Rhineland Christmas Markets Cruise 2012 

We depart from St Pancras International by Eurostar to Brussels in Standard Class. We continue by train, travelling to Cologne for a night at the Grand City Hotel. Tonight, and on Day 2, you are free to explore the city's fantastic selection of Christmas Markets, with as many as six different markets located across the city. Later this afternoon we board our ship, the TC Bellevue, setting sail upstream towards Koblenz. (Day 1-D; Day 2-B,D)

This morning we wake up in Koblenz. Situated at the northern end of the scenic Rhine Gorge, Koblenz is also located at the confl uence of the Rhine and Moselle rivers. It has a lovely Old Town, which is transformed in the run-up to Christmas by festively decorated stalls, each offering gifts and regional delicacies. (B,L,D)

We arrive this morning in Mainz, a Roman city famous for its marvellous Romanesque Cathedral of St Martin. This has been the backdrop to Mainz's Christmas Market for more than 200 years, and here many stalls present arts, crafts and culinary delights. Later we continue to Rüdesheim. You are free to explore the town and its 'Christmas Market of Nations', where more than 120 stalls represent 12 nations, their specialities and traditions. Along the Drosselgasse and in the Old Town, shops and stalls offer a variety of produce, and the town's winemakers open their cellars to serve wine and other winter treats. (B,L,D)

This morning we cruise along the stunning Rhine Gorge. We travel past the legendary Lorelei Rock and pretty little villages, nestled beneath hilltop castles and sweeping vineyards. This afternoon we reach Bonn, an attractive university town which was West Germany's capital - a position it held until reunifi cation in 1990. We have time to discover Bonn's Christmas Market - the main squares are filled with illuminated stalls, offering warming glühwein and other Rhineland specialities such as beeswax candles. On Day 6 we arrive in Cologne, where we disembark and travel by train to Brussels. Here we join the Eurostar service to London. (Day 5-B,L,D; Day 6-B)

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner
Where shown, meals are included in the price of your holiday