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DUTCH AND BELGIAN DELIGHTS
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Day 1, Sat: USA - Amsterdam.
Overnight flight to Holland.
Day 2, Sun: Amsterdam. Arrive and transfer to your floating hotel, moored not far from many
of the city’s attractions. Tonight meet your fellow passengers at your Gala Welcome Dinner.
Day 3, Mon: Amsterdam - Volendam - Edam - Enkhuizen. Enjoy a morning cruise through
the historic canals of Amsterdam. At lunchtime sail to the Zuider Zee village of Volendam. A day to
savor the historic Dutch ports and lifestyle of the old Zuider Zee. The afternoon tour takes you
from Volendam enchanting Edam, famous for its wonderful cheese, and to picturesque Hoorn.
Continue through the blazingly colored tulip fields to Enkhuizen, a charming port village with
narrow cobblestone streets. During dinnertime cruise across the Ijsselmeer into the Ijssel River.
Day 4, Tue: Arnhem. This morning, tour the Airborne Museum Hartenstein, which shows the
course of events during the Battle of Arnhem, one of the major tragedies during World War II.
General Montgomery hoped to capture the Rhine bridge in Arnhem to reach Berlin and finish the
war by Christmas 1944. After this exciting museum tour, return to your luxurious ship around
lunchtime and spend the rest of the day cruising leisurely through Holland and on to Belgium.
Day 5, Wed: Antwerp. This morning, enjoy a guided sightseeing tour of Antwerp, Belgium's
second-largest city. See Rubens’ House, the Grote Markt and admire the city’s superb architec-ture.
The afternoon is free to explore Antwerp or to take an optional excursion to nearby
Brussels, Belgium’s capital. Get a taste of Antwerp's nightlife before your ship departs for Ghent.
Day 6, Thu: Ghent. Disembark for a guided sightseeing tour of Ghent, a city that has
managed to preserve its medieval power while keeping up with the times. The city center alone
is a showcase of medieval Flemish wealth and commercial success. Free afternoon to explore
more of Ghent or to take an optional excursion to Bruges, one of Europe’s most perfectly
preserved medieval cities. After dinner sample Ghent's nightlife, then depart around midnight.
Day 7, Fri: Zierikzee - Dordrecht. Morning cruise through the Dutch region of Zeeland,
where you’ll find one of the world’s most complex engineering projects, the Delta Works, which
took over 30 years to complete. After the flood of 1953 the Delta Plan was born to prevent
another disaster of this magnitude. The four great sea-arms in the south-west of the Netherlands
were closed by dams. Stop in charming Zierikzee for a walking tour and spend some free time to
shop or explore on your own. Then continue to Dordrecht, one of Holland's oldest towns, and
enjoy a tour to the 18th century windmills at Kinderdijk.
Day 8, Sat: Schoonhoven - Keukenhof - Amsterdam. Morning cruise to Schoonhoven to
explore this quaint village and maybe shop for silver. From here continue along the Amsterdam-Rhine
Canal to Utrecht. Disembark for an excursion to famous Keukenhof Gardens to admire the
most spectacular display of bulb flowers in bloom. Keukenhof also offers sculpture gardens,
greenhouses, and several terraces to relax. Before dinner, return to your ship in Amsterdam for
another enjoyable evening in the city of magic.
Day 9, Sun: Amsterdam - USA. Morning transfer to the airport for your return flight home.