Treasures of Poland                                                                                               • Warsaw • Zakopane • Krakow

11 Days / 10 Nights                                                                                                                                        • Torun • Gdansk • Warsaw

Guaranteed Departures                                                                                                  

Included:

° Airport transfers

° 3 & 4 star hotels

° English-speaking tour escort & local guides

° Private air-conditioned motor coach or minibus (depending on the group size)

° Meals:

  breakfast daily, 7 restaurant lunches, 4 dinners  

  (including one with folklore show in Wieliczka)

° Cake & coffee/tea breaks in Warsaw & Krakow

° Sightseeing tours as per itinerary

° Entrance fees:

    - Warsaw – Royal Castle

    - Czestochowa – Jasna Gora Monastery and the Black Madonna Shrine

    - Oswiecim /Auschwitz

    - Zakopane – cable car and a rafting trip on the Dunajec River

    - Krakow – Royal Castle and Cathedral on the Wawel Hill, St. Mary’s Church

    - Wieliczka Salt Mine

    - Torun – Copernicus Museum

    - Gdansk – organ concert in the Oliwa Cathedral

    - Malbork – Malbork Castle

    - Olsztynek – Museum of Folk Architecture

° Chopin concert with a glass of sparkling wine

° Luggage handling at hotels (one piece per person)

° Hotel charges and taxes

Day 1 Saturday   Warsaw

You will be met and transferred to your hotel in the heart of the city. The afternoon is free. At 6:00PM, meet your guide and the rest of the group in the hotel lobby. Drive along the beautifully renovated Royal Route with its historical monuments and residences. Stop at Castle Square for a short walk through Old Town. Welcome dinner at a local restaurant. Your meal will include typical Polish dishes and famous Polish vodka, “Zubrowka”.

Day 2 Sunday     Warsaw

This morning, we introduce you to the highlights of Warszawa (in Polish). A half-day sightseeing tour includes Old Town, beautifully rebuilt after World War II, with the impressive Royal Castle, seat of the kings of Poland. Here the Constitution of May 3rd was proclaimed in 1791, the second oldest constitution in the world. You will admire some of its 300 rooms and see the Canaletto Room with 23 of his paintings, the Throne Room, the magnificent Knight’s Hall with six large paintings by Marcello Bacciarelli, the Marble room with its 22 portraits of Polish kings and the largest and most impressive of all the castle’s chambers, the Ballroom.

After lunch at a local restaurant in Old Town, we continue our tour with a drive to the area of the former Warsaw Ghetto. En route, you will see the building of the National Opera House and Town Hall. During your tour of Warsaw we invite you to the famous Warsaw café, “U Bliklego”, to taste a typical Warsaw pastry called “paczek”. This evening you will take an unforgettable musical journey through the world famous compositions of our greatest composer, Frederic Chopin, at a piano recital.

Day 3 Monday      Warsaw – Czestochowa – Zakopane

After breakfast, we depart for Zakopane – one of the most popular vacation resorts in the Tatra Mountains.En route, we stop in Czestochowa to visit the Jasna Gora Monastery and the Black Madonna Shrine with its miraculous icon. Lunch will be served a local restaurant in Czestochowa. Later arrive in Zakopane beautifully situated at the foot of the Tatra Mountains. It is the most popular resort in Poland and one of the most beautiful places in all of Poland. Once, a small mountain village, Zakopane became a fashionable artist’s retreat at the beginning of the 20th century.

Day 4   Tuesday    Zakopane – Krakow

In the morning, you will have a sightseeing tour of Zakopane, whose wooden architecture blends with the naturallandscapes and it is copied in other parts of Poland. Visit Jaszczurowka Chapel, a great example of the wooden architecture in Zakopane, and the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima at Krzeptowki, which was built by the people of Zakopane to thank the Lady of Fatima for saving the Pope after an attempt on his life. Admire the breathtaking views of the Tatras from the top of Gubalowka Mountain and shop for souvenirs ofarts and crafts of the Highlanders in the local shops. After lunch on your own you will have a free time before a rafting trip on the Dunajec River. Tonight’s dinner will be served at a local restaurant in Krakow’s Old Town Market Square.

