New Year's in Paris: Barcelona, Paris & London

Itinerary

• Day 1: Overnight Flight

  Board your overnight flight, bound for Spain. Get ready to drink sangria and cool off in the water. Don’t be shocked if the bathing suits you see are of the invisible variety. Public nudity is legal here.

• Day 2: Arrive in Barcelona + Welcome Dinner

  Welcome to Barcelona, a city of endless parties, wacky architecture, and premium beaches—which also happen to be where the clubs are. So throw on your walking shoes, your party pants, and any shirt you’d like. Barcelona is the fiesta that keeps on fiesta…ing.

  In the evening, enjoy a Welcome Dinner with fellow travelers. Afterwards, you’re free to take the party elsewhere!

  Today's highlights:

  • Meet an EF representative at the airport.
  • Transfer to your accommodations and check in.
  • Receive the latest schedule from your Tour Director.
• Day 3: Tour Barcelona + Optional Sagrada Familia

  Experience Barcelona’s unique architecture and atmosphere with a local guide as you wander the city’s enchanting streets. This historic city is home to nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites, seven of which were built by Gaudí (he’s kind of a big deal around here). Take in the impressive sites, and understand why Barcelona is the only city to receive a Royal Gold Medal for architecture—the buildings are basically art.

  Today's highlights:

  • Explore the Gothic Quarter with your guide. Don't forget your black eyeliner.
  • Visit one of Antoni Gaudí's greatest work of modernist art,
  • See the 1992 Olympic Park which lines the Mediterranean Sea.
  • Check out the unfinished Sagrada Familia cathedral, where construction started over 100 years ago by Gaudí.
  • Take the evening to revisit any of the sights, hit the beach, or explore on your own.

  Sagrada Familia & Sangria (extra cost)

  Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Família Basilica is the world’s most unbelievable church—under construction since 1882, finished by 2026 at the earliest. Tour it with a local guide, then enjoy included Sangria and pintxos, which are small finger snacks popular in Spain.
  
  This excursion is pre-book only; if your trip is less than 30 days away, please call 800-766-2645 to purchase.

• Day 4: Free Day in Barcelona

  The day is yours to experience Barcelona as you please. Whether that means exploring a new neighborhood or kicking back with some tapas and a pitcher of sangria, you really can’t go wrong.

  Today's highlights:

  • Stroll Las Ramblas, the main pedestrian thoroughfare lined with bars, cafes, shops and street performers.
  • Stop in Plaça de Catalunya, the city center where old meets new.
  • Enjoy the rest of the evening to explore on your own.

  Free time suggestions

  Market Down: Visit La Boqueria, the famous market just off of Las Ramblas, with everything from fresh fruits to meats, flowers and sweets.

  OverARCHing Theme The Arc de Triomf was built as the main entrance for the 1888 Barcelona World Fair. While it may remind you of a different (perhaps more famous) arch, it can certainly, shall we say, stand on its own.

• Day 5: Travel to Paris

  Bonjour! Welcome to Paris. Visit grand palaces, royal chateau’s, and famous museums by day, and then stroll through the romantically-lit city by night. After trying to read Mona Lisa’s expression and drooling over jaw-dropping sites, you’ll definitely have all the feels for the City of Love. (Cue romantic French café music).

  Today's highlights:

  • Board your flight! You're heading to Paris. City of light. City of Love.
  • Take a quick walk of the area with your Tour Director and your new BFF’s, AKA, your group.
  • Stand in awe in front of the Eiffel Tower as the lights sparkle against the night. Pro tip: this happens every hour on the hour.
• Day 6: Tour Paris + New Year’s Eve Celebration

  Today, we celebrate…hard. But first, we sightsee—explore Paris by bus and on foot with a local guide. Then, it’s time to ring in the new year with your group.

  Today's highlights:

  • Saunter along the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and stand in awe of the Arc de Triomphe.
  • Find peace of mind at Luxembourg Gardens, a collection of tree-lined promenades, flowerbeds, statues, and the Medici Fountain.
  • Hit up some well-known areas like Bastille, Montmarte, and Parc de Belleville.
  • Welcome another year with included drinks, food, and a DJ in a private event space.

  Free time suggestions

  Fall in Louvre: Paris is home to some of the world’s most incredible art collections. Admire the Venus de Milo at the Louvre or check out modern art and the insides of a clock tower at Musee d’Orsay.

  C’est Magnifique!: Head to Montmartre, a neighborhood filled with street art, incredible views overlooking the city, and the famous Sacré Cœur Cathedral. Home to, and inspiration for artists like Picasso, van Gogh, Matisse, Dali, and Monet, this is the perfect place to take a stroll and admire a more authentic side of Paris.

