14 day tour in mostly 5-star hotels, including 29 meals (13 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 10 suppers)
Warsaw, Poland, Budapest, Vienna, Prague
Day 1: Welcome to Warsaw
A transfer is included from Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport to your historic hotel on Warsaw's fashionable "Royal Route." Meet your travel companions and your Tauck Director at tonight's welcome reception and dinner in the hotel, a Warsaw landmark for over a century.
Day 2: Explore Warsaw, a city reborn
On your first full day in Poland tour the sights of Warsaw, including the Palace of Culture, Radziwill Palace and the Jewish Ghetto Memorial. Visit the city's 13th- and 14th-century Old Town, meticulously re-constructed after WWII, on a walking tour. Enjoy a free afternoon to pursue your own interests. In the evening, attend a private piano recital in a palace that features the music of Warsaw native Frédéric Chopin.
Day 3: Cracow, Wawel Castle and Wieliczka's salt mines
Head across the Polish countryside to ancient Cracow, considered one of the finest medieval cities in Europe, for a two-night stay. After lunch, see Wawel Castle, the seat of Polish kings from the 11th to 17th
centuries, and visit Wawel Cathedral. Then join us if you wish for an excursion to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, a subterranean labyrinth of passages,
caverns, chapels, and statues carved into crystalline salt. Worked for
800 years, the mine is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a fascinating
experience on your Poland tour. Dinner is à la carte at your hotel tonight.
Day 4: Medieval Cracow and poignant Auschwitz
You'll have a choice of sightseeing this morning, choosing to explore the former Jewish Quarter, known as the Kazimierz
(holidays permitting), or embarking on a walking tour with a local guide through Cracow's 13th-century Old Town, including Jagiellonian University.
In the afternoon, you're free to explore Cracow on your own or join an excursion to the poignant memorial and museum at Auschwitz, 40 miles from the city.
Day 5: Through the Tatra Mountains, bound for Hungary
Travel from Poland through the scenic Tatra Mountains, stopping for
lunch in Slovakia en route to Hungary. Arrive in Budapest; your hotel towers over the city center. In the evening, enjoy an à la carte dinner at your hotel.
Day 6: Stunning architecture in Pest
Today, take a close-up look at fascinating Budapest as your Eastern Europe and Poland tour reveals landmarks in the city's Pest section,
on the eastern side of the Danube. See the embassy district, City Park,
and Heroes' Square; visit the opulent State Opera House, St. Stephen's Basilica, and Dohány Synagogue
(holidays permitting). Choose among Budapest's many sights and museums to explore in your
free afternoon; this evening, a private dinner cruise on the
Danube River (with wine included) offers a stunning viewpoint from which to admire the
city’s illuminated architecture.
Day 7: Parliament, beautiful Buda and more
Start today's sightseeing with a morning visit to Hungary's Parliament building in Pest, a neo-Gothic
masterpiece. Then head over to Buda to admire the frescoes and stained glass windows
inside the Gothic Matthias Church, where the final two Hungarian kings
were crowned; see Fishermen's Bastion overlooking the Danube, with its neo-Romanesque design; and explore the cobblestone streets of Castle Hill, offering more splendid views of the city. Following lunch accompanied by gypsy music at a local restaurant, peruse the offerings of Central Market Hall with a local guide; you may enjoy complimentary use of the hotel's spa if you wish, as the rest of your day is free in Budapest.
Day 8: Check out Bratislava en route to Vienna
Your Eastern Europe and Poland tour winds its way from Hungary through Slovakia en route to Austria. Stop in Slovakia's capital city of Bratislava to explore some 17
centuries worth of history on a walking tour with a local guide, have
lunch, and attend a lecture on the Slovak Republic. Then continue on to glorious Vienna, the Austrian capital and former center of the Habsburg empire, for a three-night stay the Hotel Bristol, Vienna – one of Europe's most celebrated hotels – where you'll enjoy dinner à la carte tonight.
Day 9: Vienna's fine arts, Schönbrunn Palace and strüdel-making
Drive along Vienna's famous Ringstrasse and the Danube River, and view the vast Habsburg art collections on a guided visit to the Museum of Fine
Arts (Kunsthistoriches).
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Then enjoy a gourmet cooking demonstration on how to make the city's famed strüdel – with a tasting, of course – at Schönbrunn Palace, built by Empress Maria Theresa to rival Versailles; boasting 1,400 rooms, including a Hall of Mirrors, it served as the summer residence for Austria's Habsburg emperors. Have lunch at the palace, and take a guided tour of its opulent State Apartments.
Day 10: A day of treasures and a music-filled night in Vienna
Take a walking tour through medieval Vienna, its historic Jewish quarter, and the courtyard of the Hofburg – also known as
the Imperial Palace – today Austria's presidential residence. Among the
many museums housed in this grand landmark is the Imperial Treasury (Schatzkammer); if you wish, see its crowns, religious relics and other Imperial treasures at your leisure, or spend the rest of the day as you please. This evening after dinner, attend a private concert featuring the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Strauss, held in a historic Viennese palace.
Day 11: Goodbye, Vienna and on to Prague
Depart Vienna and travel to Prague, the ancient capital of today's Czech Republic, where you'll spend three nights at the Kempinski Hybernská Prague, a former 15th-century Baroque palace in the heart of the city. Go on a walking tour of Old Town, linked to the castle district by the ornate Charles Bridge, lined with statues from centuries past; take in the astronomical clock, Jan Palach Square and other landmarks of this, one of Europe's best-preserved historic cities.
Day 12: Prague's magnificent Castle District
Explore Prague's Hradcany (castle) district today on a city tour; explore the remarkable complex of Prague Castle, one of the largest castles in the world. Built in the 9th century, it is the country’s traditional seat of power, and incorporates palaces, museums, monasteries, and halls for knighthood ceremonies. Visit the Cathedral of St. Vitus, the coronation site for Czech kings and queens, and enjoy an exclusive-to-Tauck, privately guided tour of the opulent Baroque libraries of Strahov Monastery before spending the afternoon and evening just as you please.
Day 13: Art & pageantry in Prague
Today's Prague sightseeing includes a walking tour of Wenceslas Square and a visit to the historic Estates Theatre, followed by a choice – an architectural tour of Prague highlighting its grand blend of styles from the medieval Town Hall to the Art-Nouveau Municipal House; or an exploration of the Jewish Quarter (Josefov), including the Old-New Synagogue, founded in the 13th century, and the Pinkus and Maisel synagogues (holidays permitting). This evening, join us for our exclusive farewell event at Lobkowicz Palace in Prague Castle, including a private tour of the palace's Princely Collections, a reception and a gala farewell dinner.
Day 14: Journey home
Tour ends in Prague, Czech Republic. A transfer is included from the Kempinski Hybernská Prague to Prague's Ruzyne International Airport.