58

Prague

Budapest

Maximum Elevation: 1,200 ft.

Danube River

SLOVENIAITALY

GERMANY

CZECH REPUBLIC

SLOVAKIA

HUNGARYAUSTRIA

Passau

Salzburg

BratislavaVienna

Melk

Regensburg

voyage at a GlanceM 7 Cruise Days

Day Destination

1 Arrive Budapest

InterContinentalBudapest 2 Opera House / Liszt House / Concert

M 3 Erkel Exhibit / Bartók House / Embark Riverboat

M 4 Bratislava – Opera House Tour / Folk Wedding

M 5 Vienna – Bösendorfer Visit / Musical Vienna

M 6 Waltz Rehearsal / Schuberthaus / Imperial Evening

M 7 Cruising – Melk Abbey Tour / Onboard Concert

M 8 Salzburg – Mozart Tour / Lunch & Opera Scenes

M 9 Passau – Pipe Organ Tour & Concert

10 Disembark Regensburg / On to Prague

PragueMarriottHotel 11 Prague – Marionettes / Lobkowicz Palace Gala

12 Depart PragueMusiciseverywhere–fromaspecialvisittoBudapest’sopulentStateOperaHousetoencounterswithmusicaliconsinunexpectedplaces

Join Tauck’s “maestros” and walk in the footsteps of musical

giants like Mozart, Beethoven, Bartók, Wagner, Liszt,

Strauss, Haydn and others as you cruise the Blue Danube!

Visit homes they lived and composed in, concert halls and

palaces where they performed and more... enveloped by

their glorious music throughout your magical journey!

MusicalMagicalongtheBlueDanuBe

Call your travel agent or Tauck at800-468-2825 www.tauck.com 59

1.arriveBuDapestTour begins: 6:00 PM, InterContinental Budapest. A transfer is included from Budapest’s Ferihegy Airport to the InterContinental Budapest. Your musical odyssey begins when you meet your fellow travelers at Tauck’s exclusive welcome reception and dinner at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, accompanied by a local trio performing Hungarian folk and gypsy music. Meals D

2.DiscoveringFranzliszt’sBuDapestStatues of Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi and Liszt greet you at the 1884 State Opera House in Pest; expect some surprises on a guided tour of this neo-Renaissance masterpiece, including the private box of Habsburg Empress Elisabeth (“Sisi”). Hop on the historic Metro to a private tour of Franz Liszt’s reconstructed

Budapest flat, where you’ll see many of the beloved Hungarian composer and piano virtuoso’s instruments, scores and personal effects. After time sightseeing or rehearsing with our guest choir, join us for a performance at one of Budapest’s premier concert venues, boasting superb acoustics. Meals B

3.erkel&Bartók/MyourcruiseBeginsHead to Buda to check out the Musical History Museum and its exhibit on composer and opera director Ferenc Erkel. The legacy of Béla Bartók lives on in his 1924 home, now a museum and memorial dedicated to the composer and musicologist; hear his melodies in a piano recital during your visit. Embark your Tauck riverboat at the dock in Budapest; meet the Captain and crew at tonight’s reception and dinner, where Tauck’s “maestros” welcome you aboard with a musical performance! Meals BD

4.MBratislava,cityoFproDigiesAfter a morning’s cruise with lectures, workshops and a guest choir rehearsal, arrive in Bratislava, Slovakia, the Baroque stomping grounds of great musical prodigies. A walking tour features an exclusive behind-the-scenes visit to the 1886 Opera House, where you’ll meet a former director. Stroll down a lane where 6-year-old

TAUCK VALUE INCLUDES:• All private Tauck shore excursions – $1245 Value!

