Tuesday
- YSA departure: Today we the USA on our trans-Atlantic jet to Europe.
Meals are served aloft.
Wednesday - Vienna:
Following our arrival in Vienna, we'll be greeted by our professional
tour manager and directed to our waiting motor coach. The afternoon
is free for your own explorations, before a welcome dinner tonight.
(D)
Thursday - Vienna:
This morning we'll be joined by our Viennese guide and begin our tour
of this elegant city. See the famous Opera House, the Parliament,
the ornate City Hall, and visit the magnificent Schonbrunn Palace,
summer palace of the Habsburgs, set in elegantly-designed gardens.
Here the sumptuously decorated rooms include the "Hall of Mirrors,"
where a six-year-old Mozart played for the Empress Maria Theresa.
The remainder of the afternoon is free to shop and explore on your
own. (CB)
Friday - Vienna
/ Esztergom /Budapest: After we cross the Hungarian border this morning,
we'll visit the city of Gyor - founded by the Romans and perhaps the
most delightful and complete baroque town in Europe. Continue East
through the region of Transdanubia, dotted with orchards and vineyards,
to the pilgrimage town of Esztergom. The city, which stands on the
site of an ancient Roman fortress, is the See of the Cardinal-Primate
of Hungary. The magnificent cathedral is the largest church structure
in the country. Arrive in Budapest in the late afternoon. Overnight
Budapest. (CB, D)
Saturday - Budapest:
Buda is the ancient city, first the site of Celtic settlements 2000
years ago, and today sprawling among the Buda Hills. Pest is the modern
city, balanced on the edge of the Great Hungarian Plain. This morning
we see the Old Fort, Fisherman's Bastion, the Former Royal Palace
and the great Coronation Church. The remainder of the day is at leisure.
This evening, we will enjoy a typical Hungarian dinner while listening
to the mystical music of gypsy violins. Again, we overnight in Budapest.
(CB, SD)
Sunday - Zakopane:
Leaving Hungary we motor through a narrow portion of Slovakia to the
Polish border. We cross the Tatra Mountains into the picturesque resort
village of Zakopane. The remainder of the afternoon will be at leisure
to browse on your own.Overnight Zakopane. (CB, D)
Monday - Zakopane
/ Krakow: After a leisurely morning in Zakopane, we travel through
rolling pastoral foothills to the formidable Barbicon guarding royal
Krakow - the seat of power for the Polish kings for five centuries.
We overnight in Krakow. (CB, D)
Tuesday - Krakow:
This morning we will tour Krakow's Wawel Cathedral and Castle. Later,
we visit the Market Square, Cloth Hall, St. Mary's ("Mariacki")
Church, and the Jagellonian - one of Europe's oldest universities.
The rest of the day is free to independently explore and absorb the
atmosphere of this delightful old capital. Overnight Krakow. (CB)
Wednesday - Wielicka
Salt Mines & Auschwitz Excursion: Today we take an excursion to
the 900 year old Wielicka Salt Mines - whose 17th century carvings
are testimony to Polish ingenuity and religious devotion. Later, we
will have a sobering visit to the former Nazi concentration camp of
Auschwitz - featured in the film, Schindler's List. Overnight in Krakow.
Tonight's special dinner will feature traditional Polish foods and
music. (CB, SD)
Thursday - Czestochowa
Excursion: Early this morning, we drive through the Pradnik Valley
- viewing some of the medieval castles perched on limestones cliffs.
We arrive in Czestochowa to visit Poland's most-venerated shrine of
the Black Madonna at Jasna Gora Monastery. The icon of Mary, dating
back almost 2000 years, is enshrined in the beautiful baroque monastery
chapel. We join in prayer with the thousands of pilgrims who come
here daily. Return to Krakow in the late afternoon. Overnight Krakow.
(CB, D)
Friday - Prague:
After breakfast, we say good-bye to Poland and motor into the Czech
Republic. We pass towns rich in Gothic, Renaissance and baroque styles,
and villages splashed with warmly painted timber homes. In the late
afternoon, we arrive in the "Golden City", Prague, for our
next two overnights. (CB, D)
Saturday - Prague:
Today's sightseeing features a walking tour of the "Old Town",
the medieval Hradcany Castle (former residence of Bohemian Kings),
and Wenceslaus Square. The afternoon will be a leisure. Tonight's
dinner will have Czech/Slavic flavors in food and music. (CB, SD)
Sunday - Prague
/ USA: This morning we'll begin our return journey home. Arrive in
the USA in the late afternoon. (CB)
CB
- Continental Breakfast
B - Breakfast
L - Lunch
D - Dinner
SD - Special Dinner
