European Amber Road Tour - 14 Days

Day 1: Warsaw

Welcome to Warsaw! You will start your trip here, in the capital of Poland. Transfer to your hotel, then head out for some sightseeing and dinner in a street-side cafe. 

Day 2: Warsaw

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast at the hotel, then head out for a full day of sightseeing. Highlights include the charming Old Town with its pastel-colored buildings and open-air cafes, the Cathedral, Theatralny Square with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the Royal Route with its many extravagant mansions and churches. 

In the afternoon visit the Kazienki Palatial Park Complex and Wilanow Palace and Park, a sprawling garden which is sometimes called the Polish Versailles. 

Day 3: Warsaw – Bialystok – Vilnius

After breakfast catch a bus to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. On the way stop in Bialystok, the largest city in northeastern Poland. City tour stops include the Branicki Palace, former home of the Branicki family who owned most of the city during the 18th century, Main Market and the Town Hall, the Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas, the Church of St. Roch and the Gothic Cathedral of the Virgin Mary. 

Continue to Vilnius, then check in to your hotel after arriving. For an optional cultural and spa experience, visit the Amber Relax Luxus, an amber and mineral therapy center and try the unique radial-energetic therapy, which uses amber and mineral interaction of infrared rays to heal. 

Day 4: Vilnius – Trakai – Vilnius

Head out for a city tour of Vilnius, Lithuania's capital for over 600 years. Highlights of today's tour include St. Peter and Paul's Church, Gediminas Castle, Cathedral Square and St. Stanislaw Cathedral and Bell Tower, and St. Ann and Bernadine's Church. 

Visit the Art Center of Baltic Amber and taste a local specialty, the rousing Amber Drink—a strong alcohol that has been steeped into amber pieces to take on medicinal qualities. 

Continue to Užupis, one of Vilnius's oldest district which operates as a semi-autonomous artists republic with its own constitution, national anthem, calendar, and map. Visit the Russian Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit, Town Hall Square, and the Vilnius University, which was founded in 1579. 

In the afternoon take a trip to Trakai, an isolated castle located on an island in the middle of Lake Galvė. This former capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania is located in a scenic region of lakes and forests and is a must-see for history buffs. These days its . home to the Historical and Applied Art Museum with an ethnographic collection on the Karaites people, a small ethnic minority native to the area. 

Return to Vilnius for a traditional dinner with folk dancing and another round of amber drink.

Day 5: Vilnius – Kaunas – Klaipeda

After breakfast at the hotel depart for Klaipeda with a stop in Kaunas for sightseeing. A walking tour of Kaunas will bring you to ruins of the castle, the Town Hall Square, and old architecture and pedestrian Laisvės Avenue in the old town district. 

Continue to Klaipeda with another stop to one of the largest amber processing factories in Lithuania, which employs 250 amber craftsmen and professionals. Take a tour of the factory to see how a rough piece of amber turns into elegant jewelry. Arrive in Klaipeda in the afternoon and check into your hotel. 

Day 6: Klaipeda – Curonian Spit – Klaipeda

Explore the beautiful natural landscapes of the Baltic today with a tour of Neringa National Park on the Curonian Spit, which separates the Baltic Sea from the Curonian Lagoon. This region is characterized by sand dunes, pine forests, and long golden beaches. Visit the Hill of Witches to see over a hundred fanciful and folksy wooden sculptures scattered along a forest path. 

Make a stop to see the amber bay of Juodkrante where during the 1860-1890s the average production of amber was 75 thousand tons per year. 

Afterward, visit Nida to see the home which belonged to famous German writer Thomas Mann, visit the Amber Gallery to browse for souvenirs, and take a tour of a typical fisherman's house. 

Day 7: Klaipeda – Karkle – Palanga – Riga

Depart for Palanga in the morning. On the way stop in Karkle for a tour to learn about the origins and practice of harvesting amber. Adventurous visitors can brave the icy seawater to try netting for floating amber pieces in the waves. Kids and adults alike love searching through debris in the net to find the golden nuggets of amber. 

Your next stop is Palanga, one of the biggest resorts in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea. Visit the 19th-century Botanical Park and the Amber Museum in the Palace of Count Tyszkiewicz, where over 25,000 pieces of amber are on display, including 15,000 pieces with fossilized insect remains. 

