The Great Rivers of Europe (2012)

Amsterdam, the Netherlands • Germany: Cologne, Koblenz, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Passau • Vienna, Austria
  • 15 days
  • from only:
  • $2295
  • $153 per day
    River Cruise Only
  • 16 days
  • from only:
  • $3095
  • $194 per dayIncludes international airfare and government taxes
IN THIS SECTION:
Detailed Itinerary
Video: Travelers' experiences of The Great Rivers of Europe
Oktoberfest: A Celebration 200 Years in the Making
It's Included
Hotel & Ship Accommodations
Pre- & Post-Trip Extensions
Brussels & Bruges, Belgium
Prague, Czech Republic
Vienna, Austria
Optional Tours
Local Team & Insider Tips
Know Before You Go
Your Travel Handbook
Air Information
LearnMore
Interested in learning more? Our Travel Counselors are ready to assist you
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Customize your trip

Learn how to customize your River Cruise, or view standard air routing and travel times. The choice is yours with our True Choice program.

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Customize your trip

With our True Choice Program, you can choose to stay longer before or after your trip on your own, or combine two vacations to maximize your value. Here are more ways to create the Grand Circle Cruise Line River Cruise that’s right for you:

  • Choose our standard air routing, or work with us to select the airline and routing you prefer
  • Make your own international flight arrangements directly with the airline, applying frequent flyer miles if available
  • International airport transfers to and from your ship or hotel are available for purchase
  • Stay overnight in a connecting city before or after your trip
  • Request to arrive a few days early to get a fresh start on your vacation
  • Choose to “break away” before or after your trip, spending additional days or weeks on your own
  • Extend your vacation with our optional pre- and post-trip extensions
  • Combine your choice of Grand Circle Cruise Line vacations to maximize your value
  • Upgrade to business or premium economy class

The air options listed above will involve an additional fee of $100 per person for confirmed requests (as well as incremental airfare costs based on your specific choice). This service fee will be waived for Inner Circle/Sir Edmund Hillary Club members.

Or, when you make your reservation, you can choose our standard air routing, for which approximate travel times are shown below.

(Vienna)

GATEWAY

TRAVEL TIME*

Atlanta, Detroit, Newark, Philadelphia, Washington, DC (Dulles)

13hrs

Boston, Chicago, New York (JFK)

12hrs

Dallas, Los Angeles, San FranciscO

15hrs

Denver

20hrs

Houston, Miami

14hrs

Minneapolis, Portland, OR

16hrs

* Estimated total time, including connection and layover. Actual travel time may vary.

The information above reflects approximate flight times from the gateway cities listed to Vienna, Austria. Routing is based on availability and subject to change. You will receive your final air itinerary approximately 14 days prior to departure.

(Amsterdam)

GATEWAY

TRAVEL TIME*

Atlanta, Detroit, Newark, Philadelphia, Washington, DC (Dulles)

13hrs

Atlanta, Miami, Minneapolis

9hrs

Boston, Houston

10hrs

Chicago, Dallas, Denver

13hrs

Detroit

8hrs

Los Angeles, Newark, New York (JFK), Portland, OR, San Francisco, Washington, DC (Dulles)

11hrs

Philadelphia

12hrs

San Diego

14hrs

* Estimated total time, including connection and layover. Actual travel time may vary.

The information above reflects approximate flight times from the gateway cities listed to Amsterdam, Netherlands. Routing is based on availability and subject to change. You will receive your final air itinerary approximately 14 days prior to departure.

REFER and EARN

Earn increasing rewards as a Vacation Ambassador

REFER and EARN as a Vacation Ambassador with
the BEST referral program in the industry

Inspiring new travelers to join the Grand Circle Cruise Line family is a rewarding experience—both for you and your new travelers.

Share your love of travel with others and, for each referral who embarks on a Grand Circle Cruise Line trip, you will earn $100 in CASH or credit. With your 4th referral departing on a 2012 departure, your reward increases to $200 in CASH or credit per person. And once you refer 8 travelers departing in either 2012 or 2013, you'll earn a FREE trip valued up to $4,500 per household—which will bring the total value of your earned rewards up to $5,600.

And you are also passing along savings to your new traveler: We'll instantly deduct $100 off the cost of their reservation when they mention your name and Customer Number while reserving.

To learn more about the benefits of our Vacation Ambassador Referral Program, please call us toll-free at 1-800-221-2610
or click here.

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Post-Trip: Prague, Czech Republic

4 nights from only $595

G16210N 

Join us on our optional post-trip extension and visit the “City of a Hundred Spires,” the name given to Prague for its many hilltop neighborhoods where rows of steeples stand out against the city’s skyline. This is an ancient city that is a new cultural capital for Eastern Europe. Prague is now a vibrant city, but much of its Old World charm remains. Wander about the city’s twisting cobblestone streets and old neighborhoods, where ancient houses crowd each other along narrow lanes. Experience the museums and cathedrals that make Prague stand out as one of Europe’s finest cities.

