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Prague, Dresden, and the Castles of Bohemia: A Spectacular Cruise on the Elbe and Vltava Rivers
Preferred
Overview
Highlights (Bullets)
CRUISE HIGHLIGHTS
- EXCURSIONS INCLUDED
- A luxury cruise on an authentic paddle riverboat ONLY WITH CROISIEUROPE
- Cruising on the Elbe and Vltava Rivers, an exclusive itinerary
- Discover
- Prague, the Golden City
- The castles of Bohemia: Konopiste Castle, a former hunting lodge of the Habsburgs, and the Renaissance-style Nelahozeves Castle with its private artwork collection.
- The birthplace of Antonin Dvorak, the famous Czech composer
- Dresden, the “Florence of the Elbe” and its Royal Palace
Short Description
Discover the many hidden treasures of Bohemia on this exclusive itinerary. Reconnect with nature on excursions to top destinations set in idyllic landscapes along the Elbe and Vltava Rivers. We’ll visit Prague and Dresden, authentic cities that exude charm and boast a rich cultural and architectural history. The castles of Bohemia, symbols of the nobility and aristocracy, house many surprising works of art.
Destinations
Czech RepublicAttractions & Cities Visited
N/AActivities & Interests
River cruiseItinerary
Day 1 PRAGUE
Passengers are welcome to board at 6:00 p.m. in Prague. In the evening, we’ll introduce our crew at a welcome cocktail. We'll enjoy dinner on board.
Day 2 PRAGUE - STECHOVICE
We’ll spend the morning cruising the Vltava to Stechovice. Nestled in peaceful surroundings, the Vltava River reveals its bucolic landscapes and natural beauty. Once known for its gold mines, Stechovice is now famous for its traditional handmade pottery. In the afternoon, join us for an excursion to Konopiste Castle. Located in an idyllic setting, this 13th-century fortress—entirely renovated in the 18th century—was the Habsburg's hunting lodge. In addition to its sumptuously decorated apartments, the castle is home to an impressive collection of medieval weapons and armor that once belonged to Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. The castle was his last abode prior to his assassination in Sarajevo in 1914. Enjoy an evening of entertainment on board.
Day 3 STECHOVICE - PRAGUE
We'll cruise on the beautiful Vltava River to the Slapy dam. We’ll follow the winding river lined with hillsides on each bank and catch glimpses of castles in romantic, restful landscapes so typical of central Bohemia. The Slapy Reservoir is a popular vacation spot for residents of Prague, offering water sports and numerous recreational activities. We’ll return to Prague at the end of the afternoon.
Day 4 PRAGUE
Join us this morning for a guided tour of the Old Town in Prague. Stare Mesto dates back more than 1,000 years and is one of the most important places in Bohemian history. As you stroll through the city’s narrow streets, you’ll discover many points of interest, including the Jewish quarter, the old town hall and its famous astronomical clock, the Gothic church of Our Lady before Tyn, and the Charles Bridge. We’ll enjoy lunch on board. In the afternoon, join us for a guided tour of the Prague Castle district: Palaces, churches, and convents stand harmoniously in the vicinity of the castle, sitting high on a hill watching over the city. We’ll discover St. Vitus Cathedral, the largest and most important church in the country and one of the most prestigious Gothic cathedrals in Europe; the Old Royal Palace; and the Golden Lane, named after the goldsmiths that thrived there during the 17th century. Enjoy an evening of traditional entertainment on board.
Day 5 PRAGUE - MELNIK
We’ll spend the morning cruising to Melnik, at the confluence of the Elbe. We’ll enjoy lunch on board. This afternoon, join us for a tour of Nelahozeves Castle and the birth house of Antonin Dvorak. We’ll visit one of the most beautiful Renaissance castles in Bohemia that was home to 23 different Bohemian queens and princesses. The castle walls are elaborately adorned with Italian-style stucco and wall paintings depicting scenes from the Old Testament and Greek mythology. It is also home to a rich, private collection of furniture and paintings—including works by Rubens, Velazquez, and many others—all belonging to the Lobkowicz family, the oldest and most eminent Bohemian noble family. We’ll discover the luxurious lifestyle of the Bohemian nobility during the Baroque period. At the end of our tour, you’ll enjoy tasting a selection of wines from the castle’s vineyard. Nelahozeves is the birthplace of Antonin Dvorak. During our visit to the house in which he was born, we’ll discover the life and works of one of the greatest composers of the 19th century, the man who composed the famous “New World Symphony.” The rest of the evening is yours to do as you please.
