Berlin & St Petersburg: Celebrations in the East
Berlin - St PetersburgExperience the excitement of New Year in the new vibrant Berlin, and enjoy the magic of a traditional white Russian Christmas in the elegant city of St Petersburg.
Since re-unification, Berlin has emerged as the invigorated political and cultural capital of Germany. During a leisurely 7-night stay, discover the city’s rich collections of visual art, from antiquity to cutting-edge contemporary, housed in Berlin’s numerous world-class museums. The city’s museums are mainly clustered on the recently restored Museum Island and in Kulturforum adjacent to Potsdammer Platz, a striking showcase of Berlin’s astonishing architectural transformation. The focal point of New Year in Berlin is the spectacular fireworks display over one of the city’s most potent symbols, the Brandenburg Gate. A day in nearby Potsdam, with its extensive Park Sanssouci, provides a tranquil contrast to the buzz of Berlin.
From Berlin fly to St Petersburg, Russia’s grand European-inspired former imperial capital, where you can fully savour the treasures of the city’s most famous tourist attraction, the Hermitage Museum, without the crushing summer crowds. The Hermitage, a highlight of an 8-day sojourn in St Petersburg, is housed in the former Winter Palace, just one of many palaces remnant of the ill-fated Romanov dynasty. We drive out of the city to two other opulent Romanov palaces, Peterhof overlooking the Baltic, and the Catherine Palace at Pushkin. Back in St Petersburg, a visit to the Russian Museum will reveal the unique world of Russian art, from luminous icons to revolutionary art of the early 20th century avant-garde.
Special dinners and concerts will be organized to capture the celebratory air of northern Xmas and New Year festivities in these two fascinating former eastern-bloc cities. 
Fireworks at Brandenburg Gate, Berlin
ITINERARY:
Saturday 26 December 2009: Depart Australia
Depart Australia on board Thai Airways to Bangkok where you transfer to Austrian Airlines for Vienna and Berlin.
Sunday 27 December: Arrive Berlin
Morning arrival Berlin. Transfer to your hotel in the heart of the old East Berlin, near the Boulevard Unter den Linden and the Brandenburg Gate.
Afternoon orientation of Berlin. In former West Berlin, drive along the boulevard Kurfürstendamm, see the Wilhelm-Kaiser Memorial Church and further afield, Charlottenburg Palace. Return along Strasse des 17 Juni dominated by the Siegessäule triumphal column, continue through Tiergarten, the former royal hunting grounds, past the Reichstag with its imposing glass dome, the Brandenburg Gate and the powerful, sobering Holocaust Memorial. Stop in Potsdamer Platz, the bustling new commercial heart of the city. In the old East, drive through the historic centre of the city, along Unter den Linden, see the Berlin Dom, the art nouveau Hackescher Markt quarter, the old soviet district around Alexanderplatz, the revitalized areas of Kreuzberg and Prenzlauerberg, and stop at the Berlin Wall Documentation Centre, a moving reminder of the city’s grim past. Continue along Friedrichstrasse past Galeries Lafayette, around the neo-classical Gendarmenplatz and to Checkpoint Charlie, a symbol of the city divided for more than thirty years. (D)
Monday 28 December: Berlin
After breakfast, start your exploration of Museum Island, commencing with a visit to the internationally renowned Pergamon Museum, featuring the monumental Pergamon Altar, Babylonian Ishtar Gate and the Roman Gate of Miletus, all highlights of a celebrated collection of antiquities assembled by German archaeologists during the 18th and 19th centuries. Free time this afternoon to remain in the Pergamon Museum or visit other museums located on Museum Island. You may choose to visit the recently reopened and beautifully restored Bode Museum, housing late antique and Byzantine Collections. Or visit the Altes Museum, Berlin’s first public museum, designed by the prominent German 19th century neo-classical architect, Karl Friedrich Schinkel. The collection includes outstanding examples of ancient Greek and Roman art. It also includes Egyptian art, with its star attraction, the bust of Queen Nefertiti, temporarily housed here until the completion of the Neues Museum, the final museum to be restored on Museum Island. (B)
Tuesday 29 December Berlin
Continue your exploration of Berlin’s key museums. Today visit the Gemäldegalerie (Picture Gallery) with its substantial holdings of European old masters, from the Medieval and Renaissance periods to the 19th century. The Gemäldegalerie features a strong collection of northern European paintings, including many Rembrandts, important works by Cranach, Dürer and Holbein. Gallery’s highlights are Rogier van der Weyden’s Portrait of a Woman with a Winged Bonnet, Vermeer’s YoungWoman with a Pearl Necklace and Caravaggio’s Amor Victorious.
Afternoon at leisure to remain in the Museum or perhaps explore nearby Potsdammer Platz or take the U-Bahn to the famous KaDeWe department store, one of Europe’s largest, with its popular gourmet food hall.
Optional evening concert by the Berliner Philharmoniker or similar (Not included in tour price, subject to final performance schedule). (B).
Wednesday 30 December: Berlin
This morning we return to Museum Island and visit the Old National Gallery (Alte Nationalegalerie),with its superb collection of German art from the 18th to early 20th centuries. The Old National Gallery is particularly strong in works of German Romanticism, including several iconic paintings by Caspar David Friedrich. After lunch we drive to Charlottenburg, to the Berggruen Collection, a major private art collection comprising works by Picasso, Braque, Matisse, Klee and Giacometti.
Evening at leisure, you might like to visit the Reichstag and explore the interior of its spectacular glass dome, designed by Sir Norman Foster.(B)
Thursday 31 December: Berlin
This morning we visit the Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin’s museum for contemporary art, housed in a refurbished railway station and dedicated to art from the 1950s onwards. This impressive collection features works by such influential twentieth century luminaries as Warhol, Beuys and Kiefer. Afterwards visit the Neue Nationalgalerie, designed in the 1960’s as an innovative “temple of light and glass” by internationally renowned German architect, Mies van der Rohe. The museum showcases 20th century European painting and sculpture with a great collection of paintings by leading German Expressionists such as Kirchner, Beckmann, Dix and Grosz.
