Enchanting Christmas & New Year’s

Passau walking discovery tour Join your local expert for a walk through picturesque lanes in the heart of Passau, stopping at the Town Hall to see its magnificent atrium, which boasts several massive works by the famous German painter Ferdinand Wagner, and pausing to admire the beautiful rococo stairway of the bishop’s New Residence. After much of the town burned to the ground in 1662 and again in 1680, the reconstruction involved many Italian artists, who gave Passau the baroque and rococo touches you see everywhere. Monumental St. Stephan’s Cathedral, built in glorious baroque style, forms the backdrop for the Passau Christmas Market.

Full-day Salzburg and Oberndorf Spend Christmas Day in two Austrian towns famous for music. Salzburg is not only the birthplace of Mozart, Austria’s most famous composer, it is also where favorite scenes from The Sound of Music were filmed. Walk with your guide through the Mirabell Garden, the beautiful formal gardens where Maria sang “Do-Re-Mi” with her young charges, and through the heart of the UNESCO-designated Old Town, with its magnificent 17th-century cathedral. The archbishop’s splendid palace faces the square now named for Mozart, which has a statue of the great composer in the center; the house where Mozart was born is nearby. Enjoy lunch at the charming and historic Stiftskeller St. Peter before you head off to the little town of Oberndorf, where the most beloved Christmas carol of all time was performed for the first time. Joseph Mohr, Oberndorf’s priest, and Franz Xaver Gruber, the choir master in nearby Arnsdorf, composed “Silent Night” for a Christmas Eve service in 1818. Visit the chapel and see the little museum dedicated to the history of the carol.

Melk Abbey with library visit Melk Abbey was one of Europe’s most important centers of learning in the Middle Ages (Umberto Eco paid tribute to Melk’s significance to medieval scholarship in his novel The Name of the Rose, calling his narrator Adso of Melk), with a library that was famous throughout the continent. The medieval fortified abbey suffered damage during the 1683 Ottoman invasion, and so the Benedictines began an ambitious renovation project early in the 18th-century, turning the abbey into a magnificent example of baroque architecture and design. Local experts will take you through the Marble Hall, with its ornate painted ceiling featuring an allegorical scene paying tribute to Emperor Charles VI; the Emperors’ Gallery; and the awe-inspiring Abbey Church. After your tour of the abbey, you’ll have time to explore Melk on your own. You’ll want to find a comfortable seat in the lounge today as your ship cruises through the Wachau Valley. Over the eons, the Danube cut a gorge through the foothills of the Bohemian Mountains, resulting in a 19-mile (30-kilometer) stretch of riverine scenery so beautiful; UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Landscape. Castle ruins dominate hilltops; baroque church towers appear on the river banks, marking historic villages and splendid abbeys; and vineyards and apricot orchards cling to the rocky slopes. Some of Austria’s finest white wines are produced from grapes that ripen on the dry-stone terraces above the river, where grapes have been grown for 2,000 years. Dürnstein village stroll with exclusive spiced wine tasting and organ concert in a monastery church. Considering its diminutive size, the village of Dürnstein offers much to explore. The famous blue baroque tower of the abbey church is doubtless its best-known landmark, but the ruined castle above the town provides its most romantic tale. There Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned until he was found by his faithful bard, Blondel, and ransom could be raised—or so the legend goes. Walk with the Cruise Manager through the Kremser Gate, which dates to the 15th-century, and past 16th-, 17th- and 18th-century houses; it’s an up-close look at over 300 years of regional architecture. The inhabitants of this region have grown apricots and grapes for many centuries, and they have happily turned both into delectable beverages through the years. See what they do with the local wine in winter as you warm up with a mulled wine tasting after your walk.

