POLAND – CZECH REPUBLIC – SLOVAKIA - HUNGARY.

POLAND – CZECH REPUBLIC – SLOVAKIA - HUNGARY. WITH THE PATH OF FAITH

CRAVOV · ŁAGIEWNIKI · WIELICZKA · AUSCHWITZ · OLOMOUC · MORAVIAN KRAS · BRNO · PRAGUE · KARLŠTEJN · LEDNICE-VALTICE · BRATISLAVA · BUDAPEST

DAY 1

Arrival in Cracov. A stroll along the city and free time. Dinner and accomodation at the hotel.

DAY 2

Breakfast. We start our day with a visit to the Barbican, Florian gate and the Florian street, the Cloth Market, Adam Mickiewicz Tower, Town Hall Tower, Basilica of The Holy Mother Mary. We drive to the Sanctuary of the Lords Mercy in Lagiewniki. Transfer to Wieliczka and exploring the saltmine and the Museum of Saltworks, along the pilgrimage route. We’ll see beautiful underground lakes, majestic carpentry constructions and unique salt statues. We end this day with a visit to the St Kinga chapel. Dinner and overnight.

DAY 3

Breakfast. We drive to Oświęcim and visitting the Auschwitz Museum. We’ll see : the entry gate with the ”Arbeit macht frei” sign, the Death Block, The Wall of Loss, the gas chamber and crematorium, the ramp, the quarantine baracks, living baracks of the female camp. Looking over at the main display – the ground where Auschwitz I was situated and the national displays and multiple historical displays i.e. photographs, photocopies of documents, prison clothing, wooden cots and other equipment, which was situated in the prison rooms, personal things which were taken from Poles, deported Jews and prisoners of other nationalities. Dinner and overnight in Olomouc.

DAY 4

Breakfast. Sightseeing at Olomouc, where we’ll see : a gothic city hall with an original astronomical clock, a column of the Holy Trinity, St Marys’ column, the cathedral of st Wacław, bishops’ palace, baroque fountains. After this we continue to the Morawski Kras caves. We’ll head over to the next location with a touristic train set to the Punkevni cave, which will be visited by foot and with a boat; since the programme will include a cruise along the Punkvi river. We’ll see a 138 metre Macocha Gulf – the deepest sinkhole in the Czech Republic.  We stop for a while in Brno. Vistting the St Peter and Paul cathedral, Assumption basilica, Augustinians’ Monastery, the Capuchin monk monastery and church, city hall wih the city symbols – a circle and a dragon. Dinner and overnight.

DAY 5

Breakfast. We start our day with a visit to Prague, where we’ll see i.e. the old town square, the city hall with a clock tower, antique tenement houses, a gothic Tynian church, the Goltz-Kinski palace, New City Hall and the Parliment. A visit at the dominican church. Dinner and overnight.

DAY 6

Breakfast. We drive to a baroque Norbetan monastery. Heading over to Hradčany and visitting the Černínský Palace and the Prague castle, the st Vitus cathedral, with the famous Golden Gates, the Old Royal Palace with the Vladislav Hall, St Georges’ basilica and monasery, the Golden Street with Daliborka tower, belvedere of queen Anna, castle gardens. We head to the Small Strana District with beautiful baroque palaces and wonderful gardens. Taking a look at the Staronová Synagogue - the oldest antique jewish-prague ghetto in Josefov. A cruise along Vltava with dinner and live music. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

DAY 7

Breakfast. We drive to the Karlštejn castle. Our next stop is at the historical knights hall, the chapel of st Nicolaus, royal bedroom, the vault, the old castle prison and the tower of st Marys’ Church. Return to Prague – the free time at the old town. Our last stop is the Staropramen Brewery – a visit connected with sampling. Return for dinner and accomodation.

DAY 8

Breakfast. We start our day with a visit to Lednice. Then on to Lednicko-Valticki - a palace-park complex. Admiring the green area covered with ponds, which have beautiful lilies, rich forests, meadows filled with flowers and an upstanding stand. The garden and the park had been integrated into the romantic buildings, which give the place a unique appeal. Drive to Bratislava for dinner and overnight.

DAY 9

Breakfast. Sightseeing at the city: the st Martins’ cathedral – the place of the coronations; the archbishops palace, the Franciscan church and monastery from the XIII cent., the Royal Palace, the old city hall, Michaels’ tower and gate. Our next stop is the Mirbracha and Grassalkovich palace, where we’ll see a panorama of the city from the Castle Valley. On our way back to Budapest we’ll have dinner and overnight.

DAY 10

Breakfast, after which we’ll visit the ”Water City”. We then continue to the Castle Valley,  the castle squares, the picturesque Fishermens’ tower and Matyas’ coronation church of Holy Mother Mary. From the Gellért Hill there is a view of the city: river curves, Bridges, monumental buildings, budan hills and the suburbs of Pest.  After this we continue to the rock chapel, also known as Ivans’ grotto. The cave consists of two chambers: the lobby, where the holy fire from Loudres burns, along with the deeper situated grotto, transformed into a place of prayer – a chaple left to be taken care of by the Pauline Fathers. We end this day with a visit to the cytadel and the Liberation statue. Dinner and an evening sail along Dunabe river. Return for overnight.

DAY 11

Breakfast and further exploration of the city. We head to the St Stephen basilica – the biggest sanctuary in Budapest, opera, the Széchenyi Chain Bridge – the first connection of Buda and Pest – laying on the opposite sides of the Dunabe river, the city park, as well as the picturesque Vajdahunyat castle, Heroes Square, the Andrassi alley, the Parliment – one of the biggest parlimental buildings in the world – dominating with its facade, decorated with 88 fingures of the hungarian rulers, the Castle of the Hungarian Academy of Study. Free time near the Vaci street – the famous pedestrian area. In the evening there will be a celebratory dinner with music and wine. Dinner and overnight.

DAY 12

Breakfast. We drive up to the Big Bazaar – the biggest roofed bazar in the city. Free time and possibility for shopping. We head to Széchenyi Thermal Bath – one of the biggest SPA complexes in Europe and the first termal complex in Pest. Its history starts in 1913 and in 1999 it had been modernised. The water in the pools, comes from the spring of st Stephen and is considered to be therapeutic. Dinner and accomodation.

DAY 13

Breakfast and flight back. The end of the pilgrimage.