My husband and I went on an all day tour from Paris to Rouen with Milan, the founder of With Love From Paris Tours. over the years, we have travelled to many places, have taken many tours, and Milan, without a doubt, is the best tour guide that we have ever encountered. He is incredibly nice, thoughtful, and extremely knowledgable. It was a pleasure to hear him speak about the history of Rouen, Joan of Arc, the Cathedral, etc.
Due to mobility issues, Milan arranged for a car to pick us up at our hotel in Paris, stay with us throughout the day, and return us to our hotel 12 hours later. On our way back, we took a slight "surprise" detour, and visited Chateau Gaillard. A fortress built in the 12th century for Richard The Lionheart. What an incredible sight/site.
Milan went out of his way to cater to our needs and interests. We had such a wonderful time, that going forward, he is our "go to" tour guide when we are in Paris.
gerardgarcia2017
30 Mar 2023
This past Summer during our two-week stay in Paris we reached out to Milan Melet (With Love From Paris Tours) for a tour of Rouen, historic medieval capital of Normandy. Since we have been very pleased with his tour services in the past such as his Parisian market tour followed by a delectable picnic in the shadows of Chateau of Vincennes, his memorable tour of the Champagne Country, and the wondrous experience of Claude Monet’s house and gardens at Giverny, we had Milan design a tour for us of Rouen. As usual we were not disappointed! Milan meticulously took care of all the details, and soon showed us his expertise and love for Normandy. After all, he was reared in this region of France. He met us at the Paris Gare St-Lazare train station early in the morning, where we boarded our train for a scenic one-and-a-half-hour ride to Rouen. It is a brilliant and easy getaway from Paris.
Upon arriving in Rouen, Milan took us downtown to visit what is without a doubt one of the most stunning cathedrals in France, and maybe in all of Europe. It is an excellent example of classic Gothic architecture. Its imposing façade will take your breath away. Its spire alone erected in 1876 is the tallest in all of France. As Milan guided us through the interior of this cathedral, he proceeded not only to identify the various treasures within these venerable walls, but he also enlightened us about the extensive, complicated, and colorful history of Normandy. He shared with us his valuable insights into the prominent historical events which occurred under the times and lives of Rollo, William the Conqueror and Richard the Lion heart. Milan is well versed in his history, and enthusiastically loves to share his knowledge.
Another highlight of this tour was learning more about the history of Joan of Arc, and her tragic demise. He arranged for us to tour the very jail cell where she was initially confined. It is curiously juxtaposed in the basement of a modern building which currently houses medical and legal offices! We could only ponder what thoughts may have raced through her mind as she awaited her fate within the walls of this dungeon-like cell. Next, we toured the Joan of Arc Museum located in the Archbishop's palace in Rouen, in the heart of the historic center. Her second rehabilitation trial (1456) and ultimately her condemnation to death (1431) took place in this building. You feel as though you are living her history as you are guided from room to room, and learn about her epic tale, as it is cleverly portrayed using state-of-the-art video and sound multimedia. Again, Milan demonstrated his attention to detail. One of us has a mobility impairment issue. Milan made sure to stay several steps ahead of us to ensure we had priority seating and easy access to the entry and exit doors at all times, and wherever possible he arranged for elevator transport. This allowed us to fully enjoy and appreciate this magnificent and rewarding presentation.
Next, Milan took us to the historic and architecturally beautiful Place du Vieux-Marche of Rouen. This is the site where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431. It is in the center of this old market place, and is surrounded by many medieval half-timber houses, as well as the modern Église Jeanne d’Arc. The striking architecture of this church conjures up a variety of symbols: Some see a dragon, others see the mouth of the Seine River where it enters the sea, and still others see a knight's helmet. To each his own!
For us, the pièce de résistance for our visit to Rouen was just across the street from the Église Jeanne d’Arc, namely, La Couronne Restaurant. We chose to tour Rouen mainly because we wanted to have lunch at La Couronne, the restaurant where Julia Child (one of our personal heroes) had Fillet of Sole Meunière and fell in love with French food and cooking. The rest of course is history. It turns out this celebrated restaurant and inn was founded in 1345, and is the oldest such establishment in France. This was the fulfillment of our personal pilgrimage in honor of Julia Child. Stepping into this restaurant was like stepping into yesteryear. The old-fashioned papered walls were covered with framed pictures of many world-known celebrities who have enjoyed meals at this historic restaurant. This pictured décor reminded us of Sardi’s Restaurant in New York. Again, we were not disappointed. Milan made reservations to secure the appropriate time and table for this pilgrimage to honor the memory of our personal hero, Julia Child. The meal was an experience, and a definite highlight of this tour.
After our sumptuous meal and a walk under the Gros Horloge, an astronomical clock dating back to 1389, making it one of the oldest such mechanisms in France, Milan arranged for us to visit L’ Aître Saint-Maclou, a 16-th century ossuary for victims of the plague. It was a fascinating albeit somewhat eerie and macabre experience. Overall, with this tour, Milan provided us with magnificent memories.
As we mentioned before, we were extremely pleased with Milan’s tour, and we highly recommend it. In fact, we would recommend any of his other tours. As we are planning another trip to France and Paris soon (we can’t get enough!), we are currently considering taking his “The Rouen Armada” tour. This event hosts one of the largest gatherings of tall ships in the world, and runs for ten days: From June 8th to June 18th of this year. This will give us another excuse to have lunch at La Couronne.
Also consider a customized multiple-day tour of Normandy (Giverny, Rouen, D Day, Mont Saint Michel). This is one of Milan’s most rewarding tours, and one we have enjoyed in the past.
Milan’s expertise in tours in and around Paris has brought him much notoriety. Last Fall he was featured on NBC’s “The Today Show”. He shared the splendors of Paris with Hoda Kotb & Jenna Bush Hager. It is evident; Milan brings emotion, knowledge and passion to his tours!!
Departure31543
17 Nov 2022
The best part of this tour was Milan, our host! Milan took care of all our travel arrangements to Rouen, even assisted us with travel arrangements to meet him in Paris. We were greeted with a big smile, energy and enthusiasm for sharing the day with us. He tailored the day based on our interests, and we experienced more than we had hoped for. His knowledge and love of sharing it made it a day to remember. Rouen itself is a great place to visit, beautiful, charming, steep in history and easy to navigate. We highly recommend this day trip if you like history and want a terrific experience.