THE TOUR INCLUDES: 9 nights deluxe accommodations (Bruges: Die Swaene; Brussels: Le Plaza; Paris: Hotel Saint Vincent) Top category seats for 4 performances Full breakfast daily plus two lunches and three dinners Private tours in each city, including the Louvre and Versailles airport-hotel transfers On-site tour direction by an Aria Tours representative Cost: $6995 US Single Supplement: $1350 US Deposit: $2500 Balance Due: January 15, 2010

OPTIONS FLIGHTS We will be happy to make any flight arrangements, including reward travel with your preferred carrier, for $75 per person. Outbound flights should be booked to Bruges (or Brussels) with an April 16 arrival. Return flights should be booked to depart from Paris on April 25. TOUR ADDITIONS The itinerary can be customized to meet your needs and desires. Please call us to discuss any changes or amendments you wish to make. INSURANCE We strongly recommend that all tour members purchase cancellation insurance upon registration. We can assist you with this, though you are welcome to purchase a policy at your own discretion. If you would like information on the policies offered by our supplier, please contact us for details, or click HERE for an insurance brochure and application.

This tour combines the greatest art, cuisine, chocolate, wine and opera available anywhere in the world into nine magical nights in April. We stay in three elegant hotels (three nights in Bruges at the Die Swaene, two in Brussels at Le Plaza, four in Paris at the Hotel Saint Vincent), dine in some of Europe's best restaurants, attend performances at two opera houses of the highest quality (La Monnaie and the Bastille), and enjoy private tours at three of the world's very best galleries. This is truly a unique and luxurious experience, elegant but relaxed, appealing to all of the finer appetites.

Bruges is a charming and uniquely captivating place, one of Europe's loveliest cities. Built over a network of canals dating back to the 13th century, the city has been remarkably preserved. The centre is a maze of cobbled streets filled with winding waterways and some of the most magnificent examples of gothic architecture in Europe. Bruges is also home to a variety of museums featuring some of the finest collections of Flemish works of art. As the streets are largely closed to traffic and the centre is relatively small, the city is ideal for exploring on foot. And of course, while in Bruges, we will indulge in the city's chocolate, considered to be amongst the finest in the world. The Oud Sint-Jan site will be the beating heart of the ultimate chocolate experience.

Art nouveau, art deco, French fries, Tintin: these are but a few of the things that Brussels has given the world. There exists here a genuine "live and let live" attitude that only years of being Europe's doormat could have fostered. The city center has cobblestone streets harking back to the Middle Ages, art deco and art nouveau architecture, leafy parks, and a bustling café culture. The charm and diversity of this cosmopolitan city will leave you wanting more.

April in Paris is perhaps the quintessential (and essential) travel experience. It invites clichés for the cynical and world-weary, but for those whose hearts still beat, Notre Dame does soar to heaven; the Eiffel Tower ablaze with lights at night viewed from a bateaux on the Seine does stop the breath; an entire cultural world awaits in the Louvre; the Renoirs still provoke serenity in the Musee d'Orsay; the quiet gardens of the Rodin Museum demand that you sit and stare and wonder; a stroll along the Champs Elysee from Place de La Concorde (where Madame Guillotine once did her work) to Napoleon's Arche de Triomphe will have you remembering De Gaulle's jubilant re-entry into Paris at the head of the liberating armies. All the magical sights continue to enthral. But your private Paris you must create from your own materials: a wrong turn in the maze of Left-bank streets which brings you to a secluded café or new gallery; a chance encounter in the gardens of the Tuileries or the Luxembourg; the perfect performance at the Opéra or an eloquent waiter in a café frequented by Hemingway or Sartre. It is never too late to let Paris enlarge your life.

THE ITINERARY

Thursday, April 15
Departures for Bruges.

Friday, April 16
Arrivals in Bruges. Note: A group transfer will be included to Bruges for those arriving in Brussels. Transfers from Paris can be arranged for a small supplement. Upon arrival, check in at the elegant Die Swaene, voted one of the world’s top 100 hotels by Condé Nast, on one of the city’s most picturesque canals. After check in, the afternoon is at leisure to rest or partake in some of the city’s fine chocolate. This evening, enjoy a Welcome Dinner at the hotel.

Saturday, April 17
Late morning we depart on a guided city tour, including: the Gothic Church of Our Lady, housing tombs of the Valois dukes and Michelangelo’s marble Madonna and Child; the Groeninge Museum, with its wonderful collection of paintings by Van Eyck and other Bruges painters. Lunch is at the charming Kasteel Minnewater. The evening is at leisure.

Sunday, April 18
Enjoy the day at leisure in Bruges. We can offer an optional day trip to Ypres & Flanders, to visit battle sites associated with The Great War. $150; includes lunch. Please indicate interest upon registration.

Monday, April 19
Late morning transfer to Brussels, where we check in at the graceful 17th century Hotel Le Plaza, ideally located in the historic centre, close to the Grand-Place. After settling into our rooms, we partake in a guided city tour through and around the splendid Grand-Place, one of Europe's most famous esplanades. We end the tour a drink at A la Mort Subite, a classic Brussels watering hole across the street from the Galeries Royales St-Hubert. This evening, we attend a recital by Argentine mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink and Austrian soprano Genia Kühmeier at La Monnaie, featuring 19th songs by Schumann, Brahms and Dvorák.

Tuesday, April 20
This morning we include a guided tour of the Fine Arts Museum, one of the best in Europe, housing the most comprehensive collection of Netherlandish painting anywhere. The afternoon is at leisure for personal exploration. This evening we dine at Maison du Cygne, a 17th-century gastronomic and cultural gem in the very heart of Brussels’ famed Grand-Place.

Wednesday, April 21
Late morning, check out of the hotel and transfer to our Eurostar train to Paris. Upon arrival, we transfer to the Hotel Saint Vincent, perfectly situated in the heart of the Saint Germain des Pres (close to Carré Rive Gauche, the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, the National Assembly and the Luxembourg Garden). This evening, we attend a performance by the Orchestre de Paris at the Salle Pleyel, under the baton of Yutaka Sado. The programme features works by Satie and Richard Strauss, as well as Stravinsky’s Le Sacre du Printemps (piano: Bertrand Chamayou).

Thursday, April 22
Gather in the early afternoon for a guided tour of the incomparable Louvre with one of the premier young art historians in Paris. We tour the extensive French collections, tracing the history of French painting from the 14th to the 19th century, viewing works by Rubens, Watteau, Corot, David, Delacroix and Géricault, amongst others. This evening we dine at a hidden gem restaurant near the hotel.

Friday, April 23
This morning we depart to Château de Versailles for a private guided tour, concentrating on the Grands Appartements, the glittering Hall of Mirrors, and the Petits Appartements. We will also see the Opéra that Gabriel designed for Louis XV in 1748. We end by wandering through Le Nôtre's "Garden of Eden"—the Gardens of Versailles. Afterward, we take lunch at Le Potager du Roy at the Petit Trianon. This evening we attend a performance of a Coline Serreau production of Rossini's beloved Il barbiere di Siviglia at Opéra Bastille. Bruno Campanella conducts a cast that includes Antonino Siragusa, Rinaldi Bartolo, Isabel Leonard and Jeannette Fischer.

Saturday, April 24
Enjoy the final day at leisure in Paris. This evening we gather for a Farewell Reception before departing once again to the Opéra Bastille for a Francesca Zambello production of Britten’s masterful Billy Budd. Jeffrey Tate conducts a cast that includes Kim Begley, Lucas Meachem, Kurt Rydl, Paul Gay and Yuri Kissin.

Sunday, April 25
Transfer to the airport for homeward flights.