Day 1: Warsaw
(Welcome dinner)
After arrival, you will be met and transferred to your hotel in the heart of the city. The afternoon is free for you to explore. At 6:00PM, meet your guide and the rest of the group in the hotel lobby. Drive along the beautifully renovated Royal Route with its historical monuments and residences. Stop at Castle Square for a short walk through Old Town, and then join us for welcome dinner at a local restaurant. Your meal will include typical Polish dishes and famous Polish vodka,“Zubrowka”.

Day 2: Warsaw
(Breakfast, Lunch)
This morning, we introduce you to the highlights of Warsaw. A half-day sightseeing tour includes Old Town, beautifully rebuilt after World War II, and the impressive Royal Castle, seat of the kings of Poland. Here the Constitution of May 3rd was proclaimed in 1791, the second oldest constitution in the world. You will admire some of its 300 rooms including the Canaletto Room, the Throne Room, the magnificent Knight’s Hall with six large paintings by Marcello Bacciarelli, the Marble room with its 22 portraits of Polish kings, and the largest and most impressive of all the castle’s chambers, the Ballroom. After lunch served at a local restaurant in Old Town, you will continue your tour with a drive to the area of the former Warsaw Ghetto. En route, you will see the building of the National Opera House and Town Hall. During your tour of Warsaw you are invited to visit the famous Warsaw chocolate factory “Wedel” to taste the delicious hot chocolate. 

In the evening, you will embark on an unforgettable musical journey through the world famous compositions of Poland’s greatest composer, Frederic Chopin, at a piano recital. A glass of sparkling wine will be served during intermission.


Day 3: Warsaw – Czestochowa – Zakopane
(Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast, you will depart for Zakopane – one of the most popular vacation resorts in the Tatra Mountains. En route, you will stop in Czestochowa to visit the Jasna Gora Monastery and the Black Madonna Shrine with its miraculous icon. Lunch will be served a local restaurant in Czestochowa. In the evening, you will arrive in Zakopane, beautifully situated at the foot of the Tatra Mountains, in the valley between Gubalowka and Giewont. It is the most popular resort and one of the most beautiful places in all of Poland owing to its picturesque location. Once a small mountain village, Zakopane became a fashionable artist’s retreat at the beginning of the 20th century. 


Day 4: Zakopane - Krakow  
(Breakfast, Dinner)
In the morning, you will have a sightseeing tour of Zakopane, where wooden architecture blends with the natural landscapes. This popular style is copied in other parts of Poland and is known as ‘Zakopianski Style’. You will visit the Jaszczurowka Chapel, a prime example of the famous wooden architecture in Zakopane, and the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima at Krzeptowki, built by the people of Zakopane to thank the Lady of Fatima for saving the Pope after an attempt on his life. Admire the breathtaking views of the Tatras from the top of Gubalowka Mountain and shop for souvenirs of arts and crafts of the Highlanders (Gorale) in the local shops. After lunch on your own you will have free time to explore at your leisure. Before you continue on to Krakow, take a spectacular rafting trip on the Dunajec River in Pieniny National Park. You will enjoy dinner served at a local restaurant in Krakow’s Old Town Market Square.


Day 5: Krakow – Auschwitz – Krakow  
(Breakfast, Lunch)
The morning sightseeing tour will feature Wawel, the Royal Castle, home to three dynasties of Poland’s monarchs. Its stately halls and exquisite chambers are filled with priceless art, valuable period furniture and rare ancient objects. The collection of monumental 16th century tapestries is matchless. Next, you will also visit the Wawel Cathedral, the place of the cult of St. Stanislaw and St. Jadwiga, Queen of Poland.  Its 18 chapels are true architectural masterpieces. The giant bell, Zygmunt from 1520, ranks with the world’s largest. This is the place where Polish kings were crowned and eventually buried. Drive to Old Town with its restored Main Square of magnificent houses and palaces. There, you will stop at St. Mary’s Basilica to see the magnificent wooden altar by Wit Stwosz. In the middle of the square is Cloth Hall, built before 1349, but renovated in the 16th century with many shopping stalls inside. After lunch, you will drive to Auschwitz-Birkenau to visit the Martyrdom Museum of the former Nazi concentration camp, the infamous factory of death.


