Day 1 - Saturday - Vienna

Arrival in Vienna, the capital of Austria. You will be met and transferred to your hotel with time to relax before meeting your fellow travelers at the welcome dinner. (D)

Day 2 - Sunday - Vienna

Your morning sightseeing tour focuses on the lavishly Hofburg Palace, once the seat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and today the official office of the Austrian President. Next is the Belvedere Palace, the former summer residence of Prince Eugene today housing Austrian and International art of the 19th and 20th centuries such as Schiele, Kokoschka and the largest Klimt collection in the world including his magnificent painting entitled “The Kiss”. As the tour continues we pass the Prater Amusement Park, Austria’s largest entertainment center, the UN Buildings, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Austria’s most remarkable Gothic building constructed between the 14th and 16th centuries as well as other vivid reminders of the city’s imperial history. The afternoon is free for further optional visits perhaps to visit the Museum Quartier or to do some shopping along the fashionable Kartnerstrasse or to try your luck at the casino or just to relax at a local café. Perhaps to try a typical Viennese schnitzel at Figlmueller’s, the most famous schnitzel maker in Vienna inaugurated in 1905. The restaurant is located in the center of Vienna, # 5, next to St. Stephan’s Cathedral. (Cost not included). (B)

Day 3 - Monday - Vienna - Budapest

Traveling east we cross the border into Hungary and proceed onwards through the Transdanubian region enjoying the panorama as we arrive in Budapest, the capital of Hungary in time to relax before dinner. (B,D)

Day 4 - Tuesday - Budapest

Situated on the opposite banks of the Danube River, the former cities of Buda and Pest are linked by a series of graceful bridges. Our morning sightseeing tour features all of the main attractions including the Parliament, reminiscent of London’s Houses of Parliament and the Royal Palace reduced to rubble in 1944-1945 and lovingly restored. Continue to the Castle Hill area located in the heart of mediaeval Budapest to see Fishermen’s Bastion, the Coronation Church of the Hungarian Kings, Hero’s Square and Gellert Hill for the best view of the city. Free time to explore on your own. Perhaps to visit the Hungarian national Gallery with its collection of 10,000 art objects or to visit St. Stephen’s Basilica, the largest church in Budapest or to enjoy a spa treatment in one of the numerous spas or to visit the Aquincum packed with memories of the Roman period or perhaps to enjoy a sweet at the legendary Gerbeaud pastry shop dating back to 1858 located in the heart of the city on Vorosmarty Square or at Zsolnay at the Beke Hotel or to shop for colorful embroidery. (B)

Day 5 - Wednesday - Budapest - Krakow

The road to Krakow winds through the lovely hills and countryside of Slovakia, past the Tatras and into the great plains of Poland en route to Krakow, the city of kings, where Pope John Paul II was once a Cardinal. Enjoy a relaxing dinner on arrival. (B,D)

Day 6 - Thursday - Krakow

Your tour this morning begins at Wawel Hill overlooking the city where the Royal Castle proudly stands housing an exhibit of countless objects of art and an exhibit of rare Flemish tapestries collected by King Zygmunt August. The Wawel Cathedral has witnessed most of the royal coronations and funerals and is the last resting place for most of the Polish monarchs. Enjoy a walking tour of the Old Town where you will visit the Main Market Square, the largest mediaeval square in Poland. In the very center is the Renaissance Cloth Hall with its colonnaded arcades established in the 14th century for merchants to display their wares. Overlooking the square is St. Mary’s Church, where the Cracovian “hejna”, an hourly bugle call is played from the tower. The Gothic Church rather austere from the outside has a very richly ornamented interior with a famous high altar masterpiece carved in wood by Wit Stwosz which depicts the life of the Holy Family. The afternoon is free for further visits perhaps for an optional visit to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, 15 kms. southeast of the city where you will find one of the oldest salt mines in Europe (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) or perhaps an optional visit to the Czartoryski Museum to admire the famous “Lady with the Ermine” by Leonardo da Vinci. (B)

