The "Footsteps of the Impressionist Masters" tour was excellent. Although Interested in Impressionist art, I did not know much about it until I read some of the pre-trip recommended reading. The trip helped bring the artists and their work to life. The food was excellent, especially on the Seine Princess. Our guide-lecturer was great: She helped fill in the cracks regarding the Impressionists and their art with her lectures and field trips. I would not have minded a bit more free time in Paris, but the group time was used well. I strongly recommend this trip for anyone interested in French art and cuisine.

This is the best of bests: knowledgeable leaders, world-class art, great food, hotels in convenient city locations. If you love Impressionism, sign up. Teresa from Nevada

A wonderfully balanced program of art history and sight seeing. All the main Impressionist sights are included and some I never knew about. The amount of walking was just right and having a bus to get us through Paris traffic was a relief. The hotel is charming and the river boat portion was a dream.

Since this was our first Road Scholar trip, we had no idea what to expect. Boy, were we surprised. Pleasantly so! The level of organization and the myriad details carried out with impeccable accuracy was astonishing. The rewards were greater than we expected and our fellow participants were smart, funny and most enjoyable. Thank you, Jennifer and Road Scholar. This will be a tough one on which to improve. Peter and Leighton Jackson

This was my second riverboat trip, the first being "France Along the Rhone," which I highly recommend. The wonderful meals afforded time to get acquainted with the other people on the tour, who were all willing to mix. I loved the night cruise under the bridges of Paris.

I loved the Place de l'Europe and Montmartre. In the Orsay we got close to the works of art despite the crowds. Jennifer's lectures on the boat were also helpful and interesting.

One favorite was the trip to Auvers sur Oise, where I learned not only about Van Gogh's last days but about Daubigny and Dr. Gachet. Honfleur was another favorite, partly because the town is charming, partly because the Musee Boudin is interesting, and partly because I visited a museum devoted to the music of Erik Satie -- not on the tour but one of the many extras that Jennifer told us about or provided opportunities for. In Paris, those extras included a chance to visit the Marmottan and the Petit Palace, as well as a helpful study of one of the main doors of Notre Dame.

The audio system is terrific and a great help when one is walking through crowded streets. There was a good supply of batteries and ear pieces too.

My one negative relats to the buses provided. Anyone with long legs would have been in agony on the trip to the Normandy coast and anyone with bathroom issues wuld have been puzzled if not defeated by the emergency toilet provided. It also took some ingenuity to find support for getting in and out of the rear door.

All in all, however, this trip deserves its high rating.

Having read 2 quite different reviews of this trip, I didn't know what to expect. Having just returned from the October program, I can only say that this was a very interesting and enriching experience. Our guide, Jennifer, was one of the best I have had. Her organizational and inter-personal skills were excellent as was her knowledge of impressionist art. The itinerary was amazing; walking in the footsteps of the great masters is an apt title. It appears Roads Scholar heeded Mary's complaint about the group size since ours was only 32 participants, not 47 like hers. Lunch still took 2 hours but that is more the style of French lunches than group size. I would highly recommend this program to anyone who appreciates Impressionist art and wants to see not only the paintings but the locales of the masterpieces. The barge experience was wonderful; nice accomodations, great service, and fabulous French food. I liked our hotel location in the Latin Quarter, close to Notre Dame and the Seine. Having a free afternon and evening allowed me time to visit the Museum Marmatton Monet and take in a ballet at the Palais Garnier. Buses and subways are easy to use to get around on your own. My only complaints are that final itinerary was not provided until about 3 days before the trip (and then changed the first day of the trip) and the travel agent group did not seem knowledgeable nor organized, resulting in my making my own plane reservations. Most of the other participants used the travel group and were pleased with the service although some of the flight times made me wonder if the participants could have done better making the arrangements on their own.

This program held great promise -- learning about the Impressionists while in Paris and cruising the Seine. We went with high hopes. While there were pleasant times, two areas were very dissatisfying. First, the group had 47 members, and meals took 2-3 hours, causing time squeezes on seeing museums, etc. (30 minutes for The Louvre). Second, the educational component was not what we were promised--instead of 5 expert-led lectures, we had 3 presentations read to us from hastily-written notes. Equally distressing was being sent to view Musee d'Orsay, the world's premier Impressionist museum, with absolutely no lecture or introduction or even a map of what was where. This museum should have been the cornerstone of the trip, and surely merited expert preparation. If you're looking for a pleasant stroll through Paris and a quiet drift along the Seine, this is the trip for you, but for that you don't have to pay Road Scholar prices. If, on the other hand, you want the educational experience Road Scholar promises (and you pay for) this choice may be disappointing to you.

This program was one of the best Road Scholar programs I have ever done. Our program leader, Jennifer, was a superb guide who went far and above the call of duty. Her lectures were very informative as were all the field trips. The Seine River cruise was the "piece of resistance" of the trip. I would recommend this program highly to anyone who wants to learn more about the impressionist masters.