The Best of Austrian Wines
A Special guided Tour to Austria

Included Features: Roundtrip Air on Austrian Airlines (supplement may apply based on U.S. departure city) English speaking tour escort and city guides All transfers, sightseeing and excursions with private air-conditioned deluxe motorcoach, as listed on the itinerary 13 wine tastings at the most renowned vineyards as per the itinerary 7 nights accommodations in centrally located first class hotels   - 2 nights in Krems   - 3 nights in Vienna   - 2 nights in Graz Buffet-breakfast daily 4 dinners with selected wines (gratuities included) 4 lunches Entrance fees to: the Abbey of Melk, Schoenbrunn Palace and St. Stephen's Cathedral Boat-trip on the river Danube Taxes and Service Charges Comprehensive Information Kit Luggage Tags Porterage at the hotels   Tour Prices: Please call for information   We highly recommend that you purchase travel insurance, which we offer through Travel Guard. A pre-existing medical condition exclusion is waived if insurance is purchased within 24 hours of initial tour deposit. Detailed Itinerary   Day 1 USA - Vienna Depart from the U.S. on Austrian Airlines and/or its partner airlines for Vienna. Dinner and breakfast will be served on board. Schedule may vary, depending on your departure city.   Day 2 Vienna - Wachau Valley Arrive at Vienna International Airport in the morning and be met by your tour escort in the arrival hall. Board the bus and travel past Vienna, along the river Danube to Krems. Check-in to the Hotel Steigenberger is followed by free time to relax and recover from the transatlantic flight and for lunch on your own. After the wine tasting a welcome dinner will be served at the Restaurant Loibnerhof. Return to Krems for overnight. D   Day 3 Wine Region Kamptal - Vienna After breakfast we will take you along the most beautiful stretch of the Danube Valley, the Wachau, past vineyards, ancient ruins and rolling hills to the town of Melk. Enjoy a private guided tour of the Abbey of Melk, a masterpiece of Baroque Architecture, with its impressive library. The church stands high on a bluff overlooking the Danube Valley. Your first wine tasting today will be at the Weingut Rudi Pichler in Weissenkirchen. Lunch will be served at the Restaurant Florianihof in Weissenkirchen before we continue on to Spitz for the wine tasting at the Weingut Franz Hirtzberger in Spitz. This afternoon you will have two more visits to wineries and wine tasting: at the Weingut Franz Prager in Weissenkirchen and the Weingut F.X. Pichler in Duernstein. Return to Krems by boat on the Danube. Dinner tonight will be served at the restaurant of the hotel. B,L,D   Day 4 Wine Region Kamptal - Vienna After breakfast and luggage loading, the tour escort will take you on a stroll through Krems, the oldest town in Lower Austria. See the old town with its handsome burgher's houses and many buildings of the Gothic period, and visit the Historical Museum and the Wine museum, before we depart Krems and travel north to Austria's prime white-wine growing area, the Langenlois. Visit the vineyards of Willi Bruendlmayr, where a Heurigen lunch will be served after the wine tasting. The next winegrower to be visited is Fred Loimer, also located in Langenlois. From there you travel east to Stammersdorf, to the outskirts of Vienna. We arranged for a wine tasting at Fritz Wieninger. You then continue on to Vienna. Check-in to the centrally located first class Hotel Stefanie. Time to relax and freshen-up before we take you to the Restaurant Daniel in the 1st district of Vienna. Daniel is one of the finest restaurants in Vienna with a "fin de siecle" atmosphere, serving dishes of the innovative yet traditional new Viennese cuisine. B,L,D   Day 5 Vienna After breakfast meet with your local city guide for a sightseeing tour of the Capital of Austria. This tour will include a visit to the State Apartments at Schoenbrunn Palace as well as St. Stephen's Cathedral. The afternoon is at your leisure, to visit one of the many museums, stroll around town and sample pastry and coffee in one of the many coffeehouses Vienna is famous for. Smolka Tours is more than happy to help you make dinner reservations or get you tickets to the opera or concerts in advance. With your final documents you will also receive comprehensive information on Vienna, a museum list with opening times...and much more. B   Day 6 Vienna This morning you will continue the tour of Vienna by visiting the Naschmarkt, Vienna's farmer market, and specialty shops. Meet again at 1:30 pm at "Meinl am Graben", a specialty and gourmet food store and restaurant. where Christian Petz, currently the best chef in Austria, presides. Be introduced to Austrian specialties before you browse this store and other specialty stores. The rest of the afternoon is at your leisure and dinner tonight is on your own. B   Day 7 Wine Region Burgenland - Graz After breakfast depart Vienna and travel to Austria's easternmost province, the Burgenland, known for its red wines and exquisite dessert wines. The first stop will be in Illmitz at Lake Neusiedl, to taste the wines of Alois Kracher sen. & jun., known for their Spaetlese wines (sweet wines). A delicious 3-course lunch will be served at the Restaurant Nikolauszeche in Purbach. From there we continue on to Rust, the wine town at Lake Neusiedl for a wine tasting at Heidi Schrock. Continue on to the winery of Anton Kollwentz in Grosshoeflein before traveling south to the final destination, Graz, the capital of the province of Styria. After check-in at the Grandhotel Wiesler, the rest of the evening is at your leisure. B,L   Day 8 Wine Region Styria Following breakfast at the hotel, depart for a tour along the Styrian Wine Road. The first stop will be in Spielfeld to taste the wines of Maria Polz. The wine tasting is followed by a lunch serving typical Styrian food. Continue on to Burghausen to visit the vineyards of Manfred Tement. Return to Graz and have some time to pack, stroll around town and relax. A farewell dinner will be served at the Restaurant Landhauskeller, not only renowned for its excellent cuisine but also for the outstanding selection of Austrian wines. B,L,D   Day 9 Graz - Vienna - USA After an early breakfast, transfer to Graz airport, for your flight back home to the U.S. Lunch and a snack will be served on board. B