Balkan Explorer Tour Aboard Golden Eagle

Day 1 – Venice

Arrivals day in Venice where you will be met and transferred to the luxurious five-star Danieli hotel for a two-night stay. The legendary hotel enjoys a spectacular location and is only a short stroll from St Mark’s Square, the Doge’s Palace and the Bridge of Sighs. Today is at leisure for all guests to explore this wonderful city. This evening you will enjoy a welcome reception and dinner, giving you the opportunity to meet your fellow travelers.

Day 2 – Venice

Venice is a truly captivating city of romance; its unrivalled beauty takes away the breath of first time visitors and regulars alike. Today you will have the opportunity to take a walking tour around the highlights of this spectacular city. Walk through the winding lanes beside the Grand Canal to St Mark’s Square, which for 1,000 years was the heart of Venetian life. You also see St Mark’s Basilica and stroll through the Rialto Market.

Spend the rest of the day exploring this magnificent city. For a truly iconic experience, take a gondola ride (additional charge) in the Basin of St. Mark’s and along the Grand Canal followed by a short stroll through the artists’ district of Dorsoduro, where you will stop to take in the city’s most breath-taking views from the Academia Bridge, before returning to your hotel.

Day 3 – Trieste

This morning you transfer from the hotel, by boat, directly to Santa Lucia station on the Grand Canal. Here our private train, the Golden Eagle Danube Express, is ready to receive us. Mid-morning the train will thread its way out Santa Lucia station onto the 3-mile causeway over the Venice Lagoon and on to on our first stop at the Italian port city of Trieste, for an afternoon tour. Stop at the vast Piazza Unita d’Italia, the main town square, and can climb the hill to the famous Church of San Giusto built around a medieval complex that dates backs to the 13th century. You will go inside the church for a close-up view of the splendid Byzantine-style architecture enriched with precious mosaics.

Day 4 – Ljubljana & Zagreb

Ljubljana is a delightful city, a combination of ancient architecture and a youthful culture. Our morning city tour includes visits to Preseren Square, Three Bridges, Dragon Bridge and Plecnik Market. You enjoy lunch back onboard the train as you travel onwards towards Croatia’s elegant capital Zagreb.

This afternoon you will tour Zagreb, a central European city with over 900 years of documented history. You will take a walking tour of the upper town and ‘Kapitol’ (the ancient town centre), which abounds in Baroque atmosphere and cultural monuments. You will also see the ornate buildings of the loyour town and its wide boulevards.

Day 5 – Sarajevo & Mostar

Early morning arrival into the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo which is an intriguing blend of Eastern and Youstern culture; it has mosques and minarets, an ancient bazaar and an atmospheric old Turkish quarter. Discover the city’s poignant history through a truly absorbing tour detailing the horrors of the Balkan War. Sarajevo suffered from the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare. The scars of war are still evident as you travel past war-torn buildings and you make a special visit to the Tunnel Museum under Sarajevo Airport. Your guide, who lived through the 1992-1996 conflict, brings to life in touching fashion the struggles the citizens of Sarajevo faced during the siege of the city.

Following a light lunch in Sarajevo, this afternoon you travel along a very scenic line to the historic city of Mostar, the crossroads of many civilizations, cultures and three religions. Mostar was one of the most important cities of the Ottoman Empire. The town’s renowned stone arch bridge linking the Christian and Muslim areas was re-built in the summer of 2004. You also visit Turkish House and the mosque before walking through the narrow, bazaar streets, where you can shop for traditional souvenirs and handicrafts.

From Mostar you continue onto the stunning walled city of Dubrovnik where you enjoy dinner and an overnight at the five-star Hilton Dubrovnik. The Hilton is a 100-year-old grand hotel on the doorstep of Dubrovnik’s medieval Old Town. This stately hotel is just outside Pile Gate, the main entrance to the Old Town and a two-minute walk to the seafront. It offers great views of the old city and Adriatic beyond.

