Travel challenge: Gourmet France in early June
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Your support makes all the difference.Every week we invite three competing companies to offer us their best deal for a specific holiday. Today: a seven-night food or wine-themed holiday in France. Prices are per person, based on two people travelling together in June.
Grape escapes
£884: Champagne and Burgundy
Includes ferry crossings from Dover, three nights in Champagne and four nights in Burgundy with accommodation in three-star hotels, some meals with champagne and wines, plus tours and tastings at approximately 10 estates, such as Moët & Chandon. "This package also includes return ferry crossings from Dover to Calais, departing anytime in June, so you can bring back as much wine as you can fit in the boot," says Mark Hallett from Grape Escapes (08456 430 860; grapeescapes.net).
Tasting places
£1,980: Gascony
Includes a week's all-inclusive stay at the Château de Pallanne between 18–25 June, cookery lessons, food and wine tastings, sightseeing trips and transfers. Travel to France is not included. "Gascony is home to some of the finest ingredients and noblest dishes of French cuisine," says Sarah Robson of Tasting Places. "The wines range from the robust vins de terroir of the Madiran, to the fragrant whites of the Jurançon and the angel's digestif, Armagnac." (020-8964 5333; tastingplaces.com).
Arblaster & Clarke
£850: Bordeaux
Includes a week's accommodation with breakfast at the Château Franc-Mayne in the heart of the Saint-Emilion vineyards anytime in June, wine and cheese tasting sessions, and one dinner at the Michelin-starred Hostellerie de Plaisance restaurant. Travel to France is not included.
"This presents the opportunity to stay on a working vineyard in a classic château among some of the most prestigious vineyards in the world. Plus, it's got a beautiful swimming pool and relaxing garden to enjoy," says Lynette Arblaster of Arblaster & Clarke (01730 263111; winetours.co.uk).
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