UNIWORLD
8 Days | Delightful Danube
Westbound

BUDAPEST TO NUREMBERG

Day 1 | Budapest, Hungary. Embark. Arrive at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport. If your cruise package includes a group arrival transfer or if you have purchased a private arrival transfer, you will be greeted by a Uniworld representative and transferred to the ship.

Day 2 | Budapest. Cruising the Danube River. Located on opposite sides of the Danube, Buda and Pest each has a distinctive character and allure all its own. Explore this dynamic and multi-faceted city with your choice of excursions—you can see it from a local’s perspective on our exclusive walking tour, or cover more ground with a panoramic tour.Vibrant Budapest, Hungary’s capital, offers an enchanting combination of East and West, old and new. Even its geography is made up of two parts—Buda (the hills) and Pest (the flatlands)—divided by the Danube. Appropriately enough, you have your choice of two different ways to explore it today. In the evening, a special Captain’s Welcome Reception and Dinner will be prepared for you.

Choice of Featured Excursions — Budapest city tour –OR– Exclusive “Do as the Locals Do” Budapest walking tour

Budapest city tour. This panoramic tour is a wonderful way to get an overview of the city if you have never been here before. It will carry you from Heroes’ Square, created in 1896 to honor the thousand-year anniversary of Hungary’s founding and its greatest historical figures, past some of the city’s most striking architectural sights—Dohány Street Synagogue, the Hungarian National Museum, the state opera house, St. Stephen’s Basilica and the truly stunning Parliament Building—to Castle Hill, which has been called the heart of the nation. The city of Buda began here, when King Béla built a strong keep in 1243 as a defense against Mongol invaders; a castle replaced the simple fortress, and over the centuries other castles replaced that one. The current castle is primarily 18th century; a museum dedicated to Budapest’s archaeological finds is housed there, and the Castle Hill district has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You’ll go inside the magnificent 700-year-old Matthias Church, named for one of Hungary’s greatest kings, and then wend your way on foot to the picturesque Fisherman’s Bastion, whose seven fairytale-like towers represent the seven tribes that originally settled the region. It offers a glorious view of the city and the Danube below.Note: Visits to the interior of Matthias Church may not be possible on some weekends and Catholic holidays.

Exclusive “Do as the Locals Do” Budapest walking tour. Get ready for a fun immersion in daily life in Budapest— your local guide will show you how to use the metro (one of the oldest in Europe) to easily reach all the city has to offer. Start with a visit to one of the city’s irresistible market halls. Stalls spill over with produce, sausages and meats, festoons of dried paprika, cheeses, and jars of honey, all of it authentically Hungarian. After you leave the market, stop for coffee and a sweet treat at Szamos Gourmet Palace, a combination pastry shop, café and chocolate maker in Vörösmarty Square. Marzipan is a favorite confection in Budapest, and Szamos has specialized in making it since the 1930s, so you might want to try some—but the shop’s truffle selection is equally irresistible. Refreshed, you’ll be ready to hop back on the tram for a visit to the gracious green spaces of Károlyi Garden, sometimes described as Budapest’s most charming small park. You’ll ramble along the boulevards and pass the Hungarian National Museum, truly getting the feel for this dynamic city, as you head back toward the ship.Your ship sets sail from Budapest after your tour, cruising along the Danube Bend, which is lined with scenic towns—among them are the oldest settlements in the country—nestled at the foot of lovely wooded hills.

Day 3 | Cruising the Danube River. Vienna, Austria. A city tour will show you the architectural highlights of the Austrian capital as well as the legendary opera house in the heart of the city. Or, indulge your passion for art with visits to two distinctively different collections—a “cabinet of curiosities” collected by the Habsburgs and the Belvedere’s extraordinary cache of paintings by Klimt and other renowned artists.The grand dame of the Danube, Vienna was the heart of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and remains, to this day, the political and cultural center of Austria. Klimt painted here; Beethoven and Mozart composed here; Freud developed his theories here. It’s a treasure trove of splendid architecture, astonishing art collections and inviting cafés—and today it is yours to explore.

