Day 1 (Fri.) Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2 Arrival in Copenhagen, Denmark. (Sat.) Time to rest or to start exploring Denmark’s capital. At 6 p.m. meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a welcome dinner at your hotel. (D)

Day 3 Copenhagen. (Sun.) Sightseeing with a Local Guide includes the Church of Our Savior and the Stock Exchange. Visit the lavish ROYAL RECEPTION ROOMS in Christiansborg Palace and shoot your pictures of Amalienborg Palace and of the wistful LITTLE MERMAID. Tonight visit TIVOLI GARDENS, the city’s colorful amusement park (mid-April through mid-Sept.). (FB)

Day 4 Copenhagen-Stockholm, Sweden. (Mon.) From Elsinore beneath Hamlet’s Kronborg Castle take a FERRY to Helsingborg, and drive through the Swedish Lake District past industrial towns like Linköping, Saab headquarters, on your way to Stockholm. (FB)

Day 5 Stockholm. Night Ferry to Finland. (Tue.) Stockholm is settled on 14 islands between Lake Mälar and the Baltic. Sightseeing with a Local Guide features the Royal Palace, Riddarholm Church, and the blue and gold chambers in the CITY HALL, where the annual Nobel Prize banquet is held. In the late afternoon, board your ship for the overnight BALTIC SEA CRUISE to Finland. (FB)

Day 6 Helsinki. (Wed.) After breakfast on board, a Local Guide shows you the City Hall and Parliament House, the Presidential Palace, the grand railroad station, the LUTHERAN CATHEDRAL, the Olympic Stadium, and the SIBELIUS MONUMENT. Stop at the OPEN AIR MARKET. (FB,D)

Day 7 Helsinki-St. Petersburg, Russia. (Thu.) Along the coast to Hamina and the Russian border. After completing frontier formalities, drive through Vyborg and cross the Karelian Isthmus on the way to St. Petersburg. (FB,D)

Day 8 St. Petersburg. (Fri.) Founded by Peter the Great, construction began in 1703, and the city eventually spread over 100 islands linked by 700 bridges. It suffered severe damage during World War II, when a cruel 900-day siege claimed nearly a million victims. Sightseeing with a Local Guide today shows how the city has been restored to its former splendor. Drive along elegant Nevsky Prospect, admire ST. ISAAC’S CATHEDRAL, and continue to Pushkin, home of Russia’s last czar, and visit magnificent CATHERINE PALACE (if closed, visit PAVLOVSK PALACE instead). (FB)

Day 9 St. Petersburg. (Sat.) Today visit the Winter Palace complex. Formerly the residence of the czars, it now houses the world-famous HERMITAGE MUSEUM with celebrated works by Rembrandt, Leonardo da Vinci, and the major French impressionists. Optional activities are available. (FB)

Day 10 St. Petersburg-Novgorod. (Sun.) Today drive to Novgorod. Orientation features the restored Kremlin and venerable churches dating as far back as the 11th-century. (FB,L,D)

Day 11 Novgorod-Tver-Moscow. (Mon.) Through the Valdai Hills to Tver on the Volga, the "Mother River" of Russia. Then via Tchaikovsky’s Klin on to Moscow. (FB,L)

Day 12 Moscow. (Tue.) Follow your Local Guide to RED SQUARE, the center of this 850-year-old city. At its core is the Lenin Mausoleum and St. Basil’s Cathedral. Inside the KREMLIN, a city-within-a-city, admire the medieval towers, cathedrals, and palaces. At the ARMORY MUSEUM see treasures such as Ivan the Terrible’s throne. Also see the Bolshoi Theater, Novodevichy Convent, and enjoy a sweeping, panoramic view from Sparrow Hills. Tonight attend the famous MOSCOW CIRCUS (if not available, attend a CONCERT instead). (FB,D)

Day 13 Moscow-Smolensk. (Wed.) Travel via Borodino, site of the cruel battle between Napoleon’s Grand Armée and the Russian Army in 1812, to Smolensk. Sightseeing with a Local Guide features the impressive town walls, the 17th-century USPENSKY CATHEDRAL, and the monument to General Kutuzov, the brilliant strategist who conquered Napoleon’s military genius. (FB,L,D)

Day 14 Smolensk-Minsk, Belarus. (Thu.) Through Katyn Forest and the White Russian plains to Minsk, the Belorussian capital. After lunch enjoy sightseeing with a Local Guide in historic Minsk. Post-war architects were given carte-blanche to reconstruct a show case city: 67% of Minsk was destroyed during World War II. (FB,L,D)Day 15 Minsk-Brest-Warsaw, Poland. (Fri.) Have lunch in Brest, best known for the treaty of Brest-Titovsk, on your way to Warsaw, Poland’s beautiful capital. (FB,L,D)

Day 16 Warsaw. (Sat.) Your Local Guide takes you to the medieval STARE MIASTO (Old Quarter), the 14th-century CATHEDRAL OF ST. JOHN, the Palace of Culture and Science, Lazienki Palace, and the Marszalkowska residential development. In the HISTORICAL MUSEUM watch a moving film showing the city before and after wartime destruction. Tonight maybe an optional Polish dinner and polka party? (BB)

Day 17 Warsaw-Poznan-Berlin, Germany. (Sun.) Stop in the river port of Poznan for a short orientation drive, then on to Berlin. Tonight is your chance to sample Berlin’s fine restaurants! (BB)

Day 18 Berlin. (Mon.) Sightseeing with a Local Guide in the once-divided metropolis includes the Ku-Damm, the restored Reichstag, monumental Brandenburg Gate, Charlottenburg Palace, the 210-foot Victory Column in vast Tiergarten Park, and a visit to the KAISER WILHELM MEMORIAL CHURCH. Drive along Unter Den Linden Boulevard, pass the German State Opera House and, of course, stop for pictures at Checkpoint Charlie. In the afternoon an optional excursion to historic Potsdam is available. Tonight a farewell dinner will be served at your hotel. (BB,D)

Day 19 (Tue.) Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (BB)