AROUND THE BALTIC TO HELSINKI

AUGUST 15-31, 2018 TOUR LEADER: DR MATTHEW LAING

AROUND THE BALTIC Overview HAMBURG TO HELSINKI For nearly two millennia dominium maris baltici – dominion over the Baltic Tour dates: August 15-31, 2018 Sea – has been the preoccupying dream of Viking warriors and English admirals, of crusading popes and German merchants, of Scandinavian Tour leader: Dr Matthew Laing kings and Russian tsars. The Baltic is one of Europe’s great crossroads, a conduit of trade, culture, religion, language and conflict, but also a region Tour Price: $9,250 per person, twin share of stunning natural beauty that has inspired artists, designers, writers and composers. Single Supplement: $2,150 for sole use of double room This new 17-day tour offers a grand tour of the , from the romantic and powerful Hanseatic cities of Hamburg, and Lübeck Booking deposit: $500 per person in Northern Germany, to their Scandinavian cultural and maritime rivals in and Helsinki, and of course the enchanting historic cityscapes and natural beauty of the Baltic states in and . We’ll Recommended airline: Qantas walk through every era of Baltic history and eight UNESCO World Heritage sites, from remarkably preserved medieval castles and cities, to Maximum places: 20 neo-renaissance palaces and stunning romantic artworks, to cutting-edge modern design and architecture. Itinerary: Hamburg (5 nights), Copenhagen (3 nights), Riga (2 nights), Tallinn (3 nights), Through lectures and a carefully thought-out program of walking tours, site Helsinki (3 nights) visits, museums and galleries, you will gain a comprehensive and enjoyable understanding of this fascinating region and its people, history, Date published: August 15, 2017 culture and art. The structured part of the tour is complemented by free

time to relax, observe the everyday life of the locals and explore independently.

The journey has all the usual hallmarks of an Academy Travel tour - extended stays in centrally located hotels, background talks throughout the tour, and a maximum group size of just 20.

Your tour leader

Dr Matthew Laing is a frequent leader of Academy Travel tours to Europe and North America. He has a PhD in American political history from the Australian National University, is a research fellow in politics and history at Monash University, an ADFAS lecturer on history, and holds regular public lectures and short courses in Melbourne and Sydney.

Matthew has a specific interest in Western politics and history, particularly in the United States, Germany and Northern Europe. He has travelled widely in this regions for his research, with recent research on the history of United States in the Gilded Age and the politics of the in Enquiries and 16th century Germany and Scandinavia. bookings Matthew’s academic publications and research projects have focused on For further information and to both contemporary and historical topics in politics and history, particularly secure a place on this tour leadership, and he is currently writing a new university textbook on the please contact Jemma York history and practice of political leadership for Palgrave Macmillan. at Academy Travel on (02) 9235 0023 or 1800 or “Matthew is a wonderful guide – interesting, attentive, generous, knowledgeable and a great sense of humour. Just ideal in all respects” email [email protected] Feedback from Academy Travel’s Frank Lloyd Wright tour, Sept. 2016.

Tour Highlights

MEDIEVAL AND GOTHIC CITYSCAPES We’ll survey some of the best preserved medieval and in Europe and the incredible legacy of the in the old city centres of Bremen and Lübeck, complete with their masterpiece town halls, and trading houses, as well as the incredible medieval walled-city of Tallinn.

BREATHTAKING NATURAL BEAUTY Our journey will take in some of the stunning natural beauty of the Baltic Sea and its coastlines. We’ll tour ’s beautiful southern islands, including the chalk cliffs at Møns, drive the ruggedly beautiful mountains and coastlines of Latvia and Estonia, and take a ferry over the Gulf of Finland between Tallinn and Helsinki.

ROMANTIC ARCHITECTURE Captivating castles, palaces and galleries are to be found in abundance, built on the wealth of Baltic trade. From the enchanting Schwerin Palace near Lübeck and the beautiful old town district of Riga, to Helsinki’s incredible Suomenlinna Fortress complex and the Kronborg Castle in Helsingør, famous as the setting of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

STUNNING ART Several of the best collections of art in Northern Europe await us. Admire some of the best of the German romantics in the Hamburg Kunsthalle and seminal pieces of European modernism at the Louisiana Museum of Art in Denmark, and discover regional masters at the Latvian National Museum of Art and Helsinki’s Ateneum.

