Passage to Eastern Europe featuring Transylvania - 2022

Today you’ll board an overnight flight to Bucharest, Romania.

Arrive in Bucharest today. If you purchased your airfare from Vantage, our representative will meet you outside the arrivals area and assist with your transfer to your hotel in Bucharest. Tonight, attend a Welcome Briefing and enjoy a drink before a Welcome Dinner at the hotel.

Venture into Transylvania, the mountainous, legend-haunted region in central Romania. Once you set foot here, you’ll realize why it’s known as the last medieval landscape in Europe.

On the way, stop for lunch in Sinaia, a mountain town so beautiful, King Carol I built his family’s summer home here. You’ll see this delightful fairy-tale retreat, Peles Castle, on an included tour. The castle is described as “neo-Renaissance” but it incorporates a delightful and almost playful variety of international decorative styles, reflecting the royal family’s personal tastes. You’ll return to Bucharest in the afternoon. Dinner is included at your hotel.

Vantage Exclusive:

• Stop for lunch in the beautiful mountain town of Sinaia and visit Peles Castle

Today we’ll set off on a panoramic tour of Bucharest, exploring this city's grand monuments and leafy, old-world boulevards, with a choice of entrances at two of the city's landmarks. You can visit the infamous People’s Palace, the grandiose, sprawling, and never-completed administrative building initiated by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. Alternatively, take a fascinating walking tour of Manuc’s Inn, Bucharest’s oldest hotel building, which was built as a way station for caravans and surrounds a large open courtyard. After lunch, we’ll transfer by coach to Giurgiu and embark our river ship. Tonight, a local folk ensemble provides traditional music during our first dinner.

Included Feature:

• Visit the infamous People’s Palace, or take a walking tour of Manuc’s Inn
• Enjoy an evening of folk entertainment

• Morning yoga and stretching, offered throughout the duration of your cruise
• Optional early risers’ breakfast in the Captain’s Club, offered throughout the duration of your cruise
• Chess, shuffleboard, track, spa, and other amenities

Today offers another high point of your journey when you spend a full day in Veliko Tarnovo, a 12th-century Bulgarian capital where colorful houses perch above the winding Yantra River. Have lunch with local university students in Veliko Tarnovo before heading to the 16th-century village of Arbanassi for a lovely Eastern Orthodox choir performance at the Church of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel.

Later, some local children come on board for a delightful dance performance. After that, we’ll learn about the Bulgarian tradition of icon painting from a local artist, and then meet a local Orthodox priest. Dinner will be on board this evening.

The bulk of today will be spent at leisure as we sail toward Belgrade, giving you plenty of time to take advantage of your ship’s many amenities.

As you cruise this morning, a lecture on “Bulgaria, Romania, and the Expansion of the European Union” offers some contemporary context to our journey. Just before lunch, we'll fire up the BBQ on the sun deck for a festive Balkan-style cooking demo, weather permitting. Our dish? Cevapcici, or traditional Balkan sausages.

This evening, gather with your fellow travelers for a Captain's Gala Dinner on board.

Cultural Connections:

• Lecture Series: "Romania, Bulgaria & the EU"
• Balkan BBQ on the sun deck (weather permitting)

Enjoy a morning of scenic cruising as you pass through some Danube locks with insightful narration. It’s complemented by an afternoon of cultural discovery.

Relax on deck this morning and enjoy the views as your river cruise passes through one of the most dramatic and beautiful stretches of the Danube River, the series of gorges known as the Iron Gates. This dramatic 86-mile stretch was once treacherous to pass, creating a formidable barrier to invaders with its rocky gorges and caves. Keep an eye out for the likeness of Decebalus, a Dacian ruler and Romanian national hero who fought the Romans. His face is carved into a cliff near the city of Orsova. As your ship passes through two sets of locks, you’ll hear commentary from the bridge describing the process.

After lunch you’ll take a walking tour of charming Donji Milanovac, where you’ll visit the Church of St. Nikolas and peek into the local elementary school.  

Included Feature:

• Take a walking tour of charming Donji Milanovac

Begin your day with an enlightening lecture on present-day Serbia to help welcome you to historic Belgrade. You will see the Renaissance this capital city has undergone in recent years to embrace a tumultuous past and rise above the ashes into redevelopment and modern life. Visit the Kalemegdan Fortress and the Church of Saint Sava, among the largest buildings in Christianity.

In the afternoon, celebrate Belgrade’s spirit with a vibrant pub crawl. Then continue the festivities into the evening with some fun local folk entertainment, including a Salt & Bread welcome via traditionally dressed Serbians and an accordion player.

Included Feature:

• Half-day city tour of Belgrade

• Onboard lecture: Serbia Today
• Pub crawl through town
• Local folk-style entertainment, including Salt & bread welcome, traditional dress and music

• Explore the sites along Belgrade’s River Sava with an easy and flat 11-mile route. Click here for details

As we make landfall in Croatia today, prepare for two memorable experiences.

