Tauck Bridges Family Travel Adds European ‘Grand Tour’ and African Safari

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The Tauck Bridges collection of tours and cruises created specifically for families will include a new London, Paris and Rome tour and a new South African safari in 2015, Tauck announced today. The two new land journeys, plus a new Tauck Bridges river cruise on the Rhine announced this spring, promise to fuel additional growth for Tauck’s already fast-growing collection of family travel experiences in the coming year.
 
New for 2015, the 12-day Tauck Bridges “Grand European Family Holiday” ($7,417 per person, triple occupancy, plus international and on-tour airfares) begins in London with a three-night stay at the iconic The Langham, London. While there, Tauck guests will tour sites associated with the Harry Potter tales, traveling by special arrangement aboard the Hogwarts’ Knightbus (used to rescue stranded wizards in the Harry Potter stories). 

Families will also join in for a sleuthing adventure involving fictional characters from Sherlock Holmes to the Tardis of the Dr. Who television series, culminating outside BBC’s London studios. Other highlights include a tour of the Tower of London, dinner at a traditional British pub, and a trip in a private capsule on the London Eye.

After traveling to Paris through the Chunnel aboard the Eurostar train, Tauck guests will take a relaxing cruise along the Seine, and explore the worlds of fine art and fine chocolate with time at the Louvre and with renowned French chocolatier Jacques Genin, respectively. 

Other highlights in Paris include a memorable dinner on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower, and a fun visit to stunning Chateau Vaux le Vicomte (said to be the inspiration for Versailles) where younger guests will tour the opulent palace in 17^th-century costumes.

Tauck guests will then fly to Rome and travel overland for a two-night stay in Umbria, where they’ll participate in a truffle-hunting competition using trained dogs, enjoy an authentic local lunch at a country home, and tour a farm that raises alpacas and angora goats. 

In Rome, where the tour concludes with three nights at the Boscolo Exedra Roma, families will have an exclusive, after-hours tour of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, and experience the majesty of the Colosseum.  After participating in a fun “sculptural safari” in the city’s main piazzas, searching for various animals on carved fountains, buildings and monuments, Tauck guests will enjoy a private farewell dinner with music at a villa outside of the city.

The new “South Africa: Epic Family Adventure” itinerary is limited to 34 guests per departure, and begins with a three-night stay in Cape Town at the Vineyard Hotel & Spa on the banks of the Liesbeek River. Guests then fly to Plettenberg on the Indian Ocean for a two-night stay at the Conrad Pezula in Knysna, before flying to Kruger National Park for three days of game drives based at the Lion Sands River Lodge. A third on-tour flight brings guests to Johannesburg for a day of exploration before their return flights home.

Throughout the 10-day journey (from $5,826 per person, triple occupancy, plus international and on-tour airfares), families will experience the natural wonders and engaging culture of South Africa. Besides having the chance to search out the Big Five on game drives, Bridges travelers will get up-close with elephants, cheetahs, eagles, monkeys, ostriches and penguins, and they’ll look for marine mammals on a whale and seal-watching cruise on Plettenberg Bay. 

For an authentic taste of local culture, guests will visit a tribal village and rural school in Kruger National Park, visit the former home of Nelson Mandela during a bicycle tour of Johannesburg’s Soweto neighborhood, and enjoy a traditional braai barbecue. 

And for fun and excitement, kids of all ages will enjoy a zip line ride over the Kruis River, travel by cable car to the top of Table Mountain in Cape Town, and ride a funicular up to Cape Point lighthouse overlooking the Cape of Good Hope.

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SOURCE: Tauck press release