CUTTING-EDGE MODERN DESIGN The Baltic region can boast some of the world’s best modern design traditions. We’ll get a taste of some of the best it has to offer from seminal early works by Alvar Aalto and Eliel Saarinen in Helsinki to experiencing the contemporary landmarks of the Copenhagen Opera House and the Elbphilharmonie Concert Hall in Hamburg.

Detailed itinerary

Included meals are shown with the symbols B, L and D.

Wednesday August 15 Arrive After making your connections to Hamburg and transfers to our hotel, there will be welcome drinks and an introductory lecture on the history of the Baltic Sea and its peoples. Overnight Hamburg. (B)

Thursday August 16 Above: The Elbphilharonie, the newest addition to Hamburg’s skyline Hamburg: Maritime Powerhouse completed in January of 2017 Hamburg has long been one of the great maritime powerhouses Below: C.D. Friedrich’s Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog in the of Europe, sending ships across the world for commerce, Hamburg Kunsthalle; and the gothic city centre of Bremen conquest, colonisation and conversion. This morning there will be a walking tour of this remarkable history, taking in landmarks such as the Hamburg City Hall, St Nicholas’ Church and have time for lunch in the Krameramsstuben quarter. In the afternoon, we’ll see the World Heritage Speicherstadt (city of warehouses) and visit the Hamburg Maritime Museum, one of the world’s best. We’ll have a group welcome dinner later in the evening. Overnight Hamburg. (B, D)

Friday August 17 North German Culture and Art Germany’s second largest city, Hamburg is home to some of the nation’s greatest cultural institutions. This morning we’ll have a guided tour of the encyclopaedic Hamburg Kunsthalle with a focus on its North German paintings. In the afternoon, we’ll visit the birthplace of Johannes Brahms, see the beautiful St Pauli Piers and walk the famous Elbe Tunnels that run under the river and host temporary art exhibitions. We’ll also experience the newly finished modern masterpiece, the Elbphilharmonie concert hall. Overnight Hamburg (B)

Saturday August 18 Bremen: Free Imperial City This morning we’ll take a train through the German countryside to Bremen, one of the most influential cities of the with a fascinating and complex history. We’ll have a guided tour of some of its most important sites, including the beautiful medieval Bremen , Town Hall, Marketplace and Guildhall. We’ll enjoy a group lunch in the 15th century Ratskeller. Afterwards, we’ll take in the more modern interwar district, and in the afternoon the Bottcherstrasse and some of its charming house museums and small collections such as the Roseliushaus. Overnight Hamburg. (B, L)

Sunday August 19 Lubeck: Queen of the Hanseatic League Today we’ll take a coach to Lubeck, long the leading city of the incredible Hanseatic League that dominated the Baltic Sea for centuries. We’ll see its legacy everywhere in our tour of the old city, especially its beautiful brick gothic masterpieces of the

Holstentor and Burgtor, Town Hall and Hospital of the Holy Spirit. In the afternoon, we’ll continue to Schwerin Palace, a fairy-tale romantic castle built on a lake island by the Grand Dukes of , and tour its apartments and art collection. Overnight Hamburg. (B)

Monday August 20 The Danish Islands Our tour continues to Copenhagen today, via the beautiful southern islands of Falster, Lolland and Møn, and the southern reaches of Zealand. After a ferry over the Fermer Belt, we’ll see the charming villages and frescoed medieval churches of Keldby and Elmelunde, and the Viking burial mound at Grønsalen. After enjoying a group lunch on the island, we’ll see the beautiful chalk cliffs of Møn, and take a scenic coastal drive onwards to the capital. Overnight Copenahgen. (B, L)

Tuesday August 21 Copenhagen: The Danish Capital The Danish monarchs long strove to make their kingdom the premier cultural, naval and trading power in the Baltic, an ambition that can be seen on every corner of their capital city Copenhagen. Today we’ll do a comprehensive exploration of the layered history of this grand city by foot and by boat tour, seeing the Amalienborg and Christiansborg palaces, the neo- Above: The fairy-tale Schwerin Palace and gardens in Mecklenburg; renaissance icons of the Børsen and Rosenborg, the waterfront and the multi-coloured shopfronts of Copenhagen’s Nyhavn waterfront district Nyhavn district, and even discover the influence of the sea on Danish literature at the Little Mermaid. Later in the day, we’ll tour the glorious Copenhagen Opera House. Overnight Below: The stunning chalk cliffs of Denmark’s Møn island Copenhagen. (B)

