EASTERN EUROPE: FROM BUDAPEST TO KRAKOW, VIA SLOVAKIA
TRIP OVERALL
Push aside the Iron Curtain and step into the beauty of Eastern Europe. Our adventurous journey starts in the “Paris of the East”, Budapest. This UNESCO city, the capital of Hungary and known as the “City of Baths”, is over one thousand years old, with amazing architecture ranging from Roman ruins to Art Nouveau palaces. Our journey continues to Eger, a historic town in Northern Hungary flanked by the Matra and Bukk National Parks. We will soak in the atmosphere of this picturesque town over a bottle of “Bull’s Blood”, the best red wine in Hungary. Heading north, we will enter Slovakia, a superb hiking destination of astonishing natural beauty, from the ridgetop trails in the High and Low Tatras with beautiful mountain-ringed lakes to the outrageous nature in the Slovak Paradise National Park, with its gorgeous waterfalls along riverside trails through dramatic canyons. We will also visit Slovakia’s villages and historical towns, and tour stunning medieval castles and chalets. from here we will cross the border into Poland on a traditional logging raft via the Dunajec River, through the Pieniny National Park. We will spend two nights in beautiful Zakopane, the “winter capital” of Poland with its own unique architecture. We will end up our trip in the cultural metropolis Krakow, one of the oldest cities in Poland.
TRIP DETAILS
Date: August 7 - 19, 2024
Price: *$6590
Length: 13 days
Arrive: Budapest, Hungary
Depart: Krakow, Poland
Lodgings: 12 nights in 4 star hotels
Meals: all meals included except 3 dinners
Activity: walking, hiking, culture, history
Trip Level: moderate country walks and hikes, 2-4 hours a day, van support
1 2 3 4 5 6
* Price per double occupancy. Single supplement: $880
Day 1. Our adventure begins with an afternoon guided tour in Budapest city and welcome dinner on a boat on the Danube River with a magnificent view over the famous Chain Bridge and Buda Castle.
Day 2-3. Transfer from the capital to Mantra and Bukk National parks for hiking and wine tasting in a charming medieval city of Eger.
Day 4-5. We cross the border to Slovakia and spend two days in a UNESCO city Levoča with a beautiful renaissance church and the highest wooden altar in the world - a city where the former pope John Paul II served a mass. We visit one of the biggest European castles from the 12th century – the Spiš Castle and then hike down to Žehra, a small town with a picturesque UNESCO church from the same epoch. The next day brings us to the Paradise – Slovensky Ráj (Slovak Paradise) with splendid hiking trails along the river and through ravines.
Day 6. By a cable car to the second highest summit in the High Tatra Mountains - Lomnicky Stit, with a breathtaking view over half of the Slovakia, hiking down, enjoying the panorama of the most beautiful mountain range in Slovakia.
Day 7-8. This day we hike in Low Tatra Mountain Range with its highest peaks – Dumbier and Chopok, looking over High Tatras and Liptov. The next day we visit another UNESCO gothic Castle Orava, one of the most beautiful castles in Eastern Europe, situated on a high rock above the Orava River.
Day 9-10. We take a path through woods between the two most beautiful lakes in Slovakia – Lake Poprad and Lake Štrba. We will follow the border between Slovakia and Poland on a raft on the Dunajec River, flowing through a breathtaking Pieniny national park with fascinating rocks, rising from the river steep to the sky and then cross the border to the other side of the High Tatra Mountains to spend wonderful two days in a charming city Zakopane in Poland – the centre of Góral culture.
Day 11-12. Transfer to the beguiling city Krakow and a guided tour through the city centre and Jewish quarter. Transfer to Auschwitz and a guided tour in the concentration camp.
Day 13. Departure.
