CRUISE AND STAY
FROM BUDAPEST TO BELGRADE
aboard Spirit of the Danube
8 nights FULL BOARD from £1749
– see pages 144-149 for details
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Includes insurance and cancellation cover§ Price reduction available if not required.
SPIRIT OF THE DANUBE THE DANUBE
Combine a stay in Budapest with a cruise along the Danube.
Golubac Fortress, Serbia
Your stay Day 1: UK to Budapest. Fly to Hungary’s capital where you’ll stay two nights with breakfast included at the locally rated 4-star Hilton Garden Inn Budapest Hotel (4Q) in downtown Budapest, near St Stephen’s Basilica and just over a mile away from the Hungarian State Opera House and Hungarian Parliament building. Day 2: Budapest. This morning there is a choice of included excursions: a city tour that will introduce you to the main attractions of Budapest, from UNESCO-listed Buda Castle on the west bank, to the Hungarian Parliament buildings in Pest on the east bank; or an included culinary-themed walking tour to the First Strudel House and Central Market Hall. Spend the afternoon at leisure, returning to your hotel this evening.
Your river cruise Day 3: Budapest. Enjoy breakfast at your hotel and spend the morning at leisure. This afternoon you’ll embark your ship, Spirit of the Danube, and can look forward to your welcome drink reception and dinner on board this evening. Your ship remains moored here overnight.
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Day 4: Budapest This morning you’ll have the opportunity to join an optional excursion which focuses on Budapest’s Art Nouveaux movement and includes a guided tour of the Ráth György Villa. Your ship departs early this afternoon and will continue cruising for the rest of the day, bound for Vukovar. Day 5: Vukovar. During breakfast this morning you’ll arrive in Vukovar, the largest Croatian town and river port on the Danube. Vukovar was a thriving town before the Yugoslav War and its unscathed belle époque architecture can be compared with shell-scarred buildings preserved in memoriam, during your visit here. An optional excursion visits the Ovcara Memorial. Set sail this evening and sail overnight towards Donji Milanovac. Day 6: Donji Milanovac. Shortly after lunch you’ll arrive in the town of Donji Milanovac, on the banks of the Danube in the midst of the Djerdap National Park, the largest, and possibly most beautiful, of Serbia’s five national parks. The region has a rich history, and this afternoon, an included excursion visits the Lepenski Vir Mesolithic site, revealing a series of villages and rock carvings dating back to 6400 BC
Contact your preferred travel agent
and the earliest examples of ‘monumental’ sculptures. Your ship moors here overnight. Day 7: Donji Milanovac to the Iron Gates. Spirit of the Danube sets sail early this morning and later will sail through a particularly scenic stretch of the Danube – the world-famous Iron Gate gorge, between Romania and Serbia, the largest and longest in Europe, and the Iron Gates is the narrowest and deepest part. Head out on deck and see how the ship manoeuvres through two locks by the Djerdap power station. Continue sailing overnight towards the village of Golubac. Day 8: Golubac to Belgrade. An early arrival in Golubac enables you to spend the morning on an included visit to the medieval fortress, which stands guard over the entrance to the Iron Gates and was first mentioned in a Hungarian charter issued in 1337. Spirit of the Danube will continue sailing in the early afternoon towards Belgrade, arriving this evening. Day 9: Belgrade-UK. Disembark after breakfast and transfer to the airport for your return flight.