Day 7 - Friday - Krakow - Warsaw

During this morning’s journey to Warsaw, there is time for an optional side trip to Auschwitz, one of the most somber memorials of our past, where many of the original buildings stand to this day as a bleak reminder of this tragedy. After lunch (cost not included) we continue via Czestochowa renowned for its blackened picture of St. Mary popularly known as the “Black Madonna” found in the Yasna Gora Monastery. We end the day in Poland’s capital city of Warsaw, known as the city of determination. (B,D)

Day 8 - Saturday - Warsaw
This 700 year old capital of Poland is a symbol of nationhood and the will to survive against great odds. Your sightseeing tour includes a drive along the famous Royal Route from the magnificent Castle Square to Lazienki Park with its Palace (on the water) built for StanislawPoniatowski, the last of the Polish kings. Plundered by the Nazis, its interior was carefully restored. Continuepast the Palace of Science and Culture known as the “wedding cake” and the magnificent French style Saxon Gardens to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the Monument to the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto. See the Barbican, one of the very few surviving structures of its kind in Europe as you continue your walking tour of the Old Town passing Castle Square, the main gateway to the Old Town. In the center of the square is the 22 metre high Column of Sigismund III. You soon come to St. John’s Cathedral, the oldest of Warsaw’s churches razed to the ground during the war, but rebuilt and today a national Pantheon. The Old Town Square is the most elegant square in Warsaw and one of the best in Poland. The balance of the day is free perhaps for a stroll through the city or an optional late afternoon Chopin Concert. (B)

Day 9 - Sunday - Warsaw - Poznan - Berlin

Leaving Warsaw this morning we stop in Poznan, a historic, yet modern city lying astride the Warta River where an orientation tour will take you to see some of the city’s highlights. The most interesting part of the city is the Old Town with its famous Renaissance Hall now housing the Historic Museum. We continue our drive crossing the border intoGermany and arriving in the capital of Berlin. (B,D)

Day 10 - Monday - Berlin
This morning our guide will take us to visit some of the major sites in the reunited capital of Germany featuring the Reichstag, the Renaissance building that once housed Germany’s Parliament and the lovely Schloss Charlottenburg, the country home of Prussian kings. The castle includes many remarkable rooms. Continue through the city to view other famous sights such as the German State opera House, the Schiller Theater and the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. The afternoon is free to do some exploring on your own. Perhaps to visit the fascinating Egyptian Museum or go for a coffee on the Kurfurstendamm simply known as the Ku’damm” or to see thefamousBrandenburg Gate, once the symbol of the divided city. (B)

Day 11 - Tuesday - Berlin - Dresden - Prague

We leave Berlin behind and journey to the beautiful baroque city of Dresden, splendidly situated on a bend in the Elbe River for a sightseeing tour that features the Zwinger Palace, the magnificently rebuilt Semper Opera House named after the architect who designed it as well as other important historic sites. Afterwards cross the border into the Czech Republic arriving in the capital - Prague, one of the most attractive cities in Central Europe. (B,D)

Day 12 - Wednesday - Prague

Built on seven hills more than 1000 years ago andsituated on both banks of the Vltava River. Our sightseeing tour thismorning begins with a panoramic drive to the famous Wenceslas Square. See the Strahov Stadium and the CastleSquare. On a walking tour discover the Royal Castle of Hradcany, the one time residence of the Kings of Bohemia. Continue past St. Vitus Cathedral, the Royal Palace and the Loretto Church. Cross the Charles Bridge and walk through the old quarter to view the Jewish Ghetto with its maze of streets that made up the oldest ghetto in Europe. Next is the Town Hall and the world famous Astronomical Clock known as “Orloj”. The balance of the day is free perhaps to attend an optional cultural performance. (B)

Day 13 - Thursday - Prague

After breakfast transfer to the airport for departure. (B)

ADDITIONAL NIGHTS IN VIENNA AT THE BEGINNING OF THE TOUR & IN PRAGUE AT THE END OF THE TOUR CAN BE PROVIDED.