Exclusive “Vienna, City of Arts” tour The sheer number of artistic gems on view in Vienna is overwhelming. Let an art historian provide you with knowledgeable guidance as you visit two extraordinary— and quite different—collections. The objects assembled at the Kunstkammer Vienna almost defy description. For centuries the Habsburgs collected curiosities that caught their fancies: an automaton of the goddess Diana riding a centaur, a priceless salt cellar made by Benvenuto Cellini, Renaissance tapestries, exquisite gold communion cups, sculptures and ivories—the range is staggering. The museum was closed for more than a decade and only reopened in 2013; now these precious, idiosyncratic and magical pieces are once again on public view. The collections at the Belvedere, by contrast, concentrate on paintings and sculpture. The Belvedere palace complex, a triumph of baroque architecture, was built for Prince Eugene of Savoy, the Habsburg Empire’s leading general in the early 18th-century. The Upper Belvedere houses the world’s largest group of works by Gustav Klimt, including his exquisite The Kiss. Exclusive “Taste of Christmas” Vienna walking tour Vienna is a delicious experience for visitors (and for locals too, of course) at any time of the year, but it’s especially inviting during the winter holidays. Join an exclusive excursion that combines delectable treats of the season with a look at some of the highlights in the Innere Stadt—the historic city core. A drive along Prater and Ring streets provides a glimpse of the magnificent buildings that showcase the Habsburgs’ grandeur, followed by a closer look. This district offers a stunning array of Vienna’s gems in just a few blocks. Drop by the 14th-century Minorite Church to see the animated Nativity scene, then stroll with your guide down elegant shopping streets, including the Graben and Kohlmarkt (don’t miss the dazzling display of holiday confectionary art in the windows of Café Demel, which once supplied Empress Sissi with candied violets), step into a newly restored 15th-century courtyard house, see where Mozart once lived (though he moved often as his finances changed), peek into some of the Hofburg’s courtyards and churches, and discover as you go along the luscious flavors of Vienna’s favorite holiday sweets and savories. You’ll sample delicate vanilla crescents, the fruit- filled pastry called kletzenbrot, poppy-seed cake, fluffy apple krapfen (a type of doughnut) and air-dried Tyrolean ham and rye bread. The Christmas Market ended on December 24, but Vienna also cherishes its New Year’s traditions, so you’ll find market stalls offering the good-luck charms Viennese people exchange on New Year’s Eve: You may spot marzipan pigs, chocolate chimney sweeps, plush mushrooms, tiny metal ladybugs, even lucky pennies— they all symbolize prosperity and good fortune for the coming year. Pick up some good luck and a mug of mulled wine and roam on your own through this short-lived market before returning to the ship. Exclusive Mozart and Strauss concert at Klosterneuburg Vienna is linked inextricably with music, as so many great composers lived and worked here: Beethoven, Mozart, Strauss, Schubert, Mahler, Brahms—the list is as long as it is glorious. Enjoy an evening of chamber music at a historic and intimate venue, a concert hall tucked inside the 12th-century Klosterneuburg Monastery. The musicians will be drawn from Vienna’s world-class professionals and will play beloved works by Mozart and Strauss.

The doors open early especially for you as you join an art historian for a tour of some of the masterpieces gathered here: View a unique group of works by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Vermeer’s Allegory of Painting, Raphael’s Madonna in the Meadow, and portraits by Rembrandt, Velazquez, Rubens, Titian, Tintoretto and Van Eyck, among others, in the Picture Gallery. Then move on to the Kuntskammer galleries, where you can see Benvenuto Cellini’s legendary salt cellar (the only gold sculpture he created that has survived to the present day) and hear its remarkable story. Your exclusive tour ends with a reception in the magnificent Cupola Hall, perhaps the architectural highlight of the splendid building.

Bratislava walking discovery tour St. Martin’s Cathedral gives you a hint of the surprising history of this city. The Gothic church was built into the medieval city’s fortifications, and 19 Habsburg rulers were crowned inside it, including Empress Maria Theresa. That’s because Bratislava, then known as Pressburg, became the capital of Hungary after the Ottomans conquered Budapest in 1536, a status it retained until the middle of the 19th-century. Close to the cathedral you’ll find St. Michael’s Gate, the last remaining portal of the medieval wall—and your entryway into Bratislava’s Old Town, which blends Gothic, baroque and art deco structures with some less graceful reminders of the Communist era. The stately 18th-century Primatial Palace, in the center of Old Town, was the site where the Pressburg peace treaty was signed in 1805, in which Austria ceded a great deal of territory to Napoleon. Another 18th-century palace, Grassalkovich, is now the president of Slovakia’s official residence. Take some time after the tour to browse through the attractive shops in the lovely art deco buildings that line the squares; you can find a wide selection of traditional folk items at the ULUV (Slovak Folk Culture) shop. And you’ll definitely want to sample some of the local delicacies. You can either return to the ship with your guide, passing the Slovak State Opera on a leisurely walk, or stay in town to continue exploring.

Exclusive New Year’s gala dinner and dance Ring in the New Year in a gorgeous historic ballroom, with an exclusive, wonderfully festive dinner followed by dancing. After midnight, the stately S.S. Maria Theresa will cruise along the Danube so you can see the city’s landmarks all alight—the Chain Bridge, the spectacular riverfront Parliament building and Castle Hill will all be illuminated for the evening. Budapest city tour This panoramic tour is a wonderful way to get an overview of the city if you have never been here before. It will carry you from Heroes’ Square, created in 1896 to honor the thousand-year anniversary of Hungary’s founding and its greatest historical figures, past some of the city’s most striking architectural sights—Dohány Street Synagogue, the Hungarian National Museum, the State Opera House, St. Stephen’s Basilica and the truly stunning Parliament Building—to Castle Hill, which has been called the heart of the nation. The city of Buda began here when King Béla built a strong keep in 1243 as a defense against Mongol invaders; a castle replaced the simple fortress; and over the centuries other castles replaced that one. The current castle is primarily 18th-century; a museum dedicated to Budapest’s archaeological finds is housed there, and the Castle Hill district has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You’ll go inside the magnificent 700-year-old Matthias Church, named for one of Hungary’s greatest kings, and then wend your way on foot to the picturesque Fisherman’s Bastion, whose seven fairytale-like towers represent the seven tribes that originally settled the region. It offers a glorious view of the city and the Danube below. Note: Visits to the interior of Matthias Church may not be possible on some weekends and Catholic holidays.

You can then visit either the Margit Kovács Ceramics Museum or the unique Szabo Marzipan Museum, which features a display of a display of the Hungarian Parliament made entirely out of marzipan. A special Captain’s Farewell Reception and Dinner will be prepared for you this evening.