Sketchbook Art Workshop in Paris, France with Koosje Koene
Join Sketchbook Travel Journal Workshop in Paris with Koosje Koene
Book This Tour
Overview
Join us for a six-night sketchbook journey through Paris with teaching artist Koosje Koene, based in Montmartre so you unpack only once. Days fan out to a different corner of the city, Montmartre Cemetery, the Musée d’Orsay, the Left Bank’s art stores, Rue Cler’s market streets, Île Saint-Louis, moving by Metro and on foot. Koosje’s conviction is simple: the drawing you make is always better than the one you didn’t make at all.
An optional soufflé-making class and a Seine sunset cruise punctuate the week, along with a farewell dinner cooked by a friend who’s called France home for more than thirty years. By the end of the week, your sketchbook holds Paris in ink and watercolor, one honest page at a time.
The Creative Experience
This is a sketchbook program, worked on-location wherever the day leads, a cemetery, a garden, a museum courtyard, a market street. Sessions run about ninety minutes to two hours, with informal sketching woven through the rest of the day. By the end of the week, your sketchbook holds a living, honest record of Paris.
This Vacation Includes
- Accommodations: 6 nights at 4 star hotel in the artist's neighborhood of Montmartre, Paris
- Art Workshop Program: Daily classes with Koosje Koene
- Blue Walk Tour Program: Unique daily walks and expereinces
- Daily buffet breakfast
- Welcome dinner
- Farewell dinner: Visit the home of Parisian artist for our farewell meal
- Transfers: Prepaid Navigo Pass for free access to Paris Metro during tour
- Gelato!
- Guided tour Montmartre: Guided tour with local guide to discover Monmartre
- Seine River Cruise: Sunset and champagne Seine River Cruise
- Street Art Tour: Guided street art tour with local street artist
- Montmartre Museum: Admission to the Montmartre Museum
- D'Orsay Museum visit: Admission to Musee d"Orsay
- Visit boutique art store: Discover boutique art stores
- Taxes and service fees: All hotel taxes and services fees
What's Not Included
- Airfare
- Porterage of Luggage
- Tips and gratuities
- Meals not mentioned
- Airport Transfers
- Travel Insurance
- Art Supplies
About YourArtist-Teacher
Koosje Koene
Koosje trained first in graphic design, then photography, spending about a decade as an award-winning professional photographer before drawing pulled her back in. For her, drawing is a form of meditation, a way of being fully present that captures a place more completely than any photograph.
She has been sharing free drawing tips through her weekly YouTube series Draw Tip Tuesday since 2013. Through her Patreon she offers even more guidance and inspiration. Koosje also co-founded Sketchbook Skool in 2014, an online art school with a global community of sketchbook keepers and creative habit builders. Her daily Instagram posts show how drawing can be fun, meditative, and genuinely life-changing.
Day by DayYour Itinerary
Programs are subject to change. Actual daily schedule may differ.
Day 1 · Arrival in Montmartre
Gather at the hotel in Montmartre for a welcome meeting and orientation walk of the neighborhood, ending at a viewpoint over the city.
Day 2 · Montmartre's Quiet Corners
A walk through Montmartre Cemetery for a sketching session among its quiet, tree-lined paths, followed by a visit to the Musée de Montmartre and its gardens.
Day 3 · Impressionists at the Musée d'Orsay
A morning at the Musée d’Orsay among the Impressionists, followed by a stroll through the Tuileries Garden and a sketching session inspired by the day’s discoveries.
Day 4 · Street Art & the Seine at Sunset
An optional soufflé-making class opens the morning. In the afternoon, a walk through Belleville’s street art scene, followed by a Seine sunset cruise in the evening.
Day 5 · A Picnic Beneath the Eiffel Tower
A morning at the market stalls of Rue Cler for picnic supplies, followed by a picnic and sketching session at the Champ de Mars, beneath the Eiffel Tower.
Day 6 · Île Saint-Louis to the Marais
A stroll across Île Saint-Louis and past Notre-Dame, with stops at some of Paris’s finest art stores along the way. The afternoon ends in the Luxembourg Gardens, and the evening brings a farewell dinner in an artist’s home studio in the Marais, cooked by a friend who’s called France home for more than thirty years.
Day 7 · Departure
Breakfast, then depart at your leisure. The hotel will hold bags for later departures.
A Note on Pace
View MapWhere in the World?
The trip is based in Paris, France. Charles de Gaulle (CDG) is the primary airport, with the most flights from North America; Orly (ORY) may also serve your arrival or departure.
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Traveled, Created, Loved It
“Spain was our second walking vacation with The Blue Walk, and it was delightful. Suzy and Jeannette are very organized, knowledgeable and friendly. They guided us for an overview of old Barcelona, and then onto Callela de Pallafrugel, the most beautiful fishing village. We walked along the coast and through farming areas to two medieval towns. Suzy and Jeannette are excellent tour guides, and we will join the Blue Walk again soon.”
Jackie and Mark Curley“They are INCREDIBLE!!! I’ve loved everything we’ve done together! An art journal workshop and a private tour with friends I met on the Art Walk & everything has been better and more fun than I ever dreamed! 5 Stars is only a beginning of how great they are!”
Sue Cogins“What a great way to get exercise and see the most incredible coast of the French Riviera with guides that cater to every personality and whim! My husband and I will definitely be on another walking tour in the near future. Thank you for an amazing experience!”
Chris & Julie Sochin“I love traveling with The Blue Walk. Our time is so special, and I’ve made wonderful friends. And your art teachers are the best! Thank you for the care you put into every aspect of our time. I can’t wait until my next trip.”
Norina Morris