Call to book01904 521 936
Tour Search
#Favourites

Highlights of the Baltics & Scandinavia

Save
Gallery

Visit Six Countries on One Epic Rail Holiday

You are viewing the 2023 itinerary. Select your departure year
20232024
16 days From £3,295 £3,095 per person
Booking Offer

Save up to £300pp on selected 2023 and 2024 Worldwide holidays when you book before 14th April 2023.

View terms and conditions

2023 Tour code: BEG23

About the tour

Discover the contrasting cultures of the fascinating Baltics, from colourful Scandinavia to the splendour of Finland, via the historic countries of Latvia and Estonia. Explore glorious palaces and UNESCO World Heritage sites on this unique rail holiday.

Highlights

What’s included

Itinerary

Day 1 - London and Bremen

After meeting at London St Pancras, we board the Eurostar to Brussels. Here, we change trains, continuing to Bremen for the night.

Includes
  • Dinner
  • Eurostar Meal
Day 2 - Copenhagen

We take the high-speed service to Copenhagen for two nights, travelling via Hamburg.

Includes
  • Breakfast, Dinner
Day 3 - Exploring Copenhagen

We enjoy a sightseeing tour of the Danish capital today, seeing the Amalienborg Palace, a large octagonal structure surrounded by four identical Rococo palaces, one of which is still home to the reigning monarch, Queen Margrethe II. We also visit the famous statue of the Little Mermaid and take a cruise through the colourful canal area of Nyhavn, breaking for lunch to sample a typical Danish delicacy, smorrebrod. These tasty open sandwiches are made using traditional rye bread and come with a variety of fillings, including fish, beef, and egg.

Includes
  • Breakfast
Day 4 - Stockholm

We catch the high-speed train to Stockholm, passing over the scenic Øresund Bridge along the way. Checking into our hotel for two nights.

Includes
  • Breakfast, Dinner
Day 5 - Tour of Stockholm

We head out to start exploring with a visit to city hall, situated on the eastern shores of Kungsholmen island and boasting views of Riddarholmen and Södermalm, this is where the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony is held annually.

We continue our sightseeing with a guided coach tour of Stockholm. Built across 14 islands, connected together by no fewer than 57 bridges, Stockholm has a fascinating 750-year history and rich cultural life and is filled with a wide selection of world-class museums and attractions. We see the Royal Palace in Gamla Stan, Stockholm's Old Town and one of the best-preserved medieval city centres in the world. Here, the small winding streets reveal stores full of handicrafts, antiques, art galleries and cafés. The impressive Cathedral is also found in this historic area.

Includes
  • Breakfast
Day 6 - To Riga

We rise early for our flight to Riga. On arrival, our coach meets us for a day of sightseeing around Latvia's charming capital. Led by an expert local guide, we discover the city's 900-year history, with entrance to the cathedral included. We continue to our base for the next three nights, the Hotel Islande Riga, where we enjoy a relaxing dinner.

Day 7 - Riga

You're free to keep exploring Riga at leisure, perhaps delving more into the winding streets of Old Riga or visiting the fascinating House of the Black Heads museum. In the evening, we dine at Salve - a renowned local restaurant serving traditional Latvian faire in historic surroundings.

Includes
  • Breakfast, Dinner
Day 8 - Free time in Riga

Regarded as one of the most dynamic capitals within the Baltic States, Riga is a vibrant city of broad avenues, majestic palaces and trendy cafés. Riga is, above all, famous for its spectacular Art Nouveau architecture; there's no other European destination with so many buildings featuring that particular 19th-century style. Heading back to the Old Town, you can discover up to 150 historical and architectural monuments at your own pace, the oldest of which date from the 13th century. Wandering the historic streets, you'll also see the Freedom Monument, a symbol of Latvia's freedom and independence that sits on the city boundary between the old and new towns. The tower's honour guard change shifts every hour on the hour during the day.

