Your Holiday Itinerary - 2009

9-Day Break

• Day 1 – Local departure then onwards to northern France for an overnight stay.
• Day 2 – Continue south to Giswil in Switzerland for a 6-night stay B,D
• Day 3 – Lucerne and Pilatus Railway. B,D
• Excursions and Visits – Lucerne (included), Pilatusbahn Railway and cable car (optional). With its lakeside setting and historic sights, Lucerne offers a unique charm. Walk along the old town wall, or across the 14th century Chapel Bridge – originally part of the town’s fortifications. The Pilatusbahn is the world’s steepest cog railway and has been in operation since 1889. It climbs Mount Pilatus at a 48% gradient, rising to 6791 feet above sea level. The original passenger steam cars had an average speed of 2-3 mph; today the electric cars run at 6mph and reach the top in just 30 minutes. Take in the views before returning by cable car. Return by coach to our hotel.
• Day 4 – Jungfrau Railway up to Kleine Scheidegg and Grindelwald. B,D
• Excursions and Visits – Jungfrau Railway (included). To Lauterbrunnen for an exciting ride on the Jungfraubahn Railway. The cog-wheel train will take us up to the Kleine Scheidegg, from where there are superb views of the north face of the Eiger, and the Mönch and Jungfrau mountains. We then travel by train to the Alpine village of Grindelwald with time for sightseeing.
• Day 5 – Travel on the Swiss Glacier Express. B,D
• Excursions and Visits – Swiss Glacier Express (included). We leave Giswil and drive to Andermatt to join the famous Swiss Glacier Express train from Andermatt to Chur. Riding the ‘slowest express train in the world’, we climb through unforgettable scenery to the summit of the Oberalp Massif. Panoramic windows allow for breathtaking views as we pass through quaint mountain towns and see the mighty Rhine river as a mountain stream. Return by coach from Chur to Giswil.
• Day 6 – Brienz and Interlaken. B,D
• Excursions and Visits – Brienz and Interlaken (optional, included on SILVER SERVICE). Enjoy the superb lakeland scenery for which central Switzerland is so justly famed. We travel along the shores of Lake Brienz, with its crystal clear greeny-blue waters, backed by hillsides with rolling pastures and fruit trees, to the town of Brienz, where time almost seems to have stood still. Explore the souvenir shops, visit perhaps a wood carvers workshop and see the old steam engines at the Rothorn Railway. In the afternoon we visit Interlaken, the holiday resort rich in tradition, situated between the lakes of Thun and Brienz and at the foot of the famous trio of peaks, the Eiger, Mönch and the Jungfrau.
• Day 7 – Reichenbach Falls Funicular Railway and Meiringen. B,D
• Excursions and Visits – Reichenbach Falls and Meiringen (optional). To Meiringen and then we take the Reichenbach Falls Funicular Railway up to see the dramatic falls, where according to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty fought out their deadly battle.
• Day 8 – To the Paris area for an overnight stay. Latin Quarter excursion. B
• Excursions and Visits – Paris Latin Quarter (optional). In the evening after arrival at our hotel in the Paris area, join our visit to the lively Latin Quarter in the centre of Paris near the River Seine. Savour the atmosphere of Parisian life in the evening, see the souvenir shops, and purchase something to eat in one of the many restaurants and cafés.
• Day 9 – To Calais, then return home. B

B=Breakfast D=Dinner

Your Holiday Itinerary - 2008

9-Day Break

• Day 1 – Local departure then onwards to northern France for an overnight stay
• Day 2 – Continue south to Giswil in Switzerland for a 6-night stay. B,D
• Day 3 – Lucerne (included) Pilatusbahn and cable car (optional). With its lakeside setting and historic sights, Lucerne is charming. Walk along the old town wall, or across the 14th century Chapel Bridge – originally part of the town’s fortifications. The Pilatusbahn is the world’s steepest cog railway and has been in operation since 1889. it climbs Mount Pilatus at a 48% gradient, rising to 6791 feet above sea level. The original passenger steam cars had an average speed of 2-3 mph; today the electric cars run at 6mph and reach the top in just 30 minutes. Take in the views before returning by cable car. Return by coach to our hotel. B,D
• Day 4 – Jungfrau Railway (included) To Lauterbrunnen for an exciting ride on the Jungfraubahn Railway. The cog-wheel train will take us up to the Kleine Scheidegg, from where there are superb views of the north face of the Eiger, and the Mönch and Jungfrau mountains. We then travel by train to the Alpine village of Grindelwald with time for sightseeing. B,D
• Day 5 – Swiss Glacier Express (included) We leave Giswil and drive to Andermatt to join the famous Swiss Glacier Express train from Andermatt to Chur. Riding the “slowest express train in the world”, we climb through unforgettable scenery to the summit of the Oberalp Massif. Panoramic windows allow for breathtaking views as we pass through quaint mountain towns and see the mighty Rhine river as a mountain stream. Return by coach from Chur to Giswil. B,D
• Day 6 – Brienz (included) and the Rothorn Railway (optional) To the lakeside resort of Brienz, where you can shop and sightsee or why not try a ride on Switzerland’s oldest steam cog railway, the Rothornbahn. The train has climbed Rothorn Kulm, hissing, huffing and puffing since 1892 and is one of the most famous railways in Switzerland, with sister locomotives operating on the Snowdon mountain railway in North Wales. Enjoy the scenery of the alpine meadows and mountain panoramas, and of course the incomparable feel of nostalgia as you smell the smoke and see the steam. Please note that on May 16 and May 30 the Rothornbahn will not be running, so the optional excursion will be a visit to lovely Interlaken instead. B,D
• Day 7 – Reichenbach Falls and Meiringen (optional) To Meiringen and then we take the Reichenbach Falls Funicular Railway up to see the dramatic falls, where according to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty fought out their deadly battle. Opposite the mountain hut a white star painted on the rock identifies the place where this took place. B,D
• Day 8 – Paris Latin Quarter (optional). In the evening after arrival at our hotel in the Paris area, join our visit to the lively area in the centre of Paris near the River Seine, the Latin Quarter. Savour the atmosphere of Parisian life in the evening, see the souvenir shops, and purchase something to eat in one of the many restaurants and cafés. B
• Day 9 – To Calais, then return home B

B=Breakfast D=Dinner