Small Group or Private Tour

Eight people at most on every shared tour. Here is when private is the better buy.

Every shared tour we sell carries eight guests at most and usually four to six. That is already small: one van, one guide, questions answered, no microphone. Private means the same guide and van for your party alone, a route you set, and on the Paris-departure versions, a pickup at your hotel.

The decision is mostly arithmetic. Shared tours are priced per person; private tours are priced per vehicle or with a minimum. Two people almost always pay less for the shared tour. At four people the gap narrows. At six, private is often the cheaper ticket.

The math on the Normandy day

Party size	Shared train tour, 2nd class rail	Private van from Paris	Private train tour, 2nd class rail
2 people	$347 each, $694 total	$1,213 each, $2,425 total	Not available, 4-person minimum
4 people	$347 each, $1,388 total	$606 each, $2,425 total	$447 each, $1,788 total
6 people	$347 each, $2,082 total	$404 each, $2,425 total	$447 each, $2,682 total

The private van costs $2,425 for up to six people from your Paris hotel. The private train tour costs $325 per person plus rail with a four-person minimum and meets you at Bayeux. The shared tour is $225 plus rail. At six people, the private van is $57 more in total than six shared tickets and buys the hotel pickup and your own route.

The math on the wine days

Champagne follows the same shape. The shared Veuve Clicquot day is $435 per person with lunch and nine tastings. The private Veuve Clicquot day is $2,160 for two with 1st class rail and lunch, then $505 for each extra person: $1,080 each for two, $793 each at four, $697 each at six. The private champagne van from Paris is $2,775 for up to six, or $463 each at six, without lunch.

Burgundy is the exception. The private Burgundy day is $710 per person with a two-person minimum and 16 wines against 10 on the $295 shared tour, so it is a choice about the tasting, not the group.

What changes on the day

• The route. A private guide will reorder the stops, add a site, or drop one. On a shared tour the six stops and their order are fixed.
• The clock. Private tours leave when you are ready and linger where you want. Shared tours keep to the timing that gets eight people to the last train.
• The door. Private van tours from Paris start and end at your hotel. Every train tour, shared or private, meets your guide at the destination station.
• Weekends. Weekend trains reach Bayeux late, so the Normandy shared tour does not run on Saturdays or Sundays. Private tours do.
• The company. Shared tours put you with four to six other people, usually Americans, often with a family connection to the beaches. Some people like that part.

Minimums to know about

• Private train tours to Normandy: four people.
• The D-Day and Mont St. Michel day tour: four people.
• Private Burgundy: two people.
• The Canadian D-Day shared tour: runs Tuesdays April to October, any day for four or more.
• The Four Day Bordeaux tour: two people.

The full list of private versions is on Private Day Trips From Paris. For how the train side works on either kind of tour, see how our day trips work.

Questions

Is a private tour worth it for two people?

For Normandy, only if you need the hotel pickup, a weekend date, or a grave visit built into the day. Otherwise two shared tickets are about a third of the private price.

At what group size does private become cheaper?

Six on the Normandy van, and it is close at five. Champagne and Versailles private tours are priced for two with a per-person add-on, so compare the totals on the product pages.

Can we make any tour private?

Almost any. Contact us with the tour, the date, and the number of people, and we quote it.

Are the shared tours really eight people?

Yes. Eight is the maximum on every shared tour, and most days run with four to six.

Do private tours include lunch?

Not usually. Your guide stops where you choose and knows the restaurants. Some Champagne private days include lunch; the product page says so.

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