Today you’ll immerse yourself in three different aspects of Croatian life. First, learn about the monastic tradition when you visit a Franciscan monastery. Then you’ll ride to the neo-baroque Eltz Manor, a 19th-century palace that hosts the Vukovar City Museum. The highlight will be your visit to the home of a local Croatian family, where you’ll enjoy a lively cultural exchange — not to mention a delicious home-cooked lunch. We’ll break into smaller groups, each one visiting a different household for a more intimate experience.

Late this afternoon, enjoy an onboard folk music performance by a local tamburitza orchestra. After dinner, more music awaits you when a local band comes on board to take you through the history of 20th-century popular music.

Vantage Exclusive:

• Home-hosted Croatian lunch and cultural exchange in Vukovar

• Learn about the monastic tradition when you visit a Franciscan monastery
• Explore the 19th-century Eltz Manor, a Neo-Baroque palace that hosts the Vukovar City Museum

• Enjoy entertainment onboard with a folk music performance by a local tamburitza orchestra

After an early breakfast you’ll depart for a full day of exploration.

Transfer by coach to charming Pécs in the foothills of the Mecsek Mountains. Here, you’ll set off on a walking tour that includes a visit to the city’s UNESCO-listed Sopianae Necropolis, a Roman-era Christian burial site that harkens back to the 4th century. Built as underground burial chambers with above-ground chapels, these tombs are richly decorated with religious murals. Your visit involves some walking but if you prefer, as an alternative you may sign up in advance to enjoy an hour-long panoramic city tour by mini-train. We’ll all convene in town for lunch in a local restaurant.

Transfer by coach to the pretty main square of Kalocsa, a Hungarian folk arts town, and enter the local cathedral for an organ concert. Next, your city tour includes folk art workshops where you’ll try your hand at egg painting, embroidery, and the making of traditional Hungarian paprika bread. You’ll taste some local treats, too, before transferring back to your ship for dinner on board and a relaxing evening.

Included Features:

• City tour of Kalocsa
• Visit charming Pécs in the foothills of the Mecsek Mountains. Then journey to UNESCO-listed Sopianae Necropolis, a 4th century Roman-era Christian burial site, or opt instead for an hour-long panoramic city tour by mini-train (advance sign up required)

• Folk art work shop in Kalocsa including paprika bread making, egg painting, and embroidery

Divided by the Danube, Budapest is actually two cities—Buda and Pest—and its entire urban landscape has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today you’ll have two choices for included sightseeing here:

Explore the best of historic Pest, beginning with an inside visit to St. Stephen’s Basilica, the most important church in the country. Named for Hungary’s first king, it stands 314 feet high, and by ordinance no other building in Budapest may surpass its height. You’ll also see City Park; Heroes’ Square with its stirring monument to the seven Magyar chieftains; and elegant Andrássy Avenue, lined with neo-Renaissance palaces and homes. Your tour also offers a peek at the iconic Parliament building, which you’ll explore in-depth tomorrow.

If you choose to forego today’s Pest tour, as an alternative you can join your Concierge for a sensory experience like none other: a visit to the Central Market Hall, Budapest’s oldest and largest indoor market. Dedicated to all things culinary, it has a lively fish market and pickled vegetable stalls in the basement; a ground floor for produce, baked goods, meats, cheeses, candies, spices, and spirits; and an upper level lined with eateries and souvenir shops. Eye-popping displays, heavenly aromas, the sounds of hawkers and sizzling grills, the feel of being immersed in daily life, and of course, the mouthwatering tastes, will leave you quite satisfied.

The afternoon is free for you to explore on your own, borrow one of the 20 bikes on board to cycle around Budapest.

Back on the ship this evening, enjoy a folk music and dance show.

Included Feature:

• Tour the best parts of Pest, including St. Stephen’s Basilica, City Park, Heroes’ Square, elegant Andrássy Avenue, and the iconic parliament building

• Join in with folk music and a dance show onboard this evening, Eastern European-style

Arguably Budapest’s most historic building, the Parliament towers over the Danube with its intriguing blend of architectural styles and 365 spires — one for every day of the year.

Tour the inside of the Parliament building in this Vantage-exclusive experience that allows us fast-track entrance. We’ll also explore Castle Hill to enjoy the turrets and lookouts of Fisherman’s Bastion.

Vantage Exclusive:

• Fast-track to enter the iconic Parliament building

• Explore the 19th century Castle Hill

• Enjoy the most magnificent sites of Budapest, including Freedom Bridge, Chain Bridge, and the Hungarian Parliament Building during a medium-paced 9-mile route. Click here for details.

Transfer to the Budapest airport today for your return flight home; or, head to Warsaw and Krakow for your optional post-trip extension.