Final-year school trip to Prague, Vienna and Budapest: Charles Bridge, Český Krumlov, Schönbrunn, the Hungarian Parliament and the Széchenyi Baths (9 days)

Day 1: Departure from your school and overnight stop in Bavaria

• Departure from your school early in the morning, at the time agreed with you.
• Daytime drive via Frankfurt (about 550 to 700 km depending on your school, 7 to 8 h 30 of driving excluding breaks); two drivers take turns at the wheel.
• Our drivers drive for a maximum of 3 hours, then take a 30-minute break, day and night.
• Free lunch during a motorway break.
• Arrival in the late afternoon in the Nuremberg area: check-in at the hotel for the overnight stop, dinner and quiet evening.

Day 2: Arrival in Prague and the Old Town

• Departure after breakfast for the Czech Republic (about 300 km, 3 h 30 excluding breaks).
• Arrival in Prague around midday and free lunch.
• Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock and the Týn Church, then a walk across Charles Bridge and its statues.
• Check-in at the accommodation for two nights, dinner and supervised evening.

Day 3: Prague Castle and Malá Strana

• Walk up to Prague Castle and the changing of the guard; visit to the castle circuit with St Vitus Cathedral, the Old Royal Palace and Golden Lane (on request).
• Walk down through the Malá Strana district to the John Lennon Wall.
• Free lunch, then a visit to the Jewish Museum in Prague and its synagogues in the Josefov district (on request).
• Late afternoon on Wenceslas Square, the heart of the 1989 Velvet Revolution.
• Dinner and last supervised evening in Prague.

Day 4: Český Krumlov and arrival in Vienna

• Check-out after breakfast and drive to southern Bohemia (about 180 km, 2 h 30).
• Discovery of Český Krumlov, a UNESCO World Heritage Site: the old town in the bend of the Vltava, the castle courtyards and gardens (free access).
• Free lunch, then drive to Austria (about 210 km, 2 h 45).
• Arrival in Vienna in the late afternoon and check-in at the accommodation for two nights, dinner and supervised evening.

Day 5: Imperial Vienna

• Visit to Schönbrunn Palace, the Habsburgs’ summer residence (on request), and a walk up through the gardens to the Gloriette.
• Free lunch at the Naschmarkt.
• The Ringstraße, the Opera, the Hofburg and St Stephen’s Cathedral.
• Evening at the Prater and a ride on the historic Giant Ferris Wheel (on request).
• Dinner and supervised evening.

Day 6: Morning in Vienna and arrival in Budapest

• Check-out after breakfast, stop at the Hundertwasser House and a walk in the Belvedere gardens.
• Drive to Hungary (about 245 km, 3 hours) and free lunch on the way.
• Walk up to the Buda Castle district, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Fishermen’s Bastion for the view over the Danube.
• Check-in at the accommodation for two nights, dinner and supervised evening.

Day 7: Pest, from the Parliament to the Széchenyi Baths

• Guided tour of the Hungarian Parliament and the Holy Crown of St Stephen (on request).
• The Shoes on the Danube Bank, a memorial to the Jewish victims shot in 1944–1945, then St Stephen’s Basilica.
• Free lunch at the Great Market Hall, then Andrássy Avenue to Heroes’ Square and a swim in the open-air Széchenyi Baths (on request).
• Dinner, then an evening cruise on the illuminated Danube (on request).

Day 8: Drive to the overnight stop in Bavaria

• Departure after breakfast, around 7.30 am.
• Daytime drive through Austria and via Passau (about 650 km, 7 h 30 excluding breaks), with two drivers taking turns.
• Free lunch during a break on the way.
• Overnight stop in the Regensburg area, dinner and quiet evening.

Day 9: Return to your school

• Departure after breakfast, around 8 am.
• Daytime drive to Belgium (about 600 to 750 km), with two drivers taking turns and regular breaks.
• Free lunch during a break on the way.
• Arrival at your school in the evening.