  Versailles (extra cost)

  Walk through the landscaped gardens, and tour the living quarters of the famous over-the-top palace of Louis XIV. This is where French royalty reveled in their extravagant lifestyle in the decades before the Revolution.
  
  Please note: The Palace of Versailles is closed on Mondays. In the event that the itinerary day containing this optional lands on a Monday for your departure, the optional will take place the following day.
  
  This excursion is pre-book only; if your trip is less than thirty days away, please call 800-766-2645 to purchase.

• Day 7: Free Day in Paris

  Enjoy a full day exploring Paris on your own (cue happy dance). Wander through art museums, try new foods like coq au vin (AKA chicken), or grab a baguette and a bottle of wine for a picnic at the Champ de Mars. Oh, Paris. How we love you.

  Today's highlights:

  • Relax on an open terrace, espresso in one hand and a croissant in the other. Yeah, this is the life.
  • Stand in disbelief among famous sites like Palais-Royal Gardens and Musee Rodin, and then realize your jaw has been dropped for the last 15 minutes.
  • Visit good ole Emmanuel, one of the ten massive bells hanging inside Notre Dame Cathedral (The hunchback really had his work cut out for him).
  • Shop along the rue Saint-Honoré and feel like one of the world’s rich and famous, who you should keep an eye out for in this area, by the way.

  Free time suggestions

  Go Subterranean: Thanks to overflowing cemeteries in the late 1700s, the city’s dead were transferred to these dark, underground crypts. Sounds haunting, doesn’t it? Catch up with Parisian ancestors in The Catacombs of Paris. To avoid lines, purchase your ticket ahead of time. The 45-minute tour is also closed on Mondays and certain holidays.
  Edit Sober: Visit the café haunts of literary giants like Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, and many others. Grab a coffee and a journal and you’ll fit right in.

• Day 8: Travel to London via Train

  Welcome to London! Where pubs rule, tea reigns, and buses are two stories tall. While you're here, visit grand palaces, famous parks, and local hotspots of the Royal Family, George Orwell, Dylan Thomas, Jimi Hendrix, Charles Dickens, and many more.

• Day 9: Explore London + Optional London Eye & Tea

  Hit the highlights of London with a local guide giving you all the inside info. Get ready to see royal palaces, down a pint of room-temperature beer (it’s how the locals drink it), and walk like a Beatle—from the band. Not a bug.

  Today's highlights:

  • Wave hello to Big Ben, the bell inside the clock tower.
  • Go to Westminster Abbey, where William and Kate, and decades of royals have been wed.
  • Experience a royal ritual during the Changing of the Guards.
  • Walk around and explore the city.

  London Eye & Tea (extra cost)

  Ride Europe’s tallest Ferris wheel for panoramic views before enjoying a traditional English tea.
  
  This excursion is pre-book only; if your trip is less than fourteen days away, please call 800-766-2645 to purchase.

• Day 10: Enjoy a Free Day in London

  Take the day to explore. Walk through some of the many royal gardens, shop on Oxford Street, go for high tea, or explore the city by foot. At 607 square miles, the city is an easy place to get your 10,000 steps in. Or, join the excursion to the second oldest university, Oxford—home to famous alumni and the name of a comma. Not the comma itself, just the name.

  Today's highlights:

  • Walk the cobblestone streets of London.
  • Explore Piccadilly Circus. You won’t find clowns and trapeze artists here. Just shopping and all the entertainment your heart desires.
  • Sip on a cup of English Breakfast at high tea—don’t forget, pinky’s up!

  Free time suggestions

  The Eye: London’s, not yours. See the city from 443 feet high on the world’s tallest Ferris wheel. To avoid incredibly long lines, book your ticket ahead of time. Stand in the capsule and experience a panoramic view on the Millennium Wheel. <br>

  Covent Garden: Where flowers bloom, vegetables grow, and a young girl finds a key to… woops, wrong garden. Seek out bargains at this bustling covered market full of souvenirs, clothes, crafts, and much more.

  Farewell Dinner

  Share some last laughs (and maybe shed a few tears) at an included farewell dinner with the group.

• Day 11: Fly Home

  Cheers, mates!

  Goodbye, friends. Your next destination awaits—home. Before you head to the airport, enjoy your last few moments together. Take one more group photo. Grab that final drink. (Fine, maybe a couple of drinks.) But this isn’t goodbye. It’s “See you later.” The only question is, where?

  –OR–

  EXTEND YOUR TRIP 2 WAYS

  1. Double the fun

  A lot of our trips line up back to back! Give us a call—we can help you add another and save big while you're at it.

  2. Go ahead or stay behind

  Extending your trip is easy! During checkout, you'll have the option to fly to (or from) the gateway of your choice for an additional fee. We'll adjust your flights accordingly, but you'll be responsible to take care of your transportation, hotels, and other logistics outside of tour.

  Note: Depending on your desired gateways, additional fees may apply.