2008 IFTA Study Tour: France

The International Fruit Tree Association invites you to participate in a 12-day Study Tour throughout France to visit many of the major growing regions for pip and stone fruits. This is an opportunity to learn first hand about the tree fruit industries in France as well as the country’s colorful history, culture, cuisine, geography, and agriculture.

The cost of the Study Tour will be $3,800 (US$) with a minimum of 40 participants. This cost includes all land transportation (bus and train), hotels, breakfasts (11), lunches (10), and suppers (6), snacks, and entrance fees for specific cultural/historic/tourist attractions. Sleeping accommodations are for double occupancy. A single supplement of $640 can be made if one chooses to not share a sleeping room. (Note: if participation levels reach 80+ people, then a discount of $800 will be provided to all participants for a total Study Tour price of $3,000)

TECHNICAL HIGHLIGHTS

• Intensive orchard workshop on tree architecture and physiology
• Pip fruit and stone fruit orchards
• Orchard systems – commercial orchards as well as nursery and research trials
• Nursery production
• Breeding programs – taste, disease resistance, market niches, etc.
• New and managed variety programs
• Marketing and growing appellations for tree fruit
• Research programs for management of disease, pests, systems, varieties, rootstocks, etc.
• Strategic planning, business models, succession

ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS (cultural, history, tourist)

TOUR ACCOMMODATIONS

Accommodations have been selected based on overall quality, location, price, service, and cleanliness. In general, they will be 3 star hotels convenient to the itinerary of this Study Tour.

THE BEGINNING AND THE END

The Study Tour will commence with a welcome dinner in Bordeaux, France on the evening of 27 July 2008. Participants are responsible for their own transportation from place of origin to tour hotel in Bordeaux. The Study Tour will terminate on 07 August 2008 in Paris. We will spend the majority of the day at the Palace of Versaille (approximately 45 minutes by bus or 1 hour by train) outside of Paris. The tour concludes with the arrival of our bus at the Paris Roissy-Charles-De-Gaulle (CDG) airport. Participants are responsible for their own transportation from airport to next destination/home.

PAYMENT & REGISTRATION

Study Tour costs will need to be paid in advance of departure.

• $500 deposit at time of registration. Registration deadline is 30 May 2008.
• Full payment of the balance due by 20 June 2008.
• Payment may be made by check in US Funds to IFTA or by credit card (VISA, MasterCard, American Express) via phone, fax, email, or web.

The $500 per person reservation deposit is refundable if registration is cancelled in writing by 30 May 2008. Study Tour participants are strongly encouraged to consider purchasing Travel Insurance.

Click HERE for registration form and the fine print details. 

DETAILED EDUCATIONAL FRUIT TOUR ITINERARY

Following is the 2008 Study Tour itinerary. On designated days, “technical” refers to the option to focus on tree fruit industry subjects and “cultural” refers to the option to explore regional sites, culture, and shopping. Itinerary is subject to change until final booking. Alternative sites and services will be similar. Please contact the IFTA office (e) business@ifruittree.org or (p) 509.884.5651 or (f) 509.884.1858 for answers to specific questions. Note: tour space is limited and will be filled on a first come, first serve basis.

Sunday, 27 July

Explorations of Bordeaux on your own during the day depending upon your arrival time.

Our hotel is located a short stroll from the historic centre and its shopping area. UNESCO World Heritage describes Bordeaux as an inhabited historic city, an outstanding urban and architectural ensemble, created in the age of the Enlightenment, with more protected buildings than any other French city except Paris. It is also recognized for its historic role as a place of exchange of cultural values over more than 2,000 years and as a melting pot of humanism, universality and culture. Evening welcome dinner. Overnight Bordeaux in the Aquitaine region . (D)

Monday, 28 July

The first full day of the Study Tour will feature an intensive technical field workshop in Marmande. Utilizing visits to multiple orchards, we will have in-depth discussions on tree architecture and physiology with applied objectives. Cultural option participants will have opportunity for independent explorations within the city of Bordeaux. Dinner on your own. Overnight Bordeaux. (B, L)

Tuesday, 29 July

The technical option will involve orchard, nursery, and research station tours featuring high density orchard systems and fruiting walls in the Bergerac region. With a minimum of 20 persons, the cultural option will feature a guided walking tour in the old town of Bergerac, visit to the Cloître des Recollets (House of Wines), lunch in Bergerac, a cruise on the river Dordogne, and visit to the National Tobacco Museum. We will meet together in the evening for a lovely dinner overlooking the Bergerac area. Overnight Bergerac in the Périgord Pourpre region. (B, L, D)

Wednesday, 30 July

We will travel along the Dordogne River and arrive for a guided tour of the 12^th Century Beynac castle perched on top of a limestone cliff above the north bank. The afternoon will find us touring Perlim, the largest cooperative specializing in “Goldens of Altitude” and orchards located on the beautiful hills rising from the valley floor. Just as wine grapes have appellations of distinction, Perlim has achieved this geographic designation for their apples and walnuts. Overnight Brive in the region of Limousin. (B, L, D)