Includes
  • Breakfast
Day 9 - Tallinn

We travel by coach along the Gulf of Riga to the Estonian capital of Tallinn for two nights. At the heart of this rich city is the hill of Toompea, a maze of cobbled streets and alleyways filled with medieval houses and, on arrival, we enjoy a guided tour of the city that includes the Dome Church, the Town Hall Square and Toompea Castle - Estonia's seat of power. We also discover Lower Tallinn, known as An-Linn, which is arguably as beautiful as Toompea with its cobbled streets, limestone buildings and terracotta-tiled roofs.

Includes
  • Day 9 - Breakfast, Dinner
  • Day 10 - Breakfast
Day 10 - Discovering Tallinn

Your day is free to explore. You could make a visit to the House of the Brotherhood of Blackheads, the only preserved Renaissance building in Tallinn, or call in at the unusually named 'Keik in de Kok', which means 'peek into the kitchen'. This ancient tower got its name thanks to its height, which allowed those inside to see through the windows of the surrounding buildings, although today it's home to a permanent exhibition of Tallinn's military history and serves as an entrance to the Bastion Tunnels, a network of hidden tunnels built in the 17th century during Swedish rule.

Includes
  • Breakfast
Day 11 - Helsinki

We take the ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki, our base for the next two nights. Travelling across the Gulf of Finland, we enjoy a guided coach tour on arrival, taking in many of the Finnish capital's main attractions. We visit the Rock Church, a modern building hewn out of solid rock, the Senate Square, the University and Library of Helsinki, the Sibelius Monument, the Olympic stadium and the new Opera House. We continue to the Seurasaari Open Air Museum on an island just outside the city centre, where you can explore traditional Finnish buildings set among the island's dense forest landscape. After our visit, we transfer to our hotel.

Includes
  • Breakfast, Dinner
Day 12 - Free time in Helsinki

Helsinki lies on an archipelago and is surrounded by hundreds of tiny islands, many of which are connected by regular ferry services and scenic boat cruises. Another attraction that lies off shore is the Suomenlinna Maritime Fortress, which has UNESCO World Heritage status and is built on an island featuring bastion walls, tunnels, cannons and an array of historic exhibits. The city is also filled with public parks and open spaces which make for the perfect spot to sit back, relax and watch the world go by.

Includes
  • Breakfast
Day 13 - Helsinki or London

If you choose the fly return option of this tour, today sees you transfer to the airport for your flight back to London Heathrow or Manchester. If you're returning to the UK by rail, however, we board the train back to Helsinki, continuing to the city's port for our overnight ferry crossing to Travemünde, in Germany.

Please note: your luggage will travel on the flight or on the ferry with you, rather than it travelling via our luggage service.

Includes
  • Breakfast, Dinner
Day 14 - Travemünde and Lubeck

Disembark the ferry, we transfer to our hotel in Lubeck for the night.

Day 15 - Cologne

Travelling by coach to Hamburg, we board the train to Cologne for an overnight stay.

Includes
  • Breakfast, Dinner
Day 16 - London

The final leg of our return journey takes us by rail to Brussels, where we board the Eurostar to London St Pancras.

Additional information

Please note

We are happy to offer a fly home version of this tour which is 13 days. On Day 13  (after breakfast) you will be transferred to the airport in Helsinki for your flight back to London.

Mobility information

Due to the nature of our tours they are generally unsuitable for those with restricted mobility. If you’d like to discuss any particular holiday with us in this respect, then please don’t hesitate to call us.

Hotels

Scandic Spectrum, Copenhagen

Scandic Spectrum, Copenhagen

View hotel

Scandic Grand Marina

Scandic Grand Marina, Helsinki

View hotel

Islande Hotel, Riga

Islande Hotel, Riga

View hotel

Scandic Continental Hotel

Scandic Continental Hotel, Stockholm

View hotel

Nordic Forum C Hotel

Nordic Forum C Hotel, Tallinn

View hotel

Enhance your holiday

Upgrades

Flight upgrades
London Hotels
UK rail connections
Worldwide Holidays by Rail 2023/2024

Worldwide Holidays by Rail 2023/2024

Long haul rail holidays to Scandinavia, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Australasia.

Download brochure
Highlights of the Baltics & Scandinavia

Visit Six Countries on One Epic Rail Holiday

Call

Enquire
Jo Jones
Jo
Lynne Broadley
Lynne
Related inspiration from our journey blog