping, and historic site opportunities. Hotel:  Hotel Churchill .

Day 3

This morning we start our Normandy Invasion beaches tour where it all began:  Pegasus Bridge.  We plan on visiting the nearby British cemetery, Sword Beach, the site of Ouisterham Casino and the Commandos Memorial.  Follow up at the Canadian and English sectors, so very important in understanding the American forces invasion.  Finish up at Arromanches and the Mulberry artificial harbor.  Our professional tour guide tells the stories you’ve never heard before of the strategy, bravery, and leadership that made the invasion a success.   Hotel:  Hotel Churchill .

Day 4

The American paratroopers jumped into Normandy the night before the land invasion.  Soon after, gliders crash landed into the countryside.  We visit those sites and hear unbelievable stories of bravery by heroes like those of Private Charles DeGlopper at La Fiére and Major Dick Winters at Brecourt Manor.  We are the only tour with special permission to visit the grounds at Brecourt Manor.  A visit to Sainte-Mère-Église  brings us up close and personal with the battle.  It is on to Utah Beach to walk on the sand.  A visit to the new Utah Beach Museum, with a private tour, shows us more of the aircraft, equipment, and weapons of the battle.  We finish up at the bomb craters, pillboxes, and cliffs of Pointe du Hoc where Lt. Col. James Rudder and over 225 Rangers overcame unbelievable resistance to take the enemy.  Hotel:  Hotel Churchill .

Day 5

Our last and most memorable day.   Begin by visiting the last existing enemy gun emplacement at Longues-sur-Mer.  Then it is onto the sands of "Easy Red" at Omaha beach.  If like the others we have taken to Normandy, you will be frozen in stunned silence while facing the same landscape from the viewpoint our men faced when they exited the landing craft and hit the beach.  Everyone always asks, “how did they do it?”  Our professional guides tell of the courage, incredible daring and risks taken to overcome what seemed like an impossible task.  No description can be given of a visit to the American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer – words cannot describe the emotions brought about when confronted with the monuments, crosses, and Stars of David honoring the fallen.  Our last visit is to Vierville Draw.  It was here the National Guard unit from Bedford, Virginia landed and faced brutal resistance as the first wave of invaders.  The “Bedford Boys” proportionately took the greatest sacrifice of any unit in the invasion.   See the pillboxes, guns, and obstacles confronted on the way to victory.  Hear the descriptions of courage and grit while standing on the hallowed ground where the fighting took place.    Our expert guides tell the story.  Hotel:  Hotel Churchill.

Day 6

It’s getaway day.  We are scheduled to take the train back to Paris St. Lazare station (2 ½ hour trip).  Please schedule airline departure for after 2 pm.  Options are available for those wishing to spend more time in Paris.
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Tour Dates & Pricing
Paris and the Normandy Invasion Beaches 2020
  • Monday, September 14, 2020 to Saturday, September 19, 2020.
  • $2,499 per person, double occupancy.  Have your own room for only $695 more
  • Extra nights in Paris $149 per person, double occupancy
How to Book
  • Email The Professor at info@travelingprofessor.com and tell him you want to go.  Indicate name(s) and contact info (email, address, phone) of all travelers in your party.
  • Within one week, follow up with a $400 deposit per person.  Make checks payable to TRAVELING PROFESSOR LLC and send to 3965 COTTON GIN RD, FRISCO TX 75034. We can also arrange payment by credit card.  Confirmation of payment will be made within 24 hours of payment receipt.
  • Deposits are fully refundable, no questions asked, up to 21 days after receipt.  After that point, deposits and other payments will be refunded only if the trip is full and we have other travelers to take your cancelled place.
  • The Professor is happy to answer your questions by email or by phone conversation. You will be WELL-PREPARED for this trip.  We will give you detailed information on airfares, travel insurance, passports, how to get to the hotel, what to wear, money matters, and more.
Important Notes
  • Professional and knowledgeable guides
  • 1 Night in Paris,  4 Nights in Bayeux, Headquarters for the Normandy Invasion Beaches
  • Small Group of 10-15 Adult Travelers.  Sorry, no one under 25 years of age or under is permitted on this tour.
  • This tour is for active adult travelers in good health, able to handle their own luggage, walk up and down stairs and uneven terrain, keep an active pace, and do not have mobility issues.  
  • Producing and leading this tour is Professor Stephen Solosky, “The Traveling Professor”. Please direct all questions regarding this tour to him via email at info@travelingprofessor.com or telephone at 413.528.2125.  He and his staff are happy to communicate with you prior to the trip to answer questions or address concerns.  Information is sent out well in advance of departure to ensure you are well-prepared for this expedition.
  • Airfare is NOT included.  This allows the most flexibility in planning a trip.  Professor Solosky can help in planning an air itinerary.
  • Trip health and cancellation insurance is highly recommended. 
  • Due to varying dietary requirements (gluten-free, vegan, lactose intolerance, low-salt, etc.) lunches and dinners are not included in the price to provide travelers wider choices.  There is a stop each day for a moderately priced lunch. We arrange for moderately priced group dinners every night.  Please join us or go out on your own with our restaurant recommendations.
Testimonials
“I’ve seen the movies, read the books, heard the stories.  Nothing, and I mean nothing compares to walking on the sands of Omaha, staring over the cliffs of Pointe du Hoc, or seeing the memorials, crosses and Stars of David at the American Cemetery.”   Ken G., Houston, TX.

“A visit to Paris was the perfect complement to our tour.”   Ann G., Tampa, FL.

“..we thought this was an excellent combination of visiting both the Normandy Beaches and Paris.  It was extremely well-organized and planned.  No wonder over half the people on the tour previously traveled with The Professor”.  Jan and Larry H., Milwaukee, WI.

“For me, the guides made all the difference.  They brought D-Day alive with stories of bravery, courage, and pure guts.  Every American needs to visit Normandy to fully appreciate what these men sacrificed so that we may have the freedoms we enjoy today…”.   Jim Z., Philadelphia, PA.

“Thanks again for a really wonderful experience and for showing so clearly you embrace each traveler "in your care" as you would a loved family member”.  Larry M., Long Island, NY.

View photos of one of our previous tours here:  https://goo.gl/photos/NTtmg5iUjCN41rwQ9 and here: https://goo.gl/photos/SNvj9zyk1urYkeTq8