Day 5    Wednesday   Krakow – Auschwitz – Krakow

 The morning sightseeing tour will feature Wawel, the Royal Castle, home to three dynasties of Poland’s monarchs. Its stately halls and exquisite chambers are filled with priceless art, valuable period furniture and rare ancient objects. You will also visit the Wawel Cathedral, with 18 chapels, true architectural masterpieces. The giant bell ranks with the world’s largest. Following a short break for coffee and cake at the famous Krakow café, “Jama Michalika”, a place designed by local artists with beautiful glass-painted windows and interesting drawings, we drive to Old Town with its restored Main Square of magnificent houses and palaces. There, you stop at St. Mary’s Basilica where to see the magnificent wooden altar. In the middle of the square is Cloth Hall built before 1349, but renovated in the 16th century with many shopping stalls inside. After lunch, we drive to Auschwitz to vist the martyrdom Museum of the former Nazi concentration camp. Return to Krakow with some free time in the afternoon.  

Day 6    Thursday     Krakow –Wielczka – Krakow

Free morning. Afternoon drive to Wielczka Salt Mine an unforgettable tourist attraction with underground chambers, grottoes, and chapels carved from salt. Dinner with a folklore show will be served at a local restaurant in Wielczka. Return to Krakow (10 kms).

Day 7       Friday     Krakow - Torun

After breakfast, we leave for Torun. Following lunch at a local restaurant, see the highlights of Torun. It is the birthplace of Nicolaus Copernicus and considered one of the most magnificent historic cities of Poland. Its Old Town has been included in UNESCO’s list for its impressive 13th century Town Hall, superb churches and historic streets. A visit to the Copernicus Museum is included in your itinerary.

Day 8     Saturday  Torun - Gdansk

Today, we depart for Gdansk, Poland's principle seaport (150 kms). The city was the birthplace of the Solidarity movement which, under the leadership of political activist Lech Walesa, played a major role in bringing an end to Communist rule across Central Europe. Lunch at a local restaurant. Afternoon arrival with some time for a short walk through the city.

Day 9    Sunday / Gdansk – Gdynia - Sopot - Gdansk

Explore Gdansk in depth starting from the Upland Gate - a fragment of the city's former fortifications and one of its main gates. Just behind it, we see the Prison Tower and the Torture House, relics of the 15th century Gothic defense walls. The Golden Gate, situated next to the Prison Tower, opens onto Long Market - a magnificent street, with grand mansions decorated with late Renaissance and Baroque facades. It is here that the richest residents of Gdansk once lived. Next, we come upon the Main Town and the beautiful Artus Court. Behind it stands the tower of St. Mary's Basilica, a part of the most precious and largest red-brick Gothic church in Gdansk. On our way back we pass along Mariacka Street, with its gabled terraced houses and elegant boutiques.

Next we drive to Gdynia, youngest of the tri-city complex, which also includes Sopot. Here we visit Oliwa Cathedral, famous for one-of-a-kind pipe organ and hear a concert. After lunch at a local restaurant, we continue to Sopot, the famous and fashionable seaside resort. Here you can still see the oldest and longest wooden pier in Europe. The balance of the day is free. Time for shopping for Baltic arts and crafts, including unique amber jewelry and trinkets.

Day 10   Monday  Gdansk - Malbork - Warsaw

After breakfast, we return to Warsaw. On the way we stop at the Teutonic Knights Castle in Malbork. It is the largest brick building in Europe and one of Poland’s greatest tourist attractions. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant.

Farewell dinner at a local restaurant in Warsaw this evening.

Day 11    Tuesday Warsaw

Transfer to the airport for the return flight home.