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2008 Departure
May 8*
May 15
Jun 5*
Jun 12
Jun 13*
Jun 20
Jul 25*
Jul 31*
Aug 1
Aug 7

MS Swiss Emerald

1-888-942-3301

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Chart a leisurely course along the romantic Danube River aboard Tauck's luxury riverboats Swiss Sapphire or Swiss Emerald, exploring rich cultural legacies. Cruise by medieval monasteries, citadels, and villages, and through the Iron Gate. Enjoy a horse-drawn carriage ride, and see performances of folkloric dancing and horsemanship skills. Examine fascinating museums of fine art, traditional homesteads, folk art, and paprika. Visit the island where the orginal Dracula is said to be entombed, and put your feet in the Black Sea. One of several Danube cruises from Tauck, this journey travels through Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania, with two nights on land in Budapest and Bucharest.

Eastbound: Begins Budapest shown below / Westbound: Begins in Bucharest - call to request a copy of the itinerary
• Indicates day of cruising

1. Arrive Budapest
Tour begins: 6:00 PM, Budapest, Hungary. Transfers are included from Budapest’s Ferihegy Airport to your hotel, centrally located within a landmark building in the heart of Pest, close to Budapest’s main business and shopping districts and historic sites. We invite you to join us for a welcome dinner in the hotel tonight. Meals D

2. Explore Pest
Hungary’s capital is divided by the Danube River into two sections, Buda and Pest. Begin your discovery of Pest today with a visit to the State Opera House. Continue exploring the city’s mix of architectural masterpieces and historic monuments, viewing City Park, Heroes’ Square, the Castle of Vajdahunyad, Central Market Hall, the neo-Gothic Parliament building, and tree-lined Andrassy Avenue. Meals BD

3. Discover Buda / Embark Riverboat
Following a morning at leisure in one of Europe’s most fashionable cities, take a guided walking tour of Buda that includes Castle Hill, featuring Fishermen’s Bastion overlooking the Danube, and 700-year-old Matthias Church, with its Gothic spire and multicolored tile roof. Board Swiss Emerald for the start of your Danube River cruise, setting off for Solt. Meals BD

4. Solt / Kalocsa
Take a horse-drawn carriage ride to the Equestrian Center, where local craftsmen, folkloric entertainers and traditional Puszta horsemen demonstrate their time-honored cultural traditions. Cruise to Kalocsa this afternoon, as celebrated for its paprika and folk art as for its turbulent history. Visit the Paprika House, view fine embroidery at the 18th-century Folk House Museum, and see the Library in the Bishop’s Palace, said to be one of the finest libraries in Europe. Meals BLD

5. Cruise to Croatia
Diverse events and cultural influences have contributed to Croatia’s storied history, poignantly illustrated in the 10th-century Baroque city of Vukovar; once renowned for its elegant 18th-century mansions, today it symbolizes the effects of the 1990s Serbian war. Continue on to the fortified city of Osijek, dating back to Roman times. Visit the Tvrda Citadel, standing guard over the city for centuries, and the medieval Church of the Holy Cross. Cruise to Serbia this afternoon. Meals BLD

6. Belgrade, Serbia’s Capital
Awaken dockside in Belgrade, the cosmopolitan capital of modern Serbia, which lies at the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers. See bustling Slavija Square, the city’s main square, which as late as the 1880s was the site of a large pool where Belgrade citizens hunted wild ducks! Sightseeing today includes Parliament, City Hall, Republic Square, the National Theatre and the National Museum of Serbia. Meals BLD

7. Iron Gate of Romania
Spend a relaxing day cruising the Danube River through the scenic heartland of Eastern Europe, past fields and vineyards tended by local farmers, en route to Bulgaria. Pass through the Kazan Narrows and the Iron Gate, where the Danube courses down from the towering Carpathian Mountains. Enjoy spectacular views of the Transylvanian Alps, perhaps viewing the stone pillars still standing from Roman Emperor Trajan’s Bridge, the first bridge built across the Danube, dating to AD 103-105. Meals BLD

8. Welcome to Bulgaria
Have breakfast aboard the riverboat as you cruise into Svishtov, Bulgaria, whose roots stretch back to a Roman colony, for cultural excursions into nearby Bulgarian towns. Travel to Veliko Turnovo, the medieval capital of Bulgaria, with its ancient walled fortress and castle nestled atop three hills surrounding the Yantra River; view artisans at work in local shops. Visit the 16th-century Nativity Church in neighboring Arbanassi. Meals BLD

9. Beaches of Romania
Cruise to Cernavoda, Romania this morning for an excursion to the resort city of Constanta. Visit a seaside resort in Mamaia on the Black Sea coast, where gently sloping beaches, calm waters and fine soft sand invite relaxation, and enjoy historic sites dating back to Roman times. Please join us for the Captain’s farewell reception and dinner aboard the riverboat tonight. Meals BLD

10. Disembark Ship / Bucharest
Disembark the ship in Cernavoda and travel through the Romanian countryside to Bucharest for a two-night stay. Explore the city on a sightseeing tour that includes Revolution Square, the 17th-century hilltop Patriarchal Cathedral, and the granite Triumphal Arch, erected in 1935 to commemorate Romania’s victory in World War I. Meals BLD

11. Transylvania / Snagov Monastery
Choose a full day excursion to Transylvania to tour fairy-tale Peles Castle in Sinaia; or spend the morning visiting nearby Snagov Monastery, the reputed burial place of Vlad the Impaler – the original Dracula – and return to Bucharest for a tour of the massive Parliamentary Palace (also known as The People’s Palace), completed in 1989 as the second-largest building in the world after the Pentagon. Enjoy dinner tonight at your landmark hotel, the Athénée Palace Hilton Bucharest – a living piece of Bucharest history since 1914, lovingly restored and recently named Romania’s Leading Hotel. Meals BLD

12. Journey Home
Tour ends: Bucharest, Romania. A transfer to the Bucharest Airport is included; allow 21⁄2 hours for flight check-in. Ask about additional nights in Bucharest (or Budapest) upon booking. Meals B

Click on the map above for a large image

Night 1,2 Le Méridien Budapest
Budapest, Hungary

Night 3-9 Aboard MS Swiss Emerald or MS Swiss Sapphire
Cruising the Danube River

Night 10,11 Athénée Palace Hilton Bucharest
Bucharest, Romania