About this tour
All rates are per person based on double occupancy.
Duration: 9 days – all tours begin Thursday and end Friday
Price per person (land only): $2,960
Single supplement: $799
Group rates: available by request. Group size is 10 persons minimum.
Private customized tours available by request.
Discounts available October through April.
Extensions to Helsinki, St. Petersburg and elsewhere available.
We do not arrange air transportation, except for groups or by special request. Many major international airlines fly to Riga, Latvia, and Tallinn, Estonia.
E-mail info@internationaltravelexperts.com or call +1 914-484-3625 (cell) for details.
Dates in 2023: TBA
The Baltics
Itinerary:
Day 1 – Thursday
Arrive at Riga International Airport. Meet awaiting tour escort and motor coach and proceed to hotel for check-in. Overnight in Riga.
Day 2 – Friday
Breakfast in hotel. Check out from hotel in Riga.
Two-hour excursion to Rundale Palace, one of two major baroque palaces built for the Dukes of Courland in what is now Latvia. The palace was built in two periods, from 1736 until 1740 and from 1764 until 1768. It is situated at Pilsrundāle, 12 km west of Bauska. It was designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli as a summer residence of Ernst Johann von Biron, the Duke of Courland. Following Biron’s fall from grace, the palace stood empty until the 1760s, when Rastrelli returned to complete its interior. Johann Michael Graff produced lavish stucco decorations for the palace during this time.
Afternoon motor coach travel to Vilnius, capital of Lithuania. Check into hotel. Overnight in Vilnius.
Day 3 – Saturday
Three-hour walking tour of Vilnius.
Vilnius Old Town is one of the largest surviving medieval towns in northern Europe. In 1994 it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. There are 55 churches in Vilnius, many of them in the center. You will see Vilnius University, the President’s Palace, Gediminas castle, St. Anna gothic-style church and the Uzupis artist district beyond the river Vilnia. Overnight in Vilnius.
Day 4 – Sunday
Breakfast, check out. Excursion to the Hill of Crosses, a site of pilgrimage about 12 km north of the city of Šiauliai, in northern Lithuania. The precise origin of the practice of leaving crosses on the hill is uncertain, but it is believed that the first crosses were placed on the former Jurgaičiai or Domantai hill fort after the 1831 Uprising. Over the centuries, giant crucifixes, carvings of Lithuanian patriots, statues of the Virgin Mary and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have also been placed by Catholic pilgrims. The exact number of crosses is unknown, but estimates put it at about 55,000 in 1990 and 100,000 in 2006.
Motor coach to Riga. Check into hotel, overnight in Riga.
The House of the Blackheads, Riga
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Julie Anne Workman
Tallinn Town Hall Square
Vilnius at dusk
Day 5 – Monday
Three-hour city tour of Riga, capital of Latvia.
You will see the 19th-century Latvian National Opera House and the unique House of the Blackheads, with fantastic ornaments reconstructed in late 1990s. Also Riga Castle, founded in 1330, and Dome Cathedral, known for its size and large pipe organ; the defensive town walls, with Powder Tower and Swedish Gate; the Latvian Parliament; St. Peter’s Church (a symbol of Riga); the Freedom Monument and more.
Overnight in Riga.
Day 6 – Tuesday
Breakfast and check out.
Excursion to Sigulda, a town in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, 53 km from Riga. Sigulda is on a picturesque stretch of the primeval Gauja river valley. Because of the reddish Devonian sandstone, which forms steep rocks and caves on both banks of the river, Sigulda has been called the “Switzerland of Vidzeme.”
After the restoration of Latvian independence in 1991, emphasis was placed on conserving Sigulda’s public monuments and parks and improving the tourist sector. A traditional Opera Festival takes place in an open-air music hall in the castle ruins each summer. A Town Festival is celebrated in May when cherry trees blossom, while Sigulda is known for the colors of its trees in autumn.
Continue to Tallinn, capital of Estonia. Overnight in Tallinn.
Day 7 – Wednesday
Guided tour through Tallinn’s Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage site, with its medieval center, narrow cobbled streets, 14th-century churches and merchants’ homes. Brave the steep climb up to the observation deck in the 12th-century Oleviste Church for superb views.
Overnight in Tallinn.
Day 8 – Thursday
This day is available for independent sightseeing, shopping and last-minute photo opportunities. Overnight in Tallinn.
Day 9 – Friday
Breakfast, check out from hotel. Bid farewell to this elegant, exciting city. Transfer to airport.
Your tour includes:
• Breakfast daily
• 8 nights’ 4-star hotel accommodation
• Comprehensive sightseeing
• English-speaking guides during tours
• Ground transportation including transfers from/to airport on arrival and departure
Tour highlights:
• Walking tours of Riga, Latvia; Vilnius, Lithuania; and Tallinn, Estonia
• Excursions to Rundale Palace, St. Peter’s Church, Sigulda, Latvia
• Excursion to Gediminas castle and Hill of Crosses, Lithuania
• Excursion to Old Town, Tallinn, Estonia
A 9-day trip to discover the three Baltic states, visiting the capitals of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.
Customized and package budget, luxury, VIP, group and individual tours, excursions and day trips.
Special interests including arts and architecture, Christian heritage, food and wine, nature and animals, sports.