Thursday, 31 July

This day in particular, will provide us with expansive views of the French countryside not normally available to typical visitors (loose translation: we are going to be on the bus a long time in areas far from major cities). Our nursery tour in Malicorne will focus on varieties, breeding program (pears and disease resistant apples, Tentation®), and a number of orchard systems. We will also have opportunity for an amazing tour of the rose greenhouses and the roses will be in bloom! The evening will find us in the heart of another UNESCO world heritage site: Lyons. Founded by the Romans in the 1^st century BC as the capital of Three Gauls, Lyons maintains a significant and on-going place in Europe’s economic, cultural, and political development. Our hotel will be within walking distance of Cathedrale Saint Jean, Place Bellecour, and Place de la Croix Rousse. Overnight Lyon in the region of Rhône-Alpes. (B, L)

Friday, 01 August

After an early morning departure, we will find ourselves in the areas around Nimes and Avignon. Technical tours will incorporate two research station facilities and focus primarily on stone fruits: technology, economics, and fruit quality; fruiting walls for cherries and apricots; and techniques to limit labor costs. With some logistical magic, companions will have time for independent explorations in Avignon – during the heart of the theatre festival. In the evening, we will enjoy a tour of and wine tasting at the Palais des Papes (Popes’ Palace) and a late supper. Avignon served as the seat of the papacy in the 14^th Century. Per the UNESCO World Heritage, the Palais des Papes, an austere-looking fortress lavishly decorated by Simone Martini and Matteo Giovanetti, dominates the city, the surrounding ramparts and the remains of a 12th-century bridge over the Rhone. Overnight Avignon in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur. (B, L, D)

Saturday, 02 August

Our morning will feature technical tours on not only pip fruits but also orchard and pack house visits engaged in apricots, peaches, and Gala as well as discussions on the Pink Lady® Europe program. Afternoon will include some time at the beach at Golfe Du Lion and visit to Pont du Gard (Roman Aqueduct). Also a UNESCO World Heritage site, The Pont du Gard was built shortly before the Christian era to allow the aqueduct of Nîmes (which is almost 50 km long) to cross the Gard river. The Roman architects and hydraulic engineers who designed this bridge, which stands almost 50 m high and is on three levels – the longest measuring 275 m – created a technical as well as an artistic masterpiece. Overnight Avignon. (B, L, D)

Sunday, 03 August

Free morning to explore Avignon. Afternoon dedicated to travel by the TGV train at 320 km/h (200 mph ) between Avignon in the southeast and Angers in the northwest. Total train time will be approximately five hours and involve a dining opportunity. Overnight Angers in the historic province/region of Anjou . (B)

Monday, 04 August

The morning will find us traveling through the Loire Valley to visit a grower-financed experimental tree fruit station focusing on cultivars and orchard system techniques. The Val de Loire (Loire Valley), the largest site to be listed by UNESCO, is a show-case of art, history, architecture, and landscape. Lunch will be in historic Chinon and allow for brief independent explorations. A late afternoon excursion to the Bouvet-Ladubay winery will feature tasting/tour among 8km of caves. The story of their wine cellars started 1000 years ago; the Saint Florent monks, were expelled from the first dungeon of Saumur by FOULQUE NERA in 1025, were among the first builders. They excavated the galleries to quarry the tuffeau stone which was then used to build the abbey “La Belle d’Anjou.” Our evening supper will take place at a restaurant in “Troglodyte” caves and feature local delicacies including a bread known as “fouaces.” Beware: we will return to the hotel after 23:00pm. Overnight Angers. (B, L, D)

Tuesday, 05 August

The technical participants will have a relaxed start in the morning and visit a vertically integrated tree fruit operation to discuss new breeding programs, orchard operations, rootstocks, nursery, and pack station and, equally important, the overall business model being planned and implemented. Our visit will also include a relatively new, collaborative breeding program. Cultural participants will have opportunity for semi-orchestrated explorations throughout Angers. In the afternoon, everyone will tour Chateau D’Angers. Built over some Gallo-Roman town buildings, in turn standing on a Neolithic site (4,500-4,000 BC), the chateau of the Counts of Anjou is surrounded by a fortress constructed by Saint Louis. In the late 14^th century, Louis I, Duke of Anjou, ordered the huge Apocalpyse wall hanging. Dinner on your own. Overnight Angers. (B, L)

Wednesday, 06 August

Nursery tour featuring knip trees. Afternoon visit to Chartres, “the Capital of Light and Perfume” in the heart of the Cosmetic Valley. We will join renowned Monsieur Malcolm Miller for a private, guided tour of the Chartres Cathedral (initial construction in 1145), considered by many to be the finest Gothic cathedral in France, if not in Europe. The cathedral, which in 1979 made UNESCO’s very first World Heritage list, is also well known for its asymmetrical spires, 176 stained glass windows, labyrinth (dated 1200). You may even want to purchase a copy of Miller’s book about the Chartres Cathedral. Evening will be free for independent explorations of Chartres. Overnight Chartres in the region of Eure-et-Loir . (B, L, D)

Thursday, 07 August

The grand finale for this 2008 IFTA Study Tour will be a visit to the Castle of Versailles: Palace (King’s and Queen’s State Apartments, Chapel, and Opera House, Hall of Mirrors), Gardens, and if your stamina persists, a walk through the gardens and groves to the Grand Trianon and Marie-Antoinette’s Estate. On the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1979, The Palace of Versailles served as the principal residence for French kings from the time of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. Upon completion of our tour at Versailles, we will travel approximately one hour for a late afternoon arrival at the Paris Charles DeGaulle (CDG) airport. Tour is complete. (B, L)