Tuesday, December 7, 2010

A Christmas Exploration Of The Danube River

Last week's trip was a riverboat exploration on the Amazon river. My definition of an adventure is when you take a trip which exposes you to new wildlife, cultures and/or people. Today I will be discussing a trip which does not expose you to new wildlife but is still a great adventure in my book.

Today we will take a small ship which holds approximately 150 guests and take a holiday (Christmas) cruise down the Danube River. You could say this isn't an exploratory cruise. But, you will be learning about cultures and celebrations that are older than the United States.

Trips closer to Christmas allow you to visit the Christmas markets and witness bonfires along the river. This is a great trip for the family to learn about festivities in other countries. Each Christmas market offers it's own specialties based upon the people that live in the area. The decorations of each market are also very unique.

Here is the itinerary:

1 - Flight to Czech Republic

2 - Prague transfer to hotel

3 - Prague City Tour

4 - Prague transfer to Nuremberg. Board ship with welcome cocktails and dinner

5 - Nuremberg city tour, visit Christmas market, cruise main Danube Canal

6 - Regensburg walking tour, visit Christmas market

7 - Passau city walk, optional Salzburg excursion, Linz christmas market

8 - Melk Benedictine Abbey Tour, Wachau Valley Cruise

9 - Vienna morning city tour, visit Christmas market

10 - Budapest city tour, farewell dinner, gypsy music

11 - Budapest disembark

Seeing the Christmas fires along the river with celebrations older than the US is quite an experience. The Christmas markets are open close to Christmas and also a wonderful learning experience for everyone. I hope you have the time and money to make this trip and explore a very wonderful set of customs.

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