Gastronomic Cruise down the River Rhone

1. 38 Saturday June 3, 2017The Herald Magazine
France A voyage into gastronomy along
the Rhone tastes as good as it sounds
Tournon-sur-Rhone and
Tain-l’Hermitage are
divided by the Rhone and
surrounded by
lush vineyards
PHOTOGRAPH:
MATT GREEN/SHUTTERSTOCK
KATIE WOOD
A
RE you one of those people
who deride cruising yet have
never actually been on a cruise?
Convinced it would be too
busy, involve constant queues
and long days at sea with a bunch of people
you have nothing in common with but –
crucially – can’t escape from? Well, yes,
that does sound like hell on earth but if
you want the opposite of all that there is
another option – a river cruise.
I took one on the Rhone with Tauck River
Cruises and I loved every minute of it (and
I dislike large cruise ships and don’t give
praise out easily).
You spend as much time off the boat as
on it. Coaches accompany your journey
so you can explore interesting places, you
don’t suffer queues, and there’s no need for
sea-sickness tablets.
Our cruise had 81 passengers (mainly
middle-aged, well-travelled Americans)
and the three cruise directors who looked
after us superbly ensured we were split
into smaller groups so at no point did you
feel “packaged”. Come to think of it, the
whole experience could be likened to a
floating country house party with excellent
food, a comfortable cabin and some unique
experiences that would be difficult to set
up yourself.
I wouldn’t normally write in a day-by-day
diary style but in this instance I’ll make
an exception because only by following
the programme that this trip took can you
begin to understand how you can cram in
so much to so little time.
This particular cruise was entitled A
Taste of France, and for food and wine
lovers it is an excellent choice. Starting
in Paris you stay two nights at the Inter
Continental Paris Le Grand (don’t miss
dinner in the wonderful fin de siecle Cafe
de la Paix), eat at the famous Foquet’s in the
Champs d’Elysees, attend a private pastry-
making class at the culinary school Ecole
Lenotre and enjoy a chocolate and wine
tasting in the eclectic Saint Germain des
Pres district. Oh, and if that’s not enough
for you, you also take in a culinary walking
tour. It’s full-on but gives you a great insight
into why citizens of the French capital’s
love affair with what they consume takes on
an almost religious fervour come mealtimes.
It won’t surprise you to learn that most
of the passengers had a genuine interest in
food and wine. There were serious wine
buffs, and we had one couple who were
both Cordon Bleu cooks. There were also
quite a few single travellers because Tauck
doesn’t charge a single supplement for
category-one cabins (the least expensive)
and also, on select departures, solo
travellers can save up to £650 per cabin in
categories four and five.
While talking about costs, although this
is not a cheap holiday by any stretch of the
imagination, it is good value. Excursions
– many of which are very unusual – are all
included (worth £2010), as are all meals
and unlimited drinks on board (including
champagne and premium spirits). There’s a
free hotel night before or after the trip and
flights from and to London are included,
as are all gratuities, airport transfers and
porterage.
From Paris we took the TGV down to
Lyon. There you pick up the boat – a very
pleasant surprise all round. Our cabin
was spacious, air-conditioned and well
equipped, with a bath, a shower and one of
the most comfortable beds I’ve slept on.
That night we drove to a gourmet feast at
L’Abbaye de Collonges, just outside Lyon
on the banks of the Saone River, owned
by the award-winning chef Paul Bocuse.
This was one of the meals where you sat
with fellow passengers so if you’re not the
sociable type, maybe this wouldn’t be for
you, but for the vast majority of meals it
was open seating and that could be just a
deux, if you so wished.
Exploring France’s gastronomic third city
was on next morning’s agenda so we walked
to the indoor market of Les Halles de Lyon
and sashayed from stall to stall for tastings
of everything delicious and French.
Of course we also explored the delights of
Vieux Lyon, the old Renaissance part of the
city that is both a Unesco World Heritage
Site and the first protected historic district
in France. You also take in the Basilica of
Notre-Dame-de-Fourviere, built atop the
ruins of an ancient Roman forum. Lyon
has so much to enjoy but in the afternoon
it was off to the celebrated region of
Beaujolais for another wine tasting before
continuing down the Rhone to the next
port of call: Viviers.
This walled city dates back to the fifth
century and is one of the best-preserved
medieval towns in France. After a walking
tour with our local guide taking in the
12th-century cathedral and richly detailed
facade of the Maison des Chevaliers, we
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