Wednesday August 22 Along the Øresund Today we drive to Helsingør, once a prosperous and prominent harbour town long central to the struggle for the control of the Baltic, and home to the romantic icon of Kronborg Castle, the famous backdrop to Shakespeare’s Hamlet. After a tour of the castle and some of the historic sights of the town, we’ll make our way onwards to Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, one of the finest of its kind in Europe, before returning to Copenhagen in the afternoon. Overnight Copenhagen. (B)

Thursday August 23 Crossing the Baltic The morning is free to explore the design shops and department stores of Copenhagen, take a peek at one of the city’s marvellous art or sculpture museums, or see the Iron Age and Viking treasures at the National Museum of Denmark. Our flight to Latvia is in the afternoon, and after transferring to our hotel in Riga, we’ll have a group dinner and a lecture near our hotel. Overnight Riga. (B, D) Friday August 24 Riga: The Struggle for Freedom Riga has long been the target of Baltic empires, changing hands a dozen times in its fascinating history before finally achieving lasting independence just a few decades ago. The influence of many periods and cultures abounds in the city, and we’ll have guided tours of the Old City, including its beautiful Guildhall, the Nativity Church, the House of the Blackheads, and Riga Castle. In the afternoon, we venture to the more modern Jugendstil and Art Nouveau districts, and visit the Art Nouveau Museum. Overnight Riga. (B)

Saturday August 25 From Riga to Tallinn This morning we take a guided tour of the Latvian National Art Museum, one of the most comprehensive collections detailing the development of art in the Baltic region. Afterwards we take a scenic coach drive to Tallinn astride the Gulf of Riga and will enjoy a group dinner near our hotel on arrival. Overnight Tallinn. (B, D)

Sunday August 26 Tallinn: History and Innovation Today we explore Tallinn, whose UNESCO listed medieval city centre is one of the best preserved walled cities in Europe, but with a people and economy firmly focused on innovation and the Above: Ornate architectural detailing in Riga’s Art Nouveau district digital future. We’ll trace the development of the Estonian capital, including its remarkable medieval walls and guild halls in Below: Tallinn’s city walls date to the 13th and 14th centuries, and the Old Town and the cathedrals and knights halls of Toompea have survived remarkably intact despite nearly continued ensuring Hill. In the afternoon, we see the Russian Imperial legacy in the conflict Baltic with Kadriorg Palace, an ornate baroque estate built by Peter and Catherine the Great amidst a complex of landscaped gardens modelled from those in St Petersburg, and now home part of the Art Museum of Estonia. Overnight Tallinn. (B)

Monday August 27 Estonian Art and Culture After a lecture, this morning we’ll be able to glimpse earlier eras and agricultural existence in the Baltic region with a guided tour of the Rocca Al Mare Open Air Museum. The afternoon is free to continue exploring or relaxing in Tallinn, with optional further touring with your tour leader around the city and to the amazing Estonian Maritime Museum and Seaplane Harbour. Overnight Tallinn. (B)

Tuesday August 28 Baltic Ferries and Fortresses We say farewell to Estonia today and make a ferry crossing across the Gulf of Finland to Helsinki. In the remainder of the morning we’ll see some of the sights of the waterfront district, including the Uspenski Cathedral, the National Library and the Senate Square. In the afternoon, we take a ferry through Helsinki Harbor to the incredible island fortress complex of Suomenlinna, built by the as part of their ongoing struggle for naval supremacy over the Russian tsars.

Overnight Helsinki. (B)

Wednesday August 29 Finnish Music and Culture Long a struggling outpost on the edge of the Baltic, Finland’s art and music is central to its national identity and its emergence as a cultural destination of Northern Europe. We venture out to the Finnish Lakeland today and the shores of Lake Tuusula, a place of inspiration for many great Finnish artists and composers. We visit three of their villas here – Ainola, home of composer Jean Sibelius, Halosenniemi, home of painter Pekka Halonen, and Kokkonen, an Alvar Aalto designed home for composer Joonas Kokkonen, where we’ll take in a traditional Finnish lunch and private concert. We return to Helsinki in the afternoon. Overnight Helsinki. (B, L)

Thursday August 30 Nordic Design and Architecture The modern story of the Baltic region has been one of innovation and reinvention, and nowhere is this more prominent than in Helsinki, one of the world’s capitals of design. Today we explore some of the landmarks of architecture at the Aalto House, Finlandia Hall, and the Rock Church, and work our way through half a century of Finnish design in the design district and the Helsinki Design Museum. Tonight, we enjoy a farewell dinner in Helsinki. Overnight Helsinki. (B, D)

