Russia Baltic Danube Cruise - Maher Escorted Tour 2019

Breakfast at the Metropol is a treat to be savoured and remembered forever. The Metropol Hall, with it’s glass atrium and resident harpist, is a scene of opulent grandeur. The food selection is beyond compare: fruit is sliced to perfection; eggs can be 3 mins, 10 mins or any which way you like; Russian, Asian, Baltic, western ... it’s all here served in a separate buffet hall. Being serenaded with harp music while enjoying a pain au Chocolat is a great way to start a day’s sightseeing in Moscow. Fuelled with good food, Kirill marches us to the nearby Metro station. We disappear underground to a haven of marble and bronze. With a plan in place so we don’t lose each other we set off on a Metro station crawl. It’s Saturday, so not too busy. Some stations are Art Deco style with exquisite lighting and soft colour palettes, others are marble showcases. There are frescoes and mosaics, pillars and stucco. People move through the stations quickly, zipping around us, our cameras and awestruc...

After our 10hr 40min perfectly pleasant flight from Singapore our guide Kirill (Cyril in English) meets us at Moskva (Moscow) airport. It’s 45km from the city centre and he tells us it will take about 1 to 1.5 hours depending on traffic. (The train takes 35mins as an alternative for independent travellers.) As ours is an early morning arrival on a Friday, we hit rush-hour traffic - it’s solid but flowing and the multi-lane roads cater well for the volume. We trundle along slowly but surely. Kirill thinks this traffic is terrible and seems a little worried about the image it will give us of his home city - but he hasn’t been to Auckland! We make it to the hotel in just over an hour. (Auckland airport is 15km from the city and an hour in rush hour is good going - ponder those stats!) Being morning, our rooms are not yet ready; we have a walking tour lined up so after a quick freshen up and r ummage through luggage for umbrellas and rain jackets  (alas it’s raining) we head off t...

Thursday 18th July It’s busy in the breakfast room as we all connect. Soon we are off to the Singapore Flyer to enjoy the views as we slowly circulate high above the city. Weather is perfect and the views endless. Skyscrapers one way, the sea the other and below us the F1 racetrack which will be in full swing for the Grand Prix mid-September. Marina Bay Sands “ship” hotel really is an eye-catcher. Next we go for a short peaceful cruise along the river to see everything from a different perspective. The Merlion, in its bright white iconic splendour, spouts water as crowds gather round for photos. The historic buildings of Clarke Quay house riverside restaurants and add a pop of colour. We have a free afternoon and, in the true spirit of things, a group of us head for a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar at Raffles. Others head to a hawker market for some authentic local food and yet others enjoy the stunning Gardens by the Bay. Back at Raffles ... The hotel is under going renovatio...

We meet at the airport Wednesday morning 17th and fly to Singapore. Auckland airport is so quiet and the plane has many spare seats so there is room to spread out a bit which is both rare and very nice. Going through security is swift and seamless for most of the group but for Sheila and I it’s a different story - the place is chaos with people and bags everywhere, every second bag being thoroughly checked and not enough staff to cope. My tray is faulty and causes more chaos. Sheila has a 3/4 full 118ml bottle of lotion - it’s confiscated. Damn. Every so often a traveller must endure this in the name of safe travel - but please get us outta here. Poor Sheila has already had enough drama for one day - she had missed her connection from Tauranga due to a timing mixup but luckily she was able to hop on the next flight and still be in time. Phew. Things are much calmer at the gate and on board the plane. The meals are tasty, the service is friendly, efficient and regular. It’s been a lon...

Here's the itinerary for this fabulous Maher Escorted Tours trip, July/August 2019. Do check in regularly and come on the journey with me and 18 travellers from throughout New Zealand. Wednesday 17th July - Auckland to Singapore  - 1 night/2 days Singapore Thursday 18th July - Singapore to Moscow (Russia) - 3 nights/3 days Moscow Monday 22nd July - Moscow to St Petersburg (Russia) - 3 nights/3 days St P'burg Thursday 25th July - St Petersburg to Tallin (Estonia) - 2 nights/1 day Tallin Saturday 27th July - Tallin to Riga (Latvia) - 1 night/1 day Riga Sunday 28th July - Riga to Vilnius (Lithuania) - 2 nights/1 day Vilnius Tuesday 30th July - Vilnius to Mazury Lake District (Poland) - 1 night Lake Talty Wednesday 31st July - Mazury Lake District to Warsaw (Poland) - 2 nights/2 days Warsaw Friday 2nd August - Warsaw to Czesochowa to Krakow (Poland) - 3 nights/2 days Krakow Monday 5th August - Krakow to Slovenia to Eger (Hungary) - 1 night Eger Tues...

I'm a Tour Leader with Maher Escorted Tours and am leading the Russia/Baltic/Danube trip this year, 2019. I'm busy preparing so that my group of 18 travellers from throughout NZ have the very best time on this fabulous trip-of-a-lifetime. We leave on Wednesday 17th July (on countdown!) and return on Saturday 17th August. We will visit 11 countries in 32 days - Singapore, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Austria, Germany and Czech Republic - by plane, train, coach and river boat. I have visited six of these countries before, but not for some years. The rest, well it goes without saying I am really looking forward to experiencing them.  We'll enjoy superb hotels, great food, unique experiences, and wonderful camaraderie. There will be many adventures along the way, with a blend of guided sightseeing and free time that enables personal exploration of the fabulous destinations we'll be visiting. Follow our adventures on my blog! ...