Day 1Antwerp
Welcome to Antwerp. We will meet you at the airport and transfer you to your ship.* After boarding, enjoy free time to explore the city. (D)
Day 2Brugge & Antwerp
This morning, take a motorcoach tour to Brugge. See the medieval Béguinage courtyard and gardens, the Church of Our Lady, Gruuthuuze Palace and Simon Stevin Square. Enjoy a Belgian meal in a local restaurant, followed by free time. Dine aboard and depart late tonight. (B, L, D)
Day 3Delft & Schoonhoven
Ride to Delft, famous for its blue-and-white pottery. Stop at one of the last Delftware factories for a pottery demonstration. Then, see the Nieuwe Kerk and Prinsenhof on your guided tour. This evening, enjoy free time in Schoonhoven, known for its silversmithing. (B, L, D)
Day 4Gouda & Amsterdam
After breakfast, take a motorcoach to Hoogerwaard Cheese Farm† for a guided tour and cheese-making demonstration. Continue to Gouda, world-renowned for its cheese. See the Gothic Town Hall and St. John’s Church. Return to your ship and eat lunch aboard. Arrive in Amsterdam and enjoy a free evening. (B, L, D)
†On Sundays, Cheese Farm will be replaced by a Kinderdijk Windmills tour.
Day 5Amsterdam
This morning, enjoy a glass-topped canal cruise past merchant houses and the famed “Skinny Bridge.” Visit the Van Gogh Museum and explore works by the famed artist and his contemporaries. Enjoy free time. Lunch and dinner aboard. (B, L, D)
Day 6Arnhem
Arrive during breakfast in Arnhem and ride to the Dutch Royal Family’s former summer residence, Paleis Het Loo.† Tour the palace’s lavish rooms, then stroll through the picture-perfect gardens fashioned after those of Versailles. After lunch aboard, explore this quaint town rich in World War II history. Or, join the optional battlefield tour to the site of “Operation Market Garden” and the Airborne Museum. Dine aboard; evening departure. (B, L, D)
†Closed on Mondays; battlefield visit or museum tour will be substituted.
Day 7Cologne
After breakfast, your walking tour takes you past St. Martin’s Church to Cologne’s Old Town. Your guided tour visits the magnificent Gothic cathedral. Then tour a local brewery and sample the beer. Lunch and dinner are served aboard, but dockside there are many taverns, cafés and shops for you to explore. Dock overnight. (B, L, D)
Day 8Koblenz
This afternoon arrive in Koblenz and tour this 2,000-year-old city at the intersection of the Rhine and Moselle Rivers. Enjoy free time to explore its neoclassic architecture and many medieval churches. (B, L, D)
Day 9Cochem
After lunch, take a walking tour through this quaint village. See its medieval town gate and marketplace. Then, visit a winery and taste some local vintages. Return to your ship for dinner and an evening departure. (B, L, D)
Day 10Koblenz & Rüdesheim
After breakfast, visit 700-year-old Marksburg Castle and tour its museum. Lunch aboard as you cruise through the afternoon past legendary Lorelei Rock. Arrive in Rüdesheim and take a mini-train to tour Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Museum. Return to your ship and cruise through the night. (B, L, D)
Day 11Heidelberg & Speyer
After breakfast, take a motorcoach to Heidelberg, home to Germany’s oldest university founded in 1386. Your guided tour features imposing Heidelberg Castle, a red sandstone ruin overlooking the Neckar River. Continue with a walking tour through the Old Town and marketplace. Return to your ship for afternoon cruising to Speyer. Enjoy free time in this quiet German town. (B, L, D)
Day 12Strasbourg
After breakfast take a guided tour of Strasbourg. See the Place d’Austerlitz and European Parliament, and enjoy a guided visit inside the city’s famed cathedral. Free time allows you to further explore the old section of this French-German city. Dinner aboard; cruise through the night. (B, L, D)
Day 13Breisach
This morning, arrive in Breisach, gateway to the Black Forest. After breakfast, enjoy a motorcoach excursion through the area’s mountain landscape, meadows and dense forests and see a cuckoo clock-making demonstration. You have free time this afternoon. Or, join our optional guided walking tour of Colmar, a quaint Alsatian town. Dine aboard; cruise through the evening. (B, L, D)
Day 14Basel
After breakfast, join a tour of this multicultural city. See its historic Middle Bridge, cathedral and steep winding streets. Then, tour one of the city’s many art museums. Enjoy afternoon free time. Lunch and dinner are served aboard. (B, L, D)
Day 15Basel
After breakfast, disembark and we will take you to the Basel airport for your return flight.* (B)