Day 6 MELNIK - Dresden
Join us for a full-day excursion to Dresden, a fantastic city known as the “Florence of the Elbe.” A relatively recent city with Slavic origin, Dresden became the capital of the Margravate of Meissen in the 13th century and the seat of the Dukes of Saxony in the 15th century. Dresden offers a wide variety of attractions, including magnificent promenades on the bank of the Elbe, fascinating museums, monuments, and charming details. We’ll have lunch in a local restaurant. In the afternoon, join us for a guided tour of the Royal Palace, the former residence of the Saxon Dukes and Electors and the Kings of Saxony. Today, we can revel in the splendor of its architecture and its collections, including the historic Green Vault, which contains the largest collection of treasures in Europe. After our excursion, we’ll return to Prague by bus (surroundings) and start sailing to Prague city center. Tonight is our festive gala evening.
Day 6 MELNIK - Dresden
Join us for a full-day excursion to Dresden, a fantastic city known as the “Florence of the Elbe.” A relatively recent city with Slavic origin, Dresden became the capital of the Margravate of Meissen in the 13th century and the seat of the Dukes of Saxony in the 15th century. Dresden offers a wide variety of attractions, including magnificent promenades on the bank of the Elbe, fascinating museums, monuments, and charming details. We’ll have lunch in a local restaurant. In the afternoon, join us for a guided tour of the Royal Palace, the former residence of the Saxon Dukes and Electors and the Kings of Saxony. Today, we can revel in the splendor of its architecture and its collections, including the historic Green Vault, which contains the largest collection of treasures in Europe. After our excursion, we’ll return to Prague by bus (surroundings). And start sailing to Prague city center.Tonight is our festive gala evening.
Day 7 PRAGUE
Enjoy breakfast on board this morning before disembarking at 09:00 a.m.
Availability
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128 CroisiEurope Travel Reviews & Ratings
Prague, Dresden, and the Castles of Bohemia: A Spectacular Cruise on the Elbe and Vltava Rivers
Company Reviews
Great tours and food! Exceptional customer service
I am non-EU national, and very much enjoyed the international clientele .
My flight arrived later than the prescribed boarding time, the crew had my cabin ready, and held dinner. Both land side New York office and the onboard crew were very welcoming, and most attention to detail. Special recognition to Charina, my reservation agent, and Daniel the ship's purser.
The vessel's decor is very discreet, comfortable, and relaxing -- no neon, casino, etc. The elegance one would expect from a French company.
The land tours were very comprehensive, in comfortable coaches, with sufficient rest stops. Lunches ashore were included, as appropriate. As advertised, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages were included. In-town shopping was available, but not forced.
In all, a delightful experience. I look forward to another voyage with CroisiEurope. The company offers so many unique intineraries, it may be difficult to select.
A memorable four nights on the Seine - Le Havre to Paris
The Seine scenery was gorgeous and the boat was extremely comfortable—we loved that we could stay in our cabin, relax on various decks, or attend onboard activities, including a lively dance performance by a Normandy folk troupe. Even though we were the only English speakers on the cruise, the bilingual staff were always on hand to help us, and the other passengers (mostly French with a few Belgians/Swiss) were friendly and tolerant of our basic French. After our final night sleeping aboard the boat on Quai de Grenelle in Paris, we were rather sad to depart the beautiful Renoir.
The food, tours and service on the Miguel Torga exceeded our expectations, and we felt very safe with the Covid precautions being taken on board.
We had such a wonderful time on our cruise and absolutely intend to travel with CroisiEurope again. I was especially pleased with the attention to detail regarding food preferences and requests. I have a shellfish allergy, and our kids didn’t always like what was on the menu. The chef and staff always made every effort to accommodate and please us.
Our guide Deborah on the excursions was so informative and made great suggestions for sightseeing and shopping. I liked the way the excursions were managed by touring in the morning with lunch and sailing in the afternoon. We were the only Americans on board with mostly French speakers, but everyone was friendly, and we had no communication issues with the crew. Entertainment was simple but fun with games or local talent coming aboard for flamenco or folk singing and dancing. There were only 62 passengers and no young children. Our kids were 12 & 17, and they were happy with the pool on board, which was small, but ideal for cooling off after a morning in port. They surprised our 17-year-old with a special dessert on her birthday.
We’ve been on several other riverboat cruises (Viking, Peter Dielmann, Vodohod), and they did not match the value and service provided by CroisiEurope.
This barge hotel cruise on and along the Marne river was absolutely fantastic!
The crew were very attentive and hospitable. One of the biggest, if not THE biggest, highlight of the trip was the food. Breakfast was a typical French style buffet with all the trimmings. Lunch and dinner were menus, in the French style, prepared by our Chef and paired with a variety of wines and cheeses from around France. Each meal was unique and full of variety culminating at the end of the week with our Gala Dinner.
One of the excursion highlights, and a major reason why we chose this particular cruise, was the falconry demonstration at Chateau Thierry. It was very well done and quite a moving presentation, which included an American Bald Eagle and, even more surprisingly, Storks.