Day 6: Krakow – Wieliczka - Krakow  
(Breakfast, Dinner)
In the morning, explore at your own leisure. You will reconvene for coffee and cake at the famous Krakow cafeteria, and in the afternoon you will drive to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, an unforgettable tourist attraction with underground chambers, grottoes, and chapels carved from salt. Enjoy your dinner with a folklore show at a local restaurant in Wieliczka. You will then return to Krakow.


Day 7: Krakow  
(Breakfast)
After breakfast in the morning, you will be transferred to the airport for the return flight home.

Days 1 - 4 are as per the itinerary above 

Day 5: Zakopane - Krakow
(Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast, spend a relaxing day on your own and take a spectacular rafting trip on the Dunajec River in Pieniny National Park. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, you will leave for the medieval city of Krakow.  


Day 6: Krakow
(Breakfast, Dinner)
The morning sightseeing tour will feature Wawel, the Royal Castle, home to three dynasties of Poland’s monarchs. Its stately halls and exquisite chambers are filled with priceless art, valuable period furniture and rare ancient objects. The collection of monumental 16th century tapestries is matchless. Next, you will also visit the Wawel Cathedral, the place of the cult of St. Stanislaw and St. Jadwiga, Queen of Poland.  Its 18 chapels are true architectural masterpieces. The giant bell, Zygmunt from 1520 ranks with the world’s largest. This is the place where Polish kings were crowned and eventually buried.

Following a short break for coffee and cake at the famous Krakow caféteria and drive to Old Town with its restored Main Square of magnificent houses and palaces. There, you will stop at St. Mary’s Basilica to see the magnificent wooden altar by Wit Stwosz. In the middle of the square is Cloth Hall, predating 1349, but renovated in the 16th century with many shopping stalls inside. The afternoon is to be spent at your leisure. Your dinner will be served at a local restaurant in Old Town.


Day 7: Krakow – Auschwitz – Wadowice – Krakow
(Breakfast, Lunch)
Today you will visit the Auschwitz – Birkenau German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp (1940-1945), a UNESCO Heritage Listed Site since 1979. After breakfast, we leave for Auschwitz, the site of the former Nazi Concentration Camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, the infamous death factory. Now a Museum, it is a silent witness to human tragedy. In the afternoon, you will return to Krakow via Wadowice, the birthplace of John Paul II. After lunch at a local restaurant, you will see the house where John Paul II was born and grew up. In the Basilica of Wadowice, where Karol Wojtyla Pope John Paul II was baptized, you can still see the special plaque that commemorates him as well as a stone font where he prayed during his first pilgrimage to Poland in 1979. From here, you will return to Krakow. Upon arrival, you will have free time for the rest of your evening. 


Day 8: Krakow – Wieliczka – Lowicz - Warsaw
(Breakfast, Dinner)
After breakfast, you will venture to Wieliczka to see the underground world of the oldest salt mine in Europe. Admire the salt chambers, monuments all carved in salt by many generation of Polish miners. You will be fascinated by the fabulous St. Kinga Chapel with its beautiful chandeliers, a masterpiece of salt work art. After lunch on your own, you will depart for Warsaw. On the way, you will stop in Lowicz, a typical Mazovian town famous for folk art: especially noteworthy are the colorful costumes and beautiful paper cut-outs. For a unique cultural experience, you will be invited for a home-hosted dinner by a local family, whose charming cottage is located at the foot of the former Lowicz Castle. You will be welcomed in a typical Polish way, with bread & salt, and enjoy your meal served by the young married couple in their lovely house. You will have time to talk about their day to day life and have your dessert in a beautiful garden. After dinner, you will continue to Warsaw. 


Day 9: Warsaw 
(Breakfast)
After breakfast in the morning, you will be transferred to the airport for the return flight home.