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Danube River Cruise October 22 through November 3, 2003

Join the Ormond Memorial Art Museum's Travel Group for a 12 day cruise and hotel vacation.  Journey along the Danube River visiting Budapest, Vienna and Nuremberg with a hotel stay in Prague.  Discover the unparalleled fall-season beauty of the Wachau and Altmuhl Valleys with castles lining the riverbanks.  See for yourself why the world continues to fall in love with this celebrated waterway.

Itinerary

Day 1: Orlando, FL to Budapest

Take a chartered bus from Daytona Beach to Orlando International Airport.  Fly from Orlando to Budapest.

Days 2 and 3: Budapest

Meet your Viking River Cruises representative and transfer to your ship.  The afternoon is yours to explore Budapest.  See the contrasts between what were once two cities, ancient "Buda" on the west bank and the more modern "Pest" on the east.  Visit the National Museum or shop for local handicrafts.  Return to the ship for a cocktail reception and dinner.  Local violinists will perform.  Explore the city into the evening, as the ship will remain moored overnight.

After breakfast your morning tour takes you to the top of Gellért Hill for a majestic view of the might Danube and city below.  Towering above cobbled streets, hidden gardens and medieval courtyards, you'll see neo-gothic spires of Matthias Church and Fishermen's Basin.  After lunch aboard, cruise along the scenic Danube Bend.  An afternoon lecture introduces Austria's culture and geography.  After dinner, participate in a waltz lesson.

Day 4: Vienna

Arrive in Vienna after breakfast for a tour of Austria's dynamic capital.  Drive by Burg Theater, St. Stephen's Cathedral and the Opera House.  After lunch, shop the Kärtnerstrasse or tour on your own.  Dine aboard.

Day 5: Melk and Linz

Sail past the Wachau Valley's vineyards, castles and riverside towns.  Upon morning arrive in Melk, your guided tour visits the 900-year old Benedictine abbey on its dramatic hilltop location.  Return to the ship for lunch and cruise through the valley.  Your afternoon lecture focuses on Austrian traditions.  After dinner, dock in Linz and join a guided walk through this medieval town with wine tasting a a local tavern.  Moor overnight.

Day 6: Passau

Your morning lecture introduces you to Germany's history and traditions. Before lunch arrive in Passau.  Visit St. Stephen's Cathedral, with a lavish interior, housing the world's largest pipe organ, and be treated to a special concert.  After lunch, walk the old town's cobblestone streets.  Return to the ship for departure, dinner and evening entertainment.

Day 7: Regensburg and Kelheim

Arrive after breakfast in medieval Regensburg and enjoy a guided walk showcasing the city's ancient squares, beautiful renaissance buildings and Dome.  Lunch is aboard; depart for Kelheim where you will be escorted to small boats for a ride through the 400-foot-high cliffs of the scenic Danube Gorge to Weltenburg abbey, Bavaria's oldest church and home to the monks' renowned dark ale brewery since 1050.  After dinner enjoy the music of a local band playing Bavarian folk music.  Moor overnight.

Day 8: Nuremburg

Cruise through the Main-Danube Canal and learn about its history and construction.  This great engineering feat contains 16 locks and span 106 miles.  After lunch, take a scenic drive through lush Bavarian countryside to Nuremberg.  A guided tour explores the city's gothic churches, monuments and patrician houses surrounded by 13th-century city walls. Return aboard for the Captain's Dinner and medieval music performance.  Moor overnight.

Day 9: Nuremberg, Pilsen and Prague

Disembark after breakfast and journey via motor-coach through Czech countryside to Prague.  Make an early afternoon stopover in Pilsen, a quaint medieval town and home of wolrd-famous Pilsner beer; tour the brewery.  Arrive in Prague for your hotel stay in the "City of a Hundred Spires."  The remainder of the day is yours; dinner is on your own.

Days 10 and 11: Prague

After breakfast join your guided morning tour of Prague.  The tour showcases the Hradcany Castle, Charles Bridge, Golden Gate and St Vitus' Cathedral.  Your afternoon is free to shop or explore.  Hotel stay overnight.

After a guided tour of Karlstein Castle, the remainder of your day is free for further exploration of Prague.  Visit any one of the magnificent museums and galleries or admire the city's architectural splendors.  Lunch and dinner are on your own.  Hotel stay overnight.

Day 12: Prague to Daytona Beach, FL

Following breakfast, transfer to Prague airport for your flight home.

Inclusions, pricing and additional information:

The price includes transportation to Orlando; airfare to Budapest; seven-day Danube cruise with all meals included; three nights at the Prague Hilton; all airport taxes, daily sightseeing; and return flight from Prague.

For more information, including pricing, contact Judy Eberhardt, Focus Travel, 34 N. Halifax Ave., Daytona Beach, FL 32118.  Telephone (386) 258-3433.  Reservation deadline was April 15, 2003, however space may still be available due to cancellations.

Please note the cruise ship accommodates 150 passengers in 75 cabins, each with telephone, TV, safe, and a private bathroom that includes a shower and hairdryer.  The ship consists of three decks, a restaurant, lounge, bar, library, promenade deck, outside lounge and sun deck.  The Viking Pride, built in 2001, is crewed by 40 members.

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The Museum Travel Group's purpose is to provide quality trips at affordable rates for Museum Patrons and Friends.  The Travel Group has visited such enchanting locations as New Mexico, China, Thailand, Turkey, Egypt, and South Africa.

All trips include transportation, hotels, some meals, English-speaking native guides and complete tours of all major attractions in the locale being visited.