Arrive and check in to your hotel. As Paris prepares for the winter months and the festivities ahead, the city’s streets come alive. Patrons of pavement cafés can be seen sipping hot chocolate, wrapped up in woollens against the cold, and shop windows are a grand affair depicting scenes from fairy tales, Santa Claus and his workshop, or a snowy winter wonderland. From November on, leading department stores, including Galeries Lafayette and Printemps, present their seasonal displays often featuring clever animation; their grand openings are hotly anticipated each year.
Videos
Gothic Cathedrals
Marvel at the ingenuity and ethereal quality of Gothic architecture, a style inspired by a period when religion governed life and epitomized by Europe’s soaring cathedrals from the 12th to 16th centuries.
French Language Lesson
Learn a few useful French words and phrases with Maaike, your Viking tutor. À votre Santé!
The Fundamentals of Wine
Join world-renowned Master of Wine Susie Barrie and Karine to learn about the fundamentals of enjoying fine wine, from opening and pouring to decanting and storing.
Explore: Paris
Discover the magical “City of Light.” Visit the Shakespeare & Co. bookstore, a literary haven on Paris’s Left Bank; stroll the Champs-Élysées; and admire the priceless works of the Louvre. Be sure to stop for a cup of coffee in the St. Germain district.
France, Painter’s Muse
See for yourself how France has inspired famous artists like van Gogh, Monet and so many more.