• Gratuities to ship staff, drivers, local guides, Tauck Directors, Tauck Cruise Director and “Maestros”

• Tauck Exclusive – Interactive onboard workshops, seminars and performances by Tauck’s “maestros”; departures on state-of-the-art luxury riverboats

• Tauck Exclusive – Insider tour of Bratislava’s Opera House and Q&A with a former director

• Tauck Exclusive – Interactive Folk Wedding, dinner and musical performance at 15th-century Slovakian winery

• Tauck Exclusive – Private Imperial Evening at a Vienna palace with gala dinner and performance

• Tauck Exclusive – Behind-the-scenes visit to the Bösendorfer piano salon in Vienna’s Musikverein

• Tauck Exclusive – Private gala dinner, tour & concert at Lobkowicz Palace featuring Beethoven’s original scores

• Performance at a premier concert venue in Budapest

• Music-themed sightseeing in Budapest, Bratislava, Vienna, Salzburg, Prague and other cities

• Airport transfers upon arrival and departure as noted

• 27 meals (11 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 10 dinners); select meals ashore, and wine with all dinners on the riverboat; service charges, taxes and porterage

FromEurope’slargestpipeorganinPassautoaprivategalaandconcertinaViennapalace,themusicneverstops...

Meettauck’s“Maestros”Along with your Tauck Cruise Director and Tauck Directors, your journey is accompanied throughout by Tauck’s “maestros.” Active music scholars and performers, our maestros include current doctoral candidates in music history at Columbia University who are passionate and knowledgeable about European music and the destinations you’ll visit. They’ll guide your explorations ashore and enrich your onboard experience with interactive music workshops, seminars and performances.

60

Mozart performed and 9-year-old Liszt played across the street 58 years later – around the corner, 30 years after that, one of Liszt’s young students inspired him to write a sonata for the boy! There’s a treat in store on your visit to the Primate’s Palace; tonight, attend an interactive traditional Slovak wedding dinner filled with music and dance at a 16th-century winery. Meals BLD

5.Mvienna,austria...aMusicalFeastIf you had to choose only one European city to musically explore, Vienna – home to Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms and Strauss – would be it! Get your bearings on a city tour, then choose a visit to Schönbrunn Palace of the Habsburgs, or join us for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at world-famous Bösendorfer pianos at their salon in the celebrated Musikverein concert hall. View custom-made instruments, and discuss the Viennese “klang” piano technique that Bösendorfer has preserved through the centuries. Explore on your own and have an early dinner before a performance tonight at the Staatsoper (Vienna State Opera), where Mahler and Strauss made musical history, or at an alternate venue in magical Vienna. Meals BLD

6.MWaltzes,palaces&MusicgaloreVienna springs to musical life on a day chock full of Tauck Exclusives. First, sit in on a rehearsal at beautiful Auersperg Palace as an orchestra prepares for a performance of Viennese waltzes, followed by a Q&A with the conductor. Discover more of the city as you please, or join our maestros on optional visits to Schuberthaus, a museum in the birthplace of composer Franz Schubert, and to Beethoven’s Heiligenstadt home. Tonight, prepare to be pampered at Tauck’s private Imperial Evening in the Palais Pallavicini, an incomparable setting for a gala dinner and concert featuring Viennese musicians. Meals BLD

7.MMusicthroughtheages/MelkaBBeyAbove Dürnstein on the Danube lie the ruins of a castle where, legend has it, Richard the Lionhearted was rescued by the singing of his troubadour, Blondel; have a medieval breakfast while sailing past the spot to Melk. Enjoy a tour of Melk Abbey, a 900-year-old monastery complex whose lovely Baroque buildings have been a center of learning and culture for centuries, and often host concerts and musicals today. Back on the riverboat, enjoy lectures, guest choir rehearsal, and a concert by trio Donau Klang. Meals BLD

8.MeverythingMozartinsalzBurgPicture a boy of 5 wowing a royal audience with his piano virtuosity... then crawling up on the lap of the Empress of half of Europe, and giving her a kiss! That was little Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, born in Salzburg in 1756. Walk in his footsteps today on an excursion from Linz to his Baroque hometown, visiting his birthplace, among other locations – and enjoying lunch, informal scenes from his operas and a Q&A at the centuries-old Stiftskeller St. Peter, where the composer himself dined. Following time to explore Salzburg – where much of The Sound of Music was filmed – at leisure, return to the ship for dinner, guest choir rehearsal and entertainment by the crew! Meals BLD

