New Year in Austria, Slovenia and CastelBrando

Your tour commences this evening at your hotel. Before dinner enjoy a welcome drink in the hotel. This is an ideal opportunity to meet and get to know your fellow travellers. 

Driving deep into the Bavarian Mountains we enjoy a fun filled adventure into the old Berchtesgaden Salt Mines. After dressing up in a salt miner’s uniform, we ride on a small train deep underground, take wooden slides (or steps) and then float on a barge across a crystal-clear underground lake, beautifully illuminated. Lunchtime is at leisure in the famous, historical town of Berchtesgaden. Afterwards, we continue to Salzburg and just outside of the city we make a stop to take in the view across a small, idyllic lake to the spectacular Schloss Leopoldskron. Not only the birthplace of the Salzburg Festival but also one of the principal locations of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s 1965 film ‘The Sound of Music’.
Later we settle into our hotel in the heart of the city, where we stay the next three nights. Dinner tonight is included dinner in the St Peter Stiftskeller – Austria’s oldest restaurant which dates back 1200 years! Be enchanted as we step back in time to the late 18th century.

Today is dedicated to Salzburg – the baroque city of Mozart sitting beneath its enormous Festung (Fortress). A walking tour with an expert local guide will introduce you to this enchanting city, including several locations used in the film ‘The Sound of Music’.  Afterwards, enjoy time at leisure in the picture-perfect old town centre. Mozart’s Birthplace makes a fascinating visit, as does the ancient castle.

Today we visit the beautiful Salzkammergut – the Austrian Lakes District. Our morning stops will be in pretty St. Wolfgang, the town which gave its name to the extraordinarily picturesque Lake Wolfgangsee, and the village of St Gilgen on the northern end of the lake. Later we will visit the town of Mondsee where you can visit the church made famous in the wedding scene of the film ‘The Sound of Music’.  This evening, as a finalé to the year, we celebrate with a special 6 course dinner in our hotel.

A New Year’s Day to remember! Driving south, we stop at the ski resort of Filzmoos where we board a horse drawn carriage to enjoy a ride through this winter wonderland. Passing through the snowy woods, and surrounded by majestic mountains, we reach the remote Oberhofalm alpine hut which provides a perfect lunchtime stop. In the afternoon we enter the Julian Alps and arrive at the natural wonder of Lake Bled, in Slovenia, where the tranquil waters are surrounded by impressive snow-covered peaks and overlooked by the imposing castle.

We stay in Lake View rooms, right beside the lake, in the heart of town for the next 3 nights. Dinner tonight is included in your hotel.

There is nothing quite like a day playing in the mountains! First we board a traditional ‘Pletna’ boat to cross the placid lake waters to the picturesque Church of the Assumption on the small island. Now it is time to drive deep down the Bohinj Valley which stretches through the Triglav National Park to visit the beautiful Lake Bohinj. Following the pretty shore, we reach the far side and board a cable car which whisks us up the mountain to the ski resort of Vogel. Time to relax and enjoy lunch in one of the mountain restaurants and marinate yourself in the views down across the lake and across the snowy peaks.

Back in Bled, make sure you wander through the lively, colourful Bled Christmas Markets which linger well into the New Year. They are romantically set along the lakeside, with a backdrop of Bled Castle strikingly illuminated high on the cliffs.

This evening we visit nearby Radovljica to dine in an historic local restaurant.  

This morning we enjoy a visit to the cliff top, medieval Bled Castle dramatically perched 130 metres above the lake. Dating back 1,000 years it is a symbol of Bled and Slovenia. Later, with our local guide, we visit Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana, which means ‘beloved’ in Slovene. Retaining the charm and warmth of a small town, it is literally filled to capacity with baroque churches, palaces, museums and quaint bridges traversing the canals and rivers. You will later have ‘My Time’ to explore the pedestrian areas in the historic Old Town which overflow with cafe tables and street entertainers.

Your evening is at leisure in Bled.

An early start today as we have an incredible day planned for you! Crossing Slovenia, we reach Postojna where we enjoy a mesmerizing train ride deep into to a stupendous labyrinth of massive caves. Our guided walking tour will then take us along easy, winding walkways amongst gorgeously illuminated, enormous caverns, stalagmites and stalactites. World renowned, the Postojna Caves are an astonishing experience. This afternoon we also visit one of the most extraordinary castles in the world. Predjama Castle is set dramatically in the gaping mouth of a cavern halfway up a 123m cliff, is listed as the world’s largest cave castle. Dating back 800 years, most of what you will see is 500 years old and its armory, halls, living quarters and dungeons take you back to the 16th century.

Late afternoon we reach the foothills of the Italian Dolomites and our superb hotel - CastelBrando. Located above the village of Cison di Valmarino this 2,000 year old Roman fortress was turned into a sumptuous Noble’s palace in the 13th century. On arrival we have included a guided tour of the castle – there is a lot to see – and this will be your home for your final 2 nights.

Today we visit nearby Venice – arguably one of the most romantic cities in the world. At Tronchetto we board a boat to take us to St Mark’s Square where we join our expert local guide for a walking tour and to visit St Mark’s Basilica. The rest of the day is at leisure to shop and explore the myriad of narrow, water lined streets and canals spanned by humped back bridges.

Tonight, we enjoy a classic pizza and prosecco farewell dinner in ‘our’ castle

This morning your tour comes to an end with a transfer to Venice, to arrive late morning. We will make stops at Venice Marco Polo Airport and Venice Mestre railway station. We recommend that you book flights or trains that depart Venice after 2pm today.