If you are looking for a more intimate way to cruise, Passenger to Crew ratio was 17 - 6, consider barge hotel cruises. We are most definitely looking forward to our next barge hotel cruise experience.
It’s affordable, the atmosphere on board is unique, the routes can be very interesting.
As seasoned cruisers, knowing well all aspects of cruising on seas and rivers, we had no experience about traveling on a barge in a canal. It was also time to overcome this lack.
A number of companies offer this kind of cruising on barge with 8 to 16 passengers, however very often at exorbitant prices. Luckily, we discovered that the company CroisiEurope offers one week cruise on various canals in Europe, at very decent price, especially considering that all is inclusive (full board, all alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and all excursions) on modern barges with a maximum of 22 passengers.
We opted for the barge Ms Deborah, which cruises on the canal de la Loire, with the Briare to Nevers’ route. We were looking forward to this itinerary because the proposed excursions particularly suited us. Unfortunately, only a few days before departure, we were informed that due of a lack of water in the Loire canal the Ms Deborah was switched over to the Haute Seine and Yonne for a new itinerary from Paris to Sens. Despites the fact that this new itinerary didn’t really meet our desires, especially the excursions, we decided to accept the change.
Our group of 6 persons from Switzerland was very warmly greeted by all members of the crew when arriving on the quai de Grenelle in Paris where we see the MS DEBORAH for the first time, our floating home for the week. With its two dominating colours blue and white, it is difficult not to fall in love with this beautiful small ship.
We were invited immediately for the welcome cocktail during which we met officially the crew and the other six individual passengers originating from New Zealand, England and the USA. With less time than it needs to tell, the relation between us was created, so that everyone felt part of a bunch of friends knowing each other for long time.
There is no need to present here the MS Deborah itself, as this is already thoroughly done on the Cruise Critic page.
The crew of 6 persons is composed of a captain, a sailor, a cruise director, a chef, a waitress and a cabin hostess who put all their efforts to satisfy the passengers and offer them the best possible service. The captain as well as the sailor are always trying to make passengers at ease, answer questions or even bring a drink. The lady cruise director is omnipresent, taking care of the passengers better than a mother hen would do. The talented young French chef aims to produce dishes which please everybody. His outstanding sauces and excellent desserts should be particularly praised. However, referring to comments we made during a cruise on the Seine Princess two years ago, we cannot understand that why today it is not possible to offer the choice of a light buffet at lunch instead a three or even four course menu! The always smiling and friendly Hungarian waitress was very caring and attentive, without forgetting the cabin hostess doing a great job in the cabins, the public spaces and even the kitchen. It wouldn’t be fair to name a single person as all members of the crew, without any exception, do all they can to make the cruise unforgettable.
Our one-week cruise on the barge Ms Deborah enables us today to make the following comments:
~ a cruise on a barge cannot be compared to any other kind of cruise
~ despite all the comfort offered on modern barge, one must be very aware that life on board happens at a restraint space, requiring therefore much flexibility and understanding in all aspects from all passengers
~ in our case, being only 12 passengers, we had the opportunity to take our meals on the terrace. We also never had the feeling that the boat was overcrowded. This can be different when the ship is full, especially by bad weather
~ the state of mind between the passengers who are mostly of foreign nationalities, who don’t know each other and don’t speak French, must function well right from the beginning
~ if the interrelation works, it is difficult to find a more relaxing and enjoyable way of travelling
~ the success on a barge is mainly due on the quality of its crew. Ms Deborah’s crew members have quickly created a family spirit on board, showing also that they genuinely like what they do
~ excursions can play a major role in choosing an itinerary. Not speaking French or English can be a handicap
Do we recommend to do a cruise on a barge? Yes, definitively! It’s affordable, the atmosphere on board is unique, the routes can be very interesting. In our case, this second try with CroisiEurope gives them a better note.
We are still waiting for a refund
Details
Flight & Transport Inclusions
All internal transport included (including local flights)
Group Size
Standard Group - 25 + people
Additional Information
THE CROISIEUROPE DIFFERENCE
- All meals included - DRINKS INCLUDED with meals and at the bar
- Refined French cuisine - Gala dinner and evening - Welcome cocktail
- Free Wi-Fi onboard
- Headsets are included for excursions
- Official welcome from the captain and crew
- Onboard activities
- Travel assistance and repatriation insurance
- All port fees included
Rules & Other Requirements
Valid national identity card or passport required. Non-EU nationals are advised to consult their embassy or consulate.
Trip ID#:
croisieurope-PGP_AIPP
What's excluded
Drinks from our special wine list or drinks ordered during excursions or transfers - cancellation and baggage insurance - transfers/travel to and from departure/arrival points - personal expenses.
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