Grand European Cruise

Disembark during a stop in Gerlachshausen for a full-day optional tour of Rothenburg. This lovely old town sits on the Tauber River and boasts undamaged 14th-century city walls and beautifully preserved fortifications. Set off on a walking tour to see stately towers and imposing burghers’ houses. After an included lunch, the afternoon is yours to make your own discoveries before transferring to meet your ship.

Please note: Our combined bus and walking tour will be approximately 5 hours long and include cobblestones, uneven surfaces, and no options to sit down during the tour. 

Discover the fortified church of Vulcan today. Originally constructed in the 13th century as a Romanesque basilica, the building has been destroyed and rebuilt over the centuries, with a bell tower and wooden galleries built in the 16th century, and its ornate baptismal font added in the mid-17th century. You'll drive to the church from your hotel with your Program Director late this afternoon for an introductory tour of the Church’s impressive exterior and interior, before sitting down for a musical performance, featuring the reverberating tones of the church’s organ. You'll also enjoy dinner at the church, included in the cost of the tour.

Vienna without music wouldn’t be Vienna. So, subject to availability of tickets, you may want to enjoy an evening in one of Vienna’s famed concert halls, where you'll hear enchanting performances of some of the most wonderful melodies of classical Austrian music.

Bran Castle is often referred to as Dracula's Castle. Prince Vlad Tepes, the son of Vlad Dracul and the person who inspired Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula, used this castle as headquarters for his incursions into Transylvania. This 15th-century ruler became known as "Vlad the Impaler" for his practice of impaling enemies of the kingdom, which was greatly threatened by the Ottoman Turks at the time. Stoker's work of fiction drew inspiration from this bloody practice, the family name, and the castle-dotted mountain landscape of Transylvania.

You’ll see the interior and exterior of Bran Castle, which was built in 1377 to protect nearby Brasov from invaders and also served as a customs station. In 1920, the people of Brasov, who owned the castle, offered it as a gift to Queen Maria of Romania, and the castle soon became her favorite residence. This optional tour includes dinner.

Join us this afternoon and evening for an optional excursion to Flanders Fields, a museum commemorating World War I. You will travel to the city of Ypres, now known as the “City of Peace,” and visit the interactive Flanders Fields Museum, where you'll learn about the Great War and then tour the battlefields. After dinner at a local restaurant, you’ll visit the Menin Gate Memorial and listen to the buglers from the local fire brigade who play there every night in remembrance of those lost in the war. The cost of this optional excursion includes dinner.

Join us for an optional tour exploring Hungarian Jewish Heritage. The journey begins at the Great Synagogue, the largest in Europe, with its Moorish design further enhanced by Byzantine, Romantic, and Gothic elements. You'll also visit the Kazinczy Street Orthodox Synagogue, and the Emanuel Memorial Tree.

Today, you'll travel by motorcoach to Veliko Tarnovo, the capital of Bulgaria from 1186 until 1394. This cultural center rewards visitors with views of the fortification wall atop Zarevez Hill, the cobblestoned old city, ancient ruins, and a steep ravine plunging down from two towering promontories. Continue on to Arbanassi, a historical village of Bulgarian heritage. Its 80 houses, five churches, and two monasteries reflect a unique, fortress-like architectural style of the 17th and 18th centuries, when the village flourished. Enjoy free time to make your own discoveries, and savor typical Bulgarian fare at a local restaurant.

Please note: Today's optional tour will include cobblestones, uneven surfaces, and stairs with no handrails.

Discover the Palace of the Parliament, the seat of Romania’s national government. You’ll start by walking to Revolution Square, where you’ll meet your motorcoach driver for a taste of traditional Romanian chocolate, and a brief discussion about the history of this imposing building.

The Palace of the Parliament is the second largest administrative building in the world—and at a weight of around nine billion pounds, the world’s heaviest building. Dive into the controversial history of how the massive palace came to be under the Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. After an earthquake devastated the city in 1977, Ceausescu took advantage of the land and recruited 700 architects and around 1.5 million factory workers to complete the project.

Ceausescu passed away before the massive undertaking was finally finished in 1994, but you’ll have the opportunity to see the completed building when you drive to the palace for a guided tour of its storied halls. You’ll stroll past lavishly decorated hallways, offices, galleries, and conference rooms—originally meant for Communist Party officials, now used by the elected government—and get a sweeping view of Bucharest’s main square from the grand balcony. You’ll drive back to the hotel after your tour.

Please note: Today's tour includes climbing around 150 steps. If the Palace of Parliament is not available today, you may instead join an optional tour to the Spring Palace, the eccentrically-decorated home of the former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.