DelightinmusicaltraditionsfromviewingBeethoven’sscoresatLobkowiczPalace...toRegensburg’sDomSt.Peter...toafolkweddingataSlovakianwinery...toPrague’smarionettes

Call your travel agent or Tauck at800-468-2825 www.tauck.com 61

9.MorganMusicinpassau/cruisingDock in Passau, Germany, to visit St. Stephen’s Cathedral, home to Europe’s largest pipe organ, for an interactive tour and demonstration of this amazing instrument. En route to Regensburg, enjoy seminars, workshops, a guest choir rehearsal, and an evening of musical trivia fun! Meals BLD

10.regensBurganDontopragueDisembark in Regensburg, Germany’s largest surviving medieval city, and the site of an international summer music academy. Walking here is a delight; a local guide leads the way as you see Germany’s oldest stone bridge, the Altes Rathaus (Town Hall), and Gothic Dom St. Peter, home to the world-renowned Regensburger Domspatzen boys’ choir. Explore and enjoy lunch on your own – perhaps sampling Regensburg’s famous Bavarian sausage – before traveling to historic Prague for a two-night stay. Meals BD

MusicalmemoriesatMelkAbbey...Salzburg’sStiftskellerSt.Peter...andVienna’sBösendorferpianosalon

Single prices start at 40% over the double price; please inquire at time of booking or visit www.tauck.com for complete single pricing, day-by-day itinerary and up-to-the-minute space availability.

Land / cruise price per person, based on double occupancy, includes cruise fare, most meals, port charges, wine with dinner aboard ship, shore ex cur sions, applicable fuel surcharges, and gratuities to maestros, Tauck Directors, Tauck Cruise Director, ship staff, local guides & drivers, and on all included meals.

International Airfare is additional. Call Tauck for special rates on international air for travel originating in the U.S. (subject to availability).

Itinerary Changes – Although not expected, Tauck reserves the right to alter the sequence of ports or omit or substitute scheduled ports or attractions at any time without prior notice. Museums and attractions may be subject to closure due to state, local or religious holidays.

Note: This cruise includes a fair amount of walking.

Please ask at time of booking about additional hotel nights before or after your cruise, or about our comprehensive Cruise Protection Product.

12DaysFroM$4,490plusairFare(11 Breakfasts, 6 Lunches & 10 Dinners)

Date M CAT1 M CAT2 M CAT3 M CAT4 M CAT5 M CAT6May 2 $5590 $5840 $6440 $6740 $7340 $8040Jun 9 $5790 $6040 $6640 $6940 $7540 $8240Jul 21 $4490 $4740 $5340 $5640 $6240 $6940Oct 16 $4990 $5240 $5840 $6140 $6740 $7440

Cruise Price Per Person MS SWISS EMERALD, MS Swiss Jewel, new Riverboat

Date

11.Beethoven,Mozart&MoreinpragueMany musical giants have left their mark on beautiful Prague, as you’ll discover on a walking tour of the medieval Old Town of this ancient capital of today’s Czech Republic. See the Estates Theatre, where Mozart himself conducted the premiere of Don Giovanni, and enjoy an excerpt from the opera at the National Marionette Theater. Tonight, enjoy a final Tauck Exclusive: view original Beethoven manuscripts as a string quartet plays the composer’s works during a private evening in Lobkowicz Palace at Prague Castle – including a reception, dinner, concert, tour of the Lobkowicz family collection and our guest choir performance! Meals BD

12.heaDhoMeWithasonginyourheartTour ends: Prague, Czech Republic. Fly home anytime. A transfer is included from the Prague Marriott Hotel to Prague’s Ruzyne Airport; allow a minimum of 3 hours for flight check-in. Meals B