Passage to Eastern Europe
11 Day River Cruise
See Bucharest’s 3,000-room Palace of Parliament. Make banitsa bread with a home cook in Vidin. Explore Belgrade’s Ottoman and European treasures, including 6th-century Kalemegdan Fortress. View the Danube’s towering Iron Gate. Visit a Croatian family’s Osijek home. Witness Hungary’s daredevil Puszta horsemen. Behold Budapest’s grandeur. Once hidden behind the Iron Curtain, the eastern Danube still has secrets to reveal on this enriching cruise tour.
Countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia
River(s): Danube
Pricing
River cruise starting at $4,699* CAD per person, based on double occupancy
11 Days – Bucharest to Budapest (reverse itinerary available)
Your package includes
Your stateroom includes
Day
Day 1
Location(s)
Bucharest, Romania
Meals
Description
Arrive in Bucharest and transfer to your hotel in the heart of the city for a 1-night stay. Spend the rest of the day relaxing, or do some exploring on your own.
Day 2
Bucharest
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursion: Explore Bucharest & the Village Museum
After breakfast, check out of your hotel and take a tour of the city. See the city’s wide boulevards, the Romanian Athenaeum, the Arch of Triumph and the Palace of Parliament. Visit the outdoor Muzeul Satului, otherwise known as the Village Museum, where authentic dwellings from all regions of the country have been relocated and reassembled, including rural cottages, farmhouses and water mills.
During lunch at a local restaurant, enjoy a lively folkloric performance that recalls the simple pleasures of rural life. You then proceed to Giurgiu to board your ship and enjoy a welcome dinner.
Day 3
Veliko Tarnovo & Arbanasi, Bulgaria
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursions: Visit the medieval town of Veliko Tarnovo & Arbanasi OR See the highlights of Russe
After breakfast, disembark at Russe for a full-day excursion to Bulgaria’s former capital, Veliko Tarnovo. See Tsaravets Hill and the ruins of the royal castle. During free time, shop for local crafts along Samovodska Charshia. Continue your venture to Arbanasi for lunch in a local restaurant and a guided tour of the Nativity Church, with its intricate floor-to-ceiling murals and icons. Return to your ship for dinner.
Day 4
Vidin
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursion: Visit the spectacular Belogradchik Rocks & Fortress
Arrive in the picturesque Bulgarian port of Vidin, and take an excursion to see Belogradchik Fortress, built right into the striking Belogradchik Rocks. See the fortress’s amazing construction, begun in Roman times and greatly extended by Bulgarian tsars and the Ottomans, and enjoy breathtaking views.
Enjoy lunch on board your ship; then you have free time to explore Vidin’s city center, Orthodox churches and the ruins of the city’s once-grand synagogue. We depart during dinner.
Day 5
Golubac, Serbia
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursions: Walking tour of Golubac Fortress
This morning, enjoy scenic cruising as you travel through one of the most picturesque areas of the Lower Danube. The Iron Gate is one of Europe’s most dramatic natural wonders—a spectacular narrow gorge with enormous white limestone cliffs. Arrive in Donji Milanovac where you can choose to disembark and join an optional tour, or continue to enjoy scenic sailing. Arrive in Golubac and join an included tour of the Golubac Fortress where you will admire sweeping views over the Danube. Enjoy dinner on board before departing to Belgrade.
Day 6
Belgrade
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursion: Tour the “white city” of Belgrade
Wake up in Belgrade, capital of Serbia. Take a guided walk through the grounds of Kalemegdan Fortress, now a stately park; also see the Orthodox cathedral and stop at the Square of the Republic. Enjoy lunch on board your ship before you have free time to explore Belgrade’s gracious architecture or visit one of its many museums. Enjoy dinner on board your ship.
Day 7
Osijek, Croatia
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursion: Highlights of Vukovar and Osijek
Cruise along the Danube, arriving at Vukovar around noon. Disembark for an afternoon excursion to the charming Croatian city of Osijek. Inhabited since Neolithic times, this area has had several heydays under the Romans, the Ottomans and the Hapsburgs; now, Vukovar is revered for its baroque buildings, parks and monuments. Return on board for dinner.
Day 8
Kalocsa, Hungary
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Excursion: Visit Kalocsa (paprika capital) & Puszta (centre of equestrian arts)
Sail into Hungary this morning, arriving in Kalocsa after lunch. Take a guided city tour followed by a short organ concert at St. Joseph Church. Then, you are treated to a performance of traditional Puszta horsemanship. Return to the ship and enjoy a festive dinner on board as we depart for Budapest.
Day 9
Budapest
Breakfast
Excursion: Panoramic tour of Budapest
Disembark after breakfast and take a tour of Budapest. Begin in Pest, where you see the National Opera House and historic Heroes’ Square. Cross the Chain Bridge to Buda, where you walk along Castle Hill to Fishermen’s Bastion and Matthias Church, and visit the Grand Market. Check in to your hotel for a 2-night stay, then take the rest of the day to sightsee on your own. Explore a museum, do some shopping or relax in one of the Art Nouveau spas.
Day 10
Budapest
Breakfast
Excursion: Explore Budapest OR Join one of the optional tours
Take a full day to explore Budapest on your own. Ride the city’s innovative, efficient metro; walk through the City Park or along the Pest embankment for views of the Buda Castle District; explore the Buda Castle Labyrinth; visit the Jewish Quarter and tour the beautifully restored Dohány Street Synagogue.
Day 11
Budapest
Breakfast
After breakfast, check out of your hotel and proceed to the airport for your return flight. Or extend your journey with 2 additional nights in bustling Budapest or 3 nights in Prague, the Czech Republic’s gracious capital.
Reverse Itinerary
This trip also runs in reverse from Budapest to Bucharest.
Interested in the itinerary above? Click on the “START PLANNING” button below and reference “Passage to Eastern Europe” in the form, or give us a call at 587.997.5969 to book.
An adventure designed specifically for you
Let us work with you to tailor a journey based on your travel style and interests. We can use the existing itinerary above as a foundation, or build one from scratch to create your ideal vacation. Connect with us to start the conversation.
Similar Trips
Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia along the Danube
18 day river cruise
Austria, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands along the Danube, Main & Rhine Rivers
15 day river cruise
*Prices are per person, based on double occupancy and subject to change and availability.