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10 Days Holland & Belgium in Spring - Northbound Tour Package
Duration: Days / Nights
Priced From: $3,490 pp Dbl. Occ.
Dates: Apr, May
Revel in the vivid colors of spring in the Netherlands and Belgium during a riverboat cruise through centuries-old inland waterways aboard Swiss Sapphire or Swiss Emerald. View windmills standing sentinel over lush landscapes, and visit beautiful Keukenhof Gardens. Take a canal boat ride through the medieval town of Bruges, and experience the past at the Zuiderzee Museum. Taste Belgian beer, learn how Belgian chocolate and Dutch cheese are made, and enjoy a memorable interactive culinary experience at the only terraced castle in the Netherlands – a n Exclusive! Visit two renowned art museums and two World War II sites, and tour Brussels, Amsterdam, and Antwerp on one of our popular European river cruises.
Tour Itinerary
• Indicates day of cruising
Day 1: Brussels highlights
Tour begins at 6:00 p.m. at Hotel Amigo. Upon arrival, a transfer is included from Brussels Airport to the Hotel Amigo, your five-star center-city hotel adjacent to Grand Place, among the most beautiful market squares in Europe. Tonight, join us for a welcome reception and dinner to kick off one of our enjoyable European River cruises.
Meals: Dinner
Lodging: Hotel Amigo, Brussels, Belgium
• Day 2: Bruges beckons
Journey to historic Bruges, one of Europe’s best-preserved medieval cities and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. View its celebrated architecture on a walking tour through cobbled lanes, and a boat cruise along quaint canals and under arched bridges. After free time in this fascinating city, travel to Antwerp, where you'll board your riverboat and sample Belgian beer and cuisine at dinner.
Meals: Breakfast, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
• Day 3: Antwerp & the Albert Canal
See Antwerp’s grand railway station, opera house, and city park on this most enjoyable of European river cruises. Visit a museum in the reconstructed home of renowned 17th-century artist Peter Paul Rubens, and discover the secrets of Belgian chocolate making at a local chocolatier. Enjoy the riverboat views from the sun deck or lounge as you cruise the Albert Canal from Belgium into the Netherlands. Join the ship’s Captain for a welcome reception. Note: Cruises of 4/4, 4/18, 4/25 & 5/2 will not visit the Peter Paul Rubens House in Antwerp due to weekly closures.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
• Day 4: Magic of Maastricht
Explore the Old Town of Maastricht, Netherlands, including the 16th-century Spanish Government House, and Helpoort, an entry through the medieval town wall built in 1229. Visit the 1,000-year-old Sint-Servaasbasiliek (Basilica of St. Servatius), one of the oldest churches in the Netherlands. Pay respects at the Netherlands American Cemetery, final resting place of thousands of U.S. World War II soldiers. For lunch today, enjoy an Exclusive – an interactive culinary experience at Château Neercanne, a castle whose garden terraces are protected by UNESCO. You'll don a chef's hat and visit the kitchen before an extraordinary meal is served to you in a grotto of the castle.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
• Day 5: Maas River cruising & antiquities
Cruise the Maas River through the beautiful Dutch countryside. Arrive in Nijmegen, the Netherlands' oldest town. Explore the ancient ruins of Valkhof, Charlemagne’s 8th-century stronghold, and the artifact-filled Museum Het Valkhof. See Sint-Stevenskerk, a 14th-century church, and the Grote Markt. Note: Cruise of 4/25 will not visit the Valkhof due to Queen's Day closures.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
• Day 6: WWII & architecture, or nature & van Gogh
Choose between two excursions today. You can visit the World War II Airborne Museum in a former Allied headquarters in Oosterbeek, and then take a walking tour of the old Hanseatic town of Deventer. Alternatively, you can visit De Hoge Veluwe National Park, the country’s largest nature reserve, and then peruse works by Vincent van Gogh and others at the Kröller-Müller Museum within the park in Arnhem. This most delightful of European river cruises continues as you travel along the picturesque banks of the Lek and Rhine Rivers.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
• Day 7: Historic villages & windmills
Dock in Enkhuizen, a picturesque seaside town. Visit the Zuiderzee Museum, a reconstructed 19th-century fishing village with costumed guides, recreating "south sea" life as it was over a century ago. In the afternoon, choose between shore excursions – either a walking tour of Hoorn, a historic port town with intact 16th- and 17th-century houses, or visits to the Schermer Museum Windmill and the Zeezicht cheese farm for a cheese-making demonstration.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
• Day 8: The blooms of Amsterdam
Journey to Keukenhof Gardens in Lisse where millions of blooming tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths create colorful carpets of flowers. Explore the treasures of Amsterdam on your own in the afternoon, from historic sites within its medieval core to the gabled houses lining its 17th-century canals. On this final night of your cruise, we invite you to join us for the Captain's farewell reception and dinner on the riverboat.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Cruising aboard the Riverboat
Day 9: Amsterdam sightseeing
This most memorable of European river cruises draws to a close as you disembark your riverboat in Amsterdam for an overnight stay in the Dutch capital. Admire masterpieces by Rembrandt and other Old Dutch Masters at the world-renowned Rijksmuseum, and take a luncheon canal cruise through the city's picturesque canals.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch
Lodging: Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Day 10: Journey home
Tour ends in Amsterdam, Netherlands. A transfer is included from the Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel to Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. Allow 2 1/2 hours for departure flight check-in. Inquire at booking about additional hotel nights in Amsterdam or Brussels.
Meals: Breakfast
Save time, money and stress!
For reservations: Fill out the vacation planner to be contacted by our Europe River Cruise vacation specialist.
Contact: Travelwizard.com
Phone: 1-800-330-8820 or 1-415-446-5252
5/09
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