Choice of Featured Excursions — Vienna city tour with Vienna State Opera visit –OR– Exclusive “Vienna, City of Arts” tour

Vienna city tour with Vienna State Opera visit. A panoramic tour will show you the architectural highlights of the Habsburg capital—the City Hall, the Hofburg, St. Charles’s Church and other landmarks—but it will also take you to the legendary opera house in the heart of the city. The neo-Renaissance theater opened in 1869 with a performance of Mozart’s Don Giovanni (Mozart’s operas continue to be a mainstay of its annual season, during which some 50 operas are staged). Though the building was damaged during WWII, the main entrance, foyer and grand staircase were unharmed and retain their original grandeur and artwork. Spend some time admiring this handsome structure, then stroll through the neighborhood—which just happens to include the Hotel Sacher, the imperial palace complex, Vienna’s poshest shopping streets and St. Stephen’s Cathedral. You’ll be able to explore the cathedral on your own: It is truly magnificent. Erected in the 14th century, partly from Roman ruins, St. Stephen’s is as closely linked to the musical history of the empire as it is to imperial politics and religion. Mozart was married and buried here; Vivaldi’s funeral took place here; and Beethoven realized he was completely deaf when he could not hear the great bell ringing.Note: The Vienna State Opera House is occasionally closed to visitors for rehearsals or special events without advance notice. If we cannot visit the opera house, we will visit an alternative venue instead.

Exclusive “Vienna, City of Arts” tour. The sheer number of artistic gems on view in Vienna is overwhelming. Let an art historian provide you with knowledgeable guidance as you visit two extraordinary— and quite different—collections. The objects assembled at the Kunstkammer Vienna almost defy description. For centuries the Habsburgs collected curiosities that caught their fancies: an automaton of the goddess Diana riding a centaur, a priceless salt cellar made by Benvenuto Cellini, Renaissance tapestries, exquisite gold communion cups, sculptures and ivories—the range is staggering. The Kunstkammer Vienna was closed for more than a decade and only reopened in 2013; now these precious, idiosyncratic and magical pieces are once again on public view. The collections at the Belvedere, by contrast, concentrate on paintings and sculpture. The Belvedere palace complex, a triumph of baroque architecture, was built for Prince Eugene of Savoy, the Habsburg Empire’s leading general in the early 18th century. The Upper Belvedere houses the world’s largest group of works by Gustav Klimt, including his exquisite The Kiss, as well as paintings by Monet, Van Gogh and Renoir, among many others.Note: The Kunstkammer Vienna is closed on Mondays between September and May. If the tour lands on a Monday, Albertina Museum will be visited instead.

Day 4 | Cruising the Wachau Valley. Spitz (Spitz or Melk). Sit back and enjoy the ever-changing views as your ship cruises through the Wachau Valley, famous for its apricot groves, Rieslings and natural beauty. Later, take your pick of excursions—a stroll and wine tasting in the centuries-old village of Spitz, or a visit to Melk Abbey and its opulent baroque-style library.You’ll want to find a comfortable seat in the lounge or on the Sun Deck today as your ship cruises through the Wachau Valley toward Spitz. Over the eons, the Danube cut a gorge through the foothills of the Bohemian mountains, resulting in a 19-mile (30-kilometer) stretch of riverine scenery so beautiful, UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Landscape. Castle ruins dominate hilltops; baroque church towers appear on the riverbanks, marking historic villages and splendid abbeys; and apricot orchards and vineyards cling to the rocky slopes. Some of Austria’s finest white wines are produced from grapes ripening on the dry-stone terraces above the river, where grapes have been grown for 2,000 years. Your ship will dock in Spitz, midway through this glorious landscape, where you are faced with a difficult choice: Do you explore a charming riverbank village or visit one of the most beautiful libraries in the world?

Choice of Featured Excursions — Spitz village stroll with exclusive wine tasting –OR– Melk Abbey with library visit

Spitz village stroll with exclusive wine tasting. Wine grapes grow in the heart of the village, which was built around “Thousand Bucket Mountain,” so called because the vineyards planted on it have produced a thousand buckets of wine a year. What kind of wine? Riesling and Grüner Veltliner, Austria’s very own varietal. Ramble with your local guide along the cobblestone lanes of Spitz, passing baroque and Renaissance-era houses and perhaps pausing to admire the 15th-century parish church, on your way to one of the wine estates that dominate the slopes above the town. There you’ll sample some of the wonderful local wines and have a chance to check out another specialty of the Wachau, apricots, which are turned into all sorts of delicacies, from jam and schnapps to strudel. You may opt to walk back to the ship on your own, browsing through the tiny shops along the way, or continue with your guide to hike uphill to the Red Gate, the only remaining gate in the medieval wall that once guarded Spitz. (Legend says that the gate got its name during the Thirty Years’ War, when the defenders’ blood stained the gate red.) Leave the town behind and hike through the steep vineyards with your guide, learning about the unique qualities of the soil, climate and terrain that make the region’s wine so special.