Tonight enjoy a New Year’s Eve concert or opera (subject to final performance schedule) followed by dinner. After dinner, join in the New Year's celebrations and watch Berlin’s spectacular New Year’s fireworks display over Brandenburg Gate.(B,D)
Friday 01 January 2009: Berlin / New Years Day
Day at leisure.
Perhaps take a relaxing walk along the River Spree and around the new Government precinct with its remarkable range of contemporary buildings designed by leading international architects, or stroll through Scheunenviertel, Berlin’s hippest area, with its eclectic mix of bars, cafes and galleries. Maybe enjoy an afternoon or evening concert. (B)
Saturday 02 January: Berlin
Full day tour to the charming garden city of Potsdam, the old seat of the Prussian Kings. Drive through the Dutch Quarter, the Russian Colony and the extensive Park Sanssouci, culminating in a visit to Friedrich the Great’s 18th century rococo palace, Sanssouci followed by a short visit to the English-inspired, early twentieth century Schloss Cecilienhof, where the Potsdam Treaty was signed in 1945. In contrast to the grandeur of these two official residences, enjoy an intimate collection of paintings by renowned German Impressionist painter and leader of the Berlin Secession, Max Liebermann,in his elegant villa located on the shores of the tranquil lake, Wannsee. (B, L)
Sunday 03 January: Berlin – St Petersburg
Transfer to the airport for the flight to St Petersburg. Check into your hotel, well located on St Isaac’s Square and within walking distance to many key points of the city, including the Hermitage Museum.
Conceived in the soul of visionary emperor Peter the Great, St. Petersburg with its perfectly planned architecture, so unlike the Russian cities that came before it, is almost too European to be Russian. And yet, it's too Russian to be European. (B,D)
Monday 04 January: St Petersburg
A full day tour will introduce you to this magnificent city, first laid out by Peter the Great in 1703. Starting from St Isaac’s Cathedral, continue past the Bronzed Horseman and the Admiralty, to Palace Square and then along Nevsky Prospekt, St Petersburg’s main artery lined with former grand palaces, department stores and the imposing Kazan Cathedral. Visit the Russian Revival style Church of the Resurrection (known as the Church of the Spilt Blood). After lunch, cross the River Neva to explore the Peter and Paul Fortress, where the city was founded in 1703 and visit Sts Peter and Paul Cathedral, in which all the members of the Romanov dynasty are now finally laid to rest. (B, L)
Tuesday 05 January: St Petersburg
Morning tour of the world famous Hermitage Museum, housed in the former Winter Palace, the primary residence of the Romanov Dynasty. The immense collection of the Hermitage comprises European paintings from the Renaissance to Post- Impressionism. It includes major attractions such as Leonardo da Vinci’s Benois Madonna, Rubens’ Perseus and Andromeda and Matisse’s The Dance, as well as numerous examples of antiquities and decorative arts. Free time after the tour to remain in the museum. (B)
Wednesday 06 January: St Petersburg
This morning depart for the town of Pushkin, formerly known as Tsar’s Village (Tsarskoye Selo). Visit the centrepiece of this charming town- the magnificent baroque Catherine’s Palacewith its famous Amber Room, one of several imperial “summer palaces” surrounding St Petersburgand designed by perennial 18th century Russian court architect, Bartolommeo Rastrelli.. Weather permitting, enjoy a troika ride through the magnificent gardens. After lunch, continue to the nearby neo-classical Pavlovsk Palace, set in superb English-style gardens and designed by Catherine the Great’s favourite architect, Charles Cameron, for her ill-fated son, Paul. (B,L)
Thursday 07 January: St Petersburg / Russian Christmas
This morning attend a Russian Christmas church service followed by lunch.
Remainder of the day at leisure.
Optional evening concert, opera or ballet at the Mariinsky Theatre (Not included in tour price, subject to final program details). (B,L)
Friday 08 January: St Petersburg
Depart for a full day trip to another imperial summer palace, Peterhof. With commanding views over the Gulf of Finland, this famous baroque palace was begun by Peter the Great and completed by succeeding Romanov rulers, including Catherine the Great. After lunch, enjoy the magnificent surrounding park with both English and French style landscaped gardens dominated by the famous fountains inspired by Versailles palace. (B, L)
Saturday 09 January: St Petersburg
Morning visit to the Mikhailovsky Palace which houses the Russian Museum, featuring a comprehensive collection of Russian Art from the 13th to the 20th centuries. Key works include a striking icon depicting Russia’s first two homegrown saints, Boris and Gleb, Ilya Repin’s iconic Barge Hunters on the Volga and works by the early avant-garde painters such as Natalya Goncharova and Mikhail Larionov.
Afternoon free to remain in the Russian Museum and see more of its vast collection, or you may chose to explore nearby Nevsky Prospect, with its many famous buildings including the style-moderne Yeliseev Delicatessen and the House of Books.
This evening celebrate the conclusion of the tour with a special farewell dinner. (B,D)
Sunday 10 January: Depart St Petersburg
Morning transfer to the airport for departure on Austrian Airlines to Vienna and Bangkok. (B)
Monday 11 January: In flight
In Bangkok connect with Thai Airways flights to Australia.
Tuesday 12 January: Arrive Australia
Morning arrival in Australia.
YOUR HOTELS ****
Berlin – Maritime Pro Arte Hotel
St Petersburg – Renaissance Baltic Hotel
NB. Hotels of a similar standard may be substituted
