Preserving Beauty Sharing It Thoughtfully
Art de vivre is not merely enjoyed; it is protected for future generations. The châteaux of France, the ateliers of master artisans, the vineyards of Italy, and the quintas of Portugal are more than extraordinary places, they are living heritage. They endure because people choose to care for them. For over twenty years, we have had the privilege of sharing these treasures with our travelers while supporting the people and organizations dedicated to preserving them.
The art of living is, above all, an act of preservation
The art of living is not an abstraction. It lives in the hands of a stonemason, in the patience of a vigneron, in a family that has cared for the same home for centuries. None of it endures by chance.
France is the heart of what we do, but our journeys extend throughout Europe. From the vineyards of Portugal and Italy to the castles of England, the alpine villages of Switzerland and the cultural treasures of Spain, our philosophy remains unchanged: exceptional travel should help sustain the people, traditions, and heritage that make each destination remarkable. As a house entrusted with opening these doors, we believe we have a responsibility to help preserve what makes them worth opening.
Much of this is simply how we have always worked. In every destination, the guides, drivers, hoteliers, château owners, artisans, and local experts who shape each journey are independent professionals whose knowledge has often been passed down through generations. Many have been trusted AAV partners for more than twenty years. Returning to them year after year with our travelers helps support their livelihoods, preserve their expertise, and safeguard the living heritage that makes each destination so distinctive.
This is what defines AAV: thoughtful travel that celebrates Europe's living heritage while ensuring it can continue to be experienced for generations to come.
Guardians of French heritage
The monuments at the heart of our journeys endure because each generation chooses to protect them. In France, where most of our travels lead, we are proud to count ourselves among those who do.
We support the Fondation du Patrimoine, whose mission is to safeguard French heritage. For twenty-five years it has helped the custodians of historical landmarks find the private and public funding needed to restore them to their full grandeur.
Best known for the Notre-Dame de Paris campaign, the Fondation devotes most of its work to quieter treasures, village churches, windmills, historic workshops and to landscapes such as the tadpole trees of the Marais Poitevin. These are precisely the places we love to show you.
Considered at every turn
The character of a journey is revealed in its details. Wherever you travel with us across Europe, these are the principles that guide every itinerary we create, thoughtful choices that respect the places we visit, the people who welcome us, and the experiences we share.
The people who belong there
Guides, drivers and hosts are local, independent and engaged directly — the surest way to a journey with depth, and to keeping value where it was created.
Houses with a family name
Family-owned châteaux, palazzi, quintas and independent hoteliers are our natural preference — for their character, and for the households who keep them alive.
The luxury of slowness
Longer stays in fewer places, rather than a new city every other morning. It is how a country is truly felt — and it asks far less of the road.
Beyond the crowds
We favour the regions and seasons where beauty is not shared with a queue — a quiet corner of Andalusia, the Douro out of season. The experience is incomparably finer, and the celebrated sites are given room to breathe.
The pleasure of the train
Across France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and beyond, the train is frequently the finer way to travel — city centre to city centre, landscape unfolding at the window. We suggest it whenever it serves you best.
Savoir-faire, sustained
Ateliers, growers and master craftspeople are woven into your days. These encounters are among the most memorable — and they sustain trades that would otherwise fade.
Planting for the next century
Each year we fund the planting of 10,250 trees through Tree-Nation, an organisation that develops and monitors reforestation projects alongside local communities.
Every project is reviewed before it can receive funding, then followed through on-site audits and satellite monitoring to confirm the trees are planted and cared for. Among them is a French initiative converting farmland into agroforestry, cultivating trees and crops on the same land, enriching biodiversity while reducing what the soil is asked to bear.
We support this work simply because it deserves support, a contribution to landscapes that will outlast us all.
We have chosen to describe only what we actually do. Our contributions to heritage preservation and reforestation are real and measurable, and we are proud to share them. But we make no claim that they erase the footprint of a journey, and we use no label we have not earned. We would rather earn your trust through honesty than admiration through exaggeration.
The Art of Living Begins with How We Travel
Tell us the pace you dream of, the places that call to you, and the people you would like to meet. We will design a journey that reflects your interests while supporting the people, traditions, and places that make Europe so extraordinary.
Tailor my trip