Single Supplement: FREE.

Please note: This extension may not be available on all departures. Ask your Travel Counselor for details.

Prague is a post-trip extension on the Amsterdam to Vienna itinerary and a pre-trip extension on the Vienna to Amsterdam itinerary.

It's Included

  • Accommodations—for 4 nights at the First-Class Dorint Hotel Don Giovanni
  • 6 meals—4 breakfasts, 1 lunch, 1 dinner
  • Sightseeing—Bratislava walking tour; Prague city tour; Prague Castle & St. Vitus
  • Exclusive services of a resident Grand Circle Program Director
  • All transfers


Optional Tours

Charm of the Czech Countryside ($80 per person); Sychrov Castle ($95 per person); Terezin ($70 per person)

Day 1
Vienna/Overland to Bratislava, Slovakia/Walking tour/Transfer to Prague, Czech Republic

Today you’ll transfer overland to Prague, Czech Republic. Along the way, you’ll stop off in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, for an included tour, free time, and lunch. You’ll arrive in Prague in the early evening. Your Program Director will be happy to suggest a restaurant where you can enjoy dinner on your own tonight.
Day 2
Prague/City tour with Prague Castle/Walking tour of Old Town/Optional Charm of the Czech Countryside tour

Take advantage of a guided tour through the city center. This morning’s tour will focus on two of Prague’s most memorable landmarks: its ancient castle and St. Vitus Cathedral. The Gothic cathedral and its enormous rose window sit entirely within Prague Castle, a centuries-old defensive structure that ranks as one of the largest castles in the world.

Prague’s regal beauty spreads on both sides of the winding Vltava River, connected by 16 picturesque bridges. Like Rome and San Francisco, the city is built over a series of hills, and its varied architecture spans many centuries. You’ll receive a subway ticket so you may explore the city and catch the rhythm of daily life in this cosmopolitan gem.

This afternoon is yours to spend as you please. Lunch is on your own.

Or, join us for a Charm of the Czech Countryside optional tour. You’ll head to the village of Nosalov, where you’ll be immersed in traditional Czech culture. After viewing local handicrafts, you’ll sit down for a three-course meal and a dancing show. Once the professionals clear the floor, you’re free to cut a rug yourself! Then it’s back to Prague.
Day 3
Prague/Optional Sychrov Castle tour

Spend this morningexploring Prague on your own. As it was during the zenith of the Bohemian kingdom, Prague still ranks as the thriving center of the country, with an artistic community reminiscent of Paris in the 1920s. Here you’ll find some of Europe’s best jazz venues, excellent opera, and innovative theater groups. Dinner is on your own tonight.

Or, you might want to join our optional tour of Sychrov Castle, the 18th-century residence of a noble family. During the last ten years or so, an extensive reconstruction and restoration of the manor house’s exteriors and interiors, as well as of the nearby park, has returned the Castle of Sychrov to its former glory. After a welcoming drink, enjoy an organ concert in the chapel of the palace, followed by a guided walk through the palace. You’ll have the opportunity to view the magnificent woodwork and lush interior of the huge manor. Relax with us over dinner before returning to the hotel in late evening. The cost of this optional tour includes dinner.
Day 4
Prague/Optional Terezin tour

Today you can continue exploring Prague at your own pace.

Or, join us on an optional excursion to visit the town of Terezin, site of the World War II concentration camp of Theresienstadt. This sobering visit will give you insight into the elaborate subterfuges and propaganda that the Nazi regime used to camouflage its “final solution” to the “Jewish problem.” The first transport of Jews was sent to Terezin in November of 1941. Over the course of the war, the town was transformed into a “model” ghetto called Theresienstadt. In reality, it served as a transit point to the Nazi death camps, and of the 135,000 people sent to this “model” ghetto, 33,000 died from starvation, torture, and disease. Another 87,000 inmates were transported to the death camps, and only 5% of these survived. Only 93 of Theresienstadt’s 15,000 children survived the war.

Many of these people were among Europe’s most gifted composers, writers, and artists, and despite inhuman living conditions, they struggled to create a thriving cultural community. The art, music, and literature created by the inmates of Theresienstadt serves as a permanent memorial to all those who were eventually killed. During the war, this community of talented artists served as a showplace to the world of the Nazi’s “humane” treatment of Jews. Gardens, playgrounds for children, and an outdoor music pavilion were constructed and used for a propaganda film and a humanitarian visit from the International Red Cross.

You can spend the rest of the afternoon pursuing your own interests. Tonight, you'll meet for a Farewell Drink at the hotel, followed by dinner at a local restaurant.
Day 5
Prague/Return to U.S.

After an early breakfast, transfer to the airport for your flight to the U.S.