Day 6 – Dubrovnik

Since its foundation in the 13th century Dubrovnik has been attacked many times but it is now restored as one of the great cities of the Mediterranean, essentially unchanged for 700 years. You will tour the city travelling through Ploce Gate to visit the Franciscan Monastery with one of the world’s oldest pharmacies, the Old Harbour, St Laurence Fortress and the Rector’s Palace. You have lunch overlooking the Adriatic and have free time to wander the narrow streets. Mid-afternoon you head back to the train in Mostar for dinner as you depart towards Serbia.

Day 7 – Belgrade

Arrive this morning in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, the former Yugoslavian capital. Located at the strategic meeting point of the Danube and Sava Rivers, this truly cosmopolitan city has fortifications from Celtic times, medieval tombs and Turkish baths. You spend a full day here and our city tour includes the ‘House of Floyours’ – the mausoleum of Josip Tito, the Town Hall, Republic Square and Knez Mihajlova Street, as well as ‘Varos’ Gate and a visit to the mighty Kalemegdan Fortress.

Day 8 – Skopje & Thessaloniki

This morning you arrive in the little-visited Skopje and discover a city where the Ottoman influences are still strong. Explore the narrow streets of the Old Town with tiny shops and mosques with ceramic-tiled interiors. Meander through the Old Bazaar area, brimming with things to buy, and cross the 15th-century Stone Bridge which links the bazaar to the modern town.

You return to the train for lunch onboard and continue through the afternoon crossing into Greece for an early evening arrival into Thessaloniki. You soak up the evening atmosphere of this vibrant city by heading to Aristotelous Square, and will enjoy an al-fresco Mediterranean seafood dinner.

Day 9 – Sofia & Plovdiv

The site of Bulgaria’s modern capital, at the foot of Mt Vitosha, Sofia was first occupied by the Thracian tribe of Serdi. On our morning tour you will visit sections of the Roman wall, admire the ancient church of St George, the golden domed Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and the Turkish Bashi Mosque.

You enjoy lunch on the train as you travel from Sofia to Plovdiv. The second largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia, ‘The City of Seven Hills’ is one of the oldest cities in Europe with more than 200 known archaeological sites. You spend the afternoon here exploring the Roman Forum and Amphitheatre. You’ll visit the charming Old Town including its medieval walls and Ottoman baths.

Day 10 – Istanbul

This morning you arrive into Istanbul where you stay two nights at the iconic five-star Pera Palace Hotel Jumeirah. The hotel was built in 1892 to cater for guests taking the Orient Express and it was here that Agatha Christie wrote her famous book ‘Murder on the Orient Express’. A fitting Grand Hotel to end our tour.

Note: Continuing engineering works associated with the new Bosphorus tunnel could mean that the train stops on the outskirts of Istanbul and our buses will transport us to the city centre.

This fabled city that spans Asia and Europe is our final stop on our tour so there is ample time to see how old meets new, east meets west when you visit Istanbul’s must-see historic sites. One of the most famous monuments in both the Turkish and Islamic worlds, the Sultan Ahmet Mosque (the Blue Mosque) is a superb creation in the classical Ottoman style and features six towering minarets and 260 windows illuminating its vast main chamber, which is decorated with more than 20,000 Iznik tiles.

Now a museum, Hagia Sophia was built in the 6th century by the Emperor Justinian, and was one of the largest basilicas in the Christian world. After the Ottoman conquest, it was converted to a mosque and is today one of the most magnificent museums in the world. Take a moment to linger here to admire the fine Byzantine mosaics.

This afternoon is at leisure for all guests to explore this wonderful city, or relax at this luxurious hotel and spa.

Day 11 – Istanbul

Today you visit the crown jeyoul of the Ottoman Empire, Topkapi. This stunning palace is the largest and oldest in the world and was the primary residence of the Ottoman Sultans from 1465 to 1853. With its treasury and exotic buildings overlooking the Golden Horn, your visit to Topkapi promises to be a truly fascinating experience.

You’ll also visit the Grand Bazaar which is one of the world’s largest covered markets, with 58 streets and over 4,000 shops. In operation since the 14th century the bazaar is especially known for its jewelry, leather, pottery, spices and carpets.

Day 12 – Istanbul

Following breakfast you will be transferred to the airport for onward departures. There is also an option to extend your stay in Istanbul for additional nights to explore more of this fascinating city.