Melk Abbey with library visit. The Babenbergs, a great medieval ducal family that controlled a wide swath of Austria before yielding to the Habsburgs, were the first to erect a castle on the hill above Melk, which they subsequently gave to Benedictine monks. These monks, some 900 years ago, turned it into a fortified abbey—and the greatest center of learning in Central Europe. Their library was celebrated far and wide (and still is: Umberto Eco paid tribute to it in his best-selling novel The Name of the Rose); monks there created more than 1,200 manuscripts, sometimes spending an entire lifetime hand-lettering a single volume. Today the library contains some 100,000 volumes, among them more than 80,000 works printed before 1800. This beautiful complex, completely redone in the early 18th century, is a wonderful example of baroque art and architecture, and the views from its terrace are spectacular. As you walk through the abbey’s Marble Hall with your guide, look up at the ceiling fresco painted by Paul Troger: Those classical gods and goddesses represent Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI, allegorically bringing his people from dark to light and demonstrating the link he claimed to the original Roman Empire.After your tour of the abbey, you’ll have time to explore Melk on your own, or you can take the motorcoach back to the ship.

Day 5 | Engelhartszell. Cruising the Danube River. Passau, Germany. Passau is a crossroads in more ways than one—three rivers meet here and three nations nearly do, making for a fascinating cultural mosaic. Get to know the town and its main claim to fame, Europe’s largest pipe organ, or “Go Active” with an invigorating riverside hike or bike ride.Your ship cruises through a scenic highlight of the Danube today, the Schlögener Schlinge—a hairpin loop in the Danube that was once very hazardous for ships and is now a lovely, serene stretch of water—and leaves Austria behind today. Your first German port of call is Passau, where three rivers meet—the Inn, the Ilz and the Danube—and three nations almost meet: Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic. Explore the historic Old Town or choose a more active adventure.

Choice of Featured Excursions — Passau walking discovery tour –OR– Passau city tour with Old Town walk –OR– Exclusive guided “Let's Go” Bavarian river bicycle ride

Passau walking discovery tour. The skyline of Passau is dominated by two buildings that owe their existence to the prince-bishops who ruled the city until 1803: the great fortress looming on a hill above the three rivers, home to the bishops until the 17th century, and the green onion domes of St. Stephan’s Cathedral. As you walk through the cobblestone streets toward those green onion domes, you’ll realize that Passau retains the layout of the medieval town. However, many of the wooden medieval buildings burned to the ground in the 17th century, and the prince-bishops imported Italian artists to build a new cathedral and a magnificent new residence for the bishops themselves. As a result, these splendid structures flaunt Italian baroque and rococo style and ornamentation, complete with opulent gilding and wonderful frescoes. Your guide will introduce you to some of the architectural highlights—the rococo stairways of the New Residence; the cathedral; and the Town Hall, which boasts a magnificent atrium adorned by large paintings by Ferdinand Wagner—and make sure you get a close-up view of the point where the three rivers meet.

Passau city tour with Old Town walk. Board a motorcoach for a drive along the Danube, crossing over the river and climbing the hill to the Oberhaus fortress. It may look like typical red-roofed Bavarian palace now, but for hundreds of years, the prince-bishops used it to enforce their rule over the region; the citizens of Passau assaulted it twice— without success—in an effort to gain their freedom from the bishops. The bishops threw religious dissidents as well as political enemies into the Oberhaus prison, so it was known as the Bastille of Bavaria for a time. From the walls here you can see how the fortress dominated the city below, and you also get a fabulous view of the three rivers merging. Your panoramic tour continues with a drive through Passau, over the Inn River, and into the heart of the old city. A stroll through historic Passau shows you the highlights: the town hall, the lovely baroque churches, the twisting medieval layout. It’s no mistake that St. Stephan’s Cathedral stands on the highest ground in the old town; Passau has flooded often over the centuries. You can see the high-water marks on the buildings as you pass them, and your knowledgeable local guide can tell you about the city’s plans to control flooding in the riverfront areas as you head back to the ship.

Exclusive guided “Let's Go” Bavarian river bicycle ride. Bicyclists have a treat in store today. Borrow a bike and, with an expert local guide, take the bike ferry across the Danube to the path that borders the river. You’ll pedal through the breathtaking countryside between Engelhartszell and Passau—orchards and meadows glide past, along with the occasional castle, charming village or picturesque ruin. Naturally, you’ll stop in a traditional beer garden for a little refreshment (perhaps you’ll be able to wave at the ship as it cruises past). Finally, you’ll roll into Passau and wend your way among the lanes of the historic city center to the ship.

Day 6 | Straubing. Cruising the Danube River. Regensburg. You have two tantalizing excursions to experience today, including a walking tour and brewery visit in Straubing, plus a choice of adventures in Regensburg, famous for its beautiful, UNESCO protected old city center.“Regensburg is so beautifully situated; this region had to attract a town,” wrote Goethe in his Diary of an Italian Voyage. And attract a town it did, but not due to its beautiful location alone. Ambitious and farseeing locals built a bridge (Steinerne Brücke, or Stone Bridge) over the Danube back in the 12th century, making Regensburg an international trading hub. Because so many of the handsome buildings from that period remain, UNESCO declared the old city center a World Heritage Site in 2006. But first, you’ll visit Straubing and visit a brewery—simply a must-do experience in Germany!