Enjoy walking along the sea coast and on the pedestrian Basanavičiaus Street, which is famous for its cafes and live music. Finish the drive to Riga with a final stop at the Hill of Crosses where thousands of hand placed wooden crosses decorate an entire hillside. Arrive in Riga in the evening. 

Day 8: Riga – Jurmala – Riga

Head out for a walking and bus tour of Riga. Stops include the central boulevards, Bastion Hill, the Powder Tower, the Latvian National Theater and Fine Arts Museum, the University, and the National Opera House. The ancient Hanseatic City streets of the Old Town and the surrounding historical buildings and castle are a particularly lovely location for a midday stroll.

Later visit the Belinda Amber Museum, where local jewelers combine amber with other precious stones and metals, such as coral and pearls to create a unique new style of jewelry. New techniques in processing amber have yielded interesting variations on traditional amber art. 

In the afternoon head to the resort town of Jurmala, a popular destination for locals and visitors thanks to its mild climate, curative mud and mineral water, and long white sand beach. Enjoy walking around the small town and discovering the local architecture, which ranges from charming wooden homes of the early 20th century to modern-day resort buildings. Head to pedestrian Jomas Street for open-air cafes and live street music before returning to Riga. 

Day 9: Riga – Sigulda – Parnu – Tallinn

After breakfast depart for Tallinn, stopping in Sigulda on the way. Often called the Latvian Switzerland for its famous winter sports resort, Sigulda is a popular tourist destination. 

Visit the ruins of the 13th-century Crusader Castle and the 19th-century Kropotkin's Palace on the outskirts of Sigulda to explore Latvia's Middle Ages. 

Afterward continue down the valley to the 13th-century Turaida Castle, which houses a local history museum. En route to Tallinn in the afternoon stop in Parnu, a beautiful seaside spa, for a cool drink and bite to eat. Arrive in Tallinn in the evening. 

Day 10: Tallinn

After breakfast head out for a walking tour of the Old Town to see Tallinn's sights: the Parliament of Estonia, the 13th-century Dome Church, Toompea Castle, and the 15th-century Town Hall Square. 

Later stop by one of Tallinn's favorite tourist stops, St. Catherine's Passage (Katariina Käik)—a narrow medieval cobblestone street—to experience Tallinn's creative ambiance. The 15th and 17th-century rooms along the passage house the St. Catherine's Art Guild, a collection of artists who use traditional methods to create pottery, weaving, paintings, and metalwork. Stop and watch them at work—the windows of the buildings are open and intended for the public be able to see in. 

In the afternoon head out to the Pirita sailing center and Kadriorg Park for a tour of Latvia's seafaring history. 

Day 11: Tallinn – St. Petersburg

Spend the day traveling to St. Peterburg, either by plane, bus, or more likely, by ferry—a popular method of travel between the Baltic states. Arrive in St. Petersburg in the evening. 

Day 12: St. Petersburg

Today's city tour of St. Petersburg includes the top architectural and cultural sights: the Admiralty, the Neva River embankments, the Decembrist Square, Palace Square, and the Peter and Paul Fortress. 

Spend the afternoon visiting the Hermitage, one of the largest collections of Western European art on exhibit in the resplendent Winter Palace. Here the building's architecture is as much on display as the art: frescoed walls, marble floors, mosaics, antique furniture, and statues decorate the exhibit halls. 

In the evening catch a traditional folklore show at the Nikolajevsky Palace. 

Day 13: St. Petersburg

Your first stop of the day is Tsarskoye Selo, also known as Pushkin. The palace complex houses dozens of gazebos, gardens, outbuildings, and palaces, most notably Catherine's Palace, an 18th-century rococo home for the royal family. Visit the famous Amber Room, located inside Catherine's Palace, to see the magnificent result of the amber culture of the Baltic region. 

The original room was created from 16-foot panels, containing more than 100,000 pieces of amber. During World War II the palace was looted, and the room dismantled and shipped to Nazi Germany. Following the war, the original room paneling was never found. The current room on display is a recreation, started in the 1980s and finished in 2003. 

Day 14: St. Petersburg

After breakfast transfer to the airport for your flight home. Safe travels!