Howard Lewis
France to me, is more than just a destination, it’ an emotion. I’ve been lucky to have visited all the 98 departments that make up the country and I consider France to be my ‘second’ home. For more than 13 years, I was named top France expert by Conde Nast Traveler magazine. I specialize in self-driving car trips, canal boat and river cruises, rail travel, and helping you discover what I call “the real France.”
I want to share with my clients, my love for this very special country and open up for them not only the well-worn paths (you need to do that as a first timer to France), but the area of France we call, ‘Le France Profound.’
The majority of travelers to France are always drawn to the mainstream attractions like Provence, the French Riviera, and of course, Paris. But France has a lot more to offer than just the Eiffel Tower, the Riviera, and Mont-Saint-Michel. Many attractions in France are overshadowed by the cities making the ‘Top 10 list’ in 99% of the tourist guides, but, it’s discovering that deep part of France, those hidden gems (that’s the key) that you probably would not be able to find on the tourist map. Those parts of the deep interior of France are a change from the sameness of larger cities found all over Europe and the world.
It's my job (one that I relish) to open up this other world of France travel for you. “France is the most visited country in the world, with 84 million visitors per year.” It’s in some ways very familiar to English speakers and they have high expectations when they come to France.
The real key to enjoying France, is to realize that France is not America- many Americans still think so when they visit and that can lead to an unhappy and un-satisfying visit. What visitors don’t realize is that France is a vast and different culture with entirely different codes (etiquette and behavior) than we as Americans are used to, and if you want to communicate well with the French and really enjoy your visit, then you’ll need a basic understanding of those codes. That is one of my tasks, to impart to you, those codes and etiquettes will make you not just a tourist, but a ‘temporary local” and will add so much more to your French experience.