Friday August 31 Departures It is the final day of summer and our tour, and we finish with a visit to the Ateneum Art Museum, housing some of Finland’s finest paintings and sculpture. Flights from Helsinki depart in the afternoon. (B)

Hotels

Hotels have been selected principally for their central location Above: Alvar Aalto’s masterpiece Finlanda Hall; and Temppeliaukio and four-star and above rating. Church, carved right out of a rocky hill in Helsinki Below: Talvinen Iltarusko by Finnish painter Pekka Halonen  Hamburg, Sir Nikolai Hotel (5 nights) http://www.sirhotels.com/nikolai

 Copenhagen, Admiral Hotel (3 nights) https://admiralhotel.dk/en/

 Riga, Neiburgs Hotel (2 nights) https://www.neiburgs.com/

 Tallinn, Hotel Telegraaf (3 nights) https://www.telegraafhotel.com/

 Helsinki, Radisson Blu Plaza (3 nights) https://www.radissonblu.com/en/plazahotel-helsinki

Hamburg’s ‘City of Warehouses’ towers over the Elbe River, a legacy of its history as one of the world’s great seaports

Tour Price Fitness Requirements

The tour price is $9,250 per person, twin share (land content of THIS tour only). The supplement for a single room is $2,150 per person. A non-refundable deposit of $500 per person is GRADE TWO required to secure a place on the tour. It is important both for you and for your fellow travellers that you are fit enough to be able to enjoy all the activities on this Tour Inclusions tour. To give you an indication of the level of physical fitness required to participate on our tours, we have given them a Included in the tour price star grading. Academy Travel’s tours tend to feature extended walking tours and site visits, which require greater  All accommodation in selected hotels fitness than coach touring. We ask you to carefully consider  All breakfasts, and seven lunches or dinners as your ability to meet the physical demands of the tour. indicated in the itinerary, including wine with meals  Land travel by air-conditioned coach, trains or taxis Participation criteria for this tour  Economy class flight from Copenhagen to Riga, and business-class ferry travel from Tallinn to Helsinki This Grade Two tour is designed for people who lead active  Background lectures and talks lives and can comfortably participate in up to five hours of  Services of Australian tour leader throughout tour physical activity per day on most days, including longer  All entrance fees to sites mentioned on itinerary walking tours, challenging archaeological sites, climbing  Qualified local guides and museum lecturers stairs, embarking and disembarking trains and/or boats, and a more demanding tour schedule with one night stops or Not included several internal flights.  International air fares, taxes and surcharges (see below) You should be able to:  Travel insurance  keep up with the group at all times  Meals not mentioned in itinerary  walk for 4-5 kilometres at a moderate pace with only  Expenses of a personal nature short breaks  stand for a reasonable length of time in galleries and museums Air travel OPTIONS  tolerate uncomfortable climatic conditions such as cold, humidity and heat The tour price quoted is for land content only. For this tour  walk up and down slopes we recommend Emirates or Qantas, who offer flights into  negotiate steps and slopes on archaeological sites, Hamburg and return via London from Helsinki. Please which are often uneven and unstable contact us for further information on competitive Economy,  get on and off a large coach with steep stairs, train or Business and First Class airfares. Transfers between airport boat unassisted, possibly with luggage and hotel are included for all passengers booking their flights  move your luggage a short distance if required through Academy Travel. These may be group or individual transfers. A note for older travellers If you are more than 80 years old, or have restricted mobility, Enquiries & bookings it is highly likely that you will find this itinerary challenging. You will have to miss several activities and will not get the For further information and to secure a place on this tour full value of the tour. Your booking will not be accepted until please contact Jemma York at Academy Travel on after you have contacted Academy Travel to discuss your 9235 0023 or 1800 639 699 (outside Sydney) or email situation and the exact physical requirements of this tour. [email protected] While we will do our best to reasonably accommodate the physical needs of all group members, we reserve the right to refuse bookings if we feel that the requirements of the tour Weather on Tour are too demanding for you and/or if local conditions mean we cannot reasonably accommodate your condition. August is a great time to visit Northern Europe - the weather is pleasant but avoids the peak Summer crowds of July. The days are longer, rainfall is low and temperatures are mild to warm. Nevertheless, you should bring a light jacket and jumpers, as evenings and Baltic breezes can be cool.