Featured Excursion — Straubing walking discovery tour with brewery visit. Perfectly situated on the banks of the Danube, Straubing is an old town filled with centuries worth of history, culture and tradition. How old is it? The first known settlements here can be traced all the way back to 6000 BC. Your local expert will show you the highlights, followed by a visit to a local brewery.Reboard the ship and enjoy lunch onboard before choosing your own adventure in the next port of call.

Choice of Featured Excursions — “2,000 Years in One Hour” Regensburg walking discovery tour –OR– Jewish Regensburg walking discovery tour –OR– BMW factory visit

“2,000 Years in One Hour” Regensburg walking discovery tour. People have been describing Regensburg as “old and new” for a thousand years. A single structure perfectly illustrates this: Porta Praetoria, the gate built by the Romans during Marcus Aurelius’s reign. The gate and adjacent watchtower have been incorporated into a much newer building, but the plaster has been removed to reveal the ancient stones laid so long ago. As you walk through the cobbled lanes of the UNESCO-designated Old Town, the city’s 2,000-year history similarly revealed: the Stone Bridge built by ambitious residents in the 12th century that made Regensburg a trading powerhouse, the Gothic town hall where the Imperial Diet met for three centuries, the 13th-century fortified patrician houses, and the spectacular Cathedral of St. Peter, whose magnificent 14th-century stained glass windows alone are worth your walk. You’ll have free time to explore on your own; it’s very hard to get lost in Regensburg because the spires of the cathedral are visible all over town, so don’t hesitate to roam. The historic quarter not only boasts almost a thousand beautiful old buildings but also many cozy pubs and some great shopping—and the ship is docked conveniently close, so it’s easy to drop your treasures off and go back for more.

Jewish Regensburg walking discovery tour. A white marble installation called Place of Encounter stands on the spot where a synagogue was destroyed in 1519. The installation, by Dani Karavan, reflects the outlines of the synagogue, taken from a drawing made immediately before the interior was demolished. It’s just one of the mementos you’ll see on your tour of this historic Jewish district, which was home to a thriving Jewish community for 500 years; its celebrated school drew Talmudic scholars from all of Central Europe. Jews in Ratisbon, as the town was known in medieval documents, enjoyed imperial protection, but following the death of Maximilian I, the town council banished all Jews and razed their homes and synagogue. The community grew again over the centuries, though the sad history of death and destruction was repeated in the 1930s. The Jewish quarter was re-established in 1945 by Holocaust survivors. It has taken decades, but the synagogue and much of the surrounding area have now been restored, standing as a symbol of both destruction and hope.

BMW factory visit. Here is your opportunity to see German engineering, famous the world over, in operation as you tour the state-of-the-art BMW factory on the outskirts of Regensburg. About a thousand cars a day roll off the assembly line here, many of them in the BMW 3 series. You’ll see the fascinating production process from beginning to end, starting with rolls of sheet metal that are stamped out into body parts and continuing as the body is built and the various other elements are robotically assembled. You’ll follow a car into the finishing department to see it painted, polished and have the final touch applied—the BMW roundel.NOTE: If the tour lands on a day when the BMW factory is closed, we will visit the Audi factory instead. The Audi production line is closed on weekends, so if your visit is scheduled for a weekend, you will see the Audi museum instead.

Day 7 | Cruising the Main-Danube Canal. Come out on deck or find a window seat where you can watch the ship navigate a series of locks as it travels through one of the modern world’s greatest feats of engineering—the Main-Danube canal.The Main-Danube canal is a masterwork of engineering: It allows ships of all shapes and sizes to cruise from the Black Sea all the way to the North Sea, through no fewer than 15 countries. Sixteen locks punctuate the 106-mile (160-kilometer) stretch between Kelheim and Bamberg, linking the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers. Building the canal was no small task, especially considering changes of altitude (each river is different); the locks gently lift and lower the ships an astonishing 1,332 feet (406 meters) over the continental divide. Efforts to connect the rivers began with Charlemagne in AD 793, but the present-day canal was only completed in 1992.A special Captain’s Farewell Reception and Dinner will be prepared for you this evening.

Day 8 | Nuremberg. Disembark. If your cruise package includes a group departure transfer or if you purchased a private departure transfer, you will be transferred to Nuremberg Airport for your flight.

NOTE: Itinerary is subject to change without notice. For the most up-to-date information, please refer to the itinerary schedule you receive with your final documents.

WESTBOUND ITINERARY 8 DAYS | BUDAPEST TO NUREMBERG Click HERE to view 8-day EASTBOUND itinerary.