Country Roads of Belgium, Luxembourg & the Netherlands

Airport transfers depart Brussels airport for your centrally-located hotel. After checking in, the afternoon is yours to relax. Join your Travel Director for a visit to the cheeky Manneken Pis statue and a leisurely stroll around the Grand Place, voted the most beautiful square in Europe. Your delightful first evening also includes dinner at a local restaurant in the heart of the Old Town, with an opportunity to mingle with your fellow travellers.

Explore Brussels with Insight Choice. Learn about Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo, or join a private chocolate truffle making lesson and tasting with a master chocolatier, and further explore Brussels with a Local Expert. The remainder of the day is at your leisure. Perhaps join an Optional Experience to the lively city of Antwerp.

In the morning, admire the contrast of the Chinese and Japanese Pavilions and the impressive, metallic spheres of the Atomium. Your journey then crosses the pasture lands of Flanders to reach Ghent, the City of Flowers, offering a fascinating cultural mix of medieval heritage and modern urban life. With a Local Expert, take a stroll through the historical streets and be mesmerised by the outstanding beauty of its quays, churches and squares. Visit St. Bavo's Cathedral, former home of the Eyck masterpiece, and see the Castle of the Counts.

Continue to Bruges, where you'll stay for the next two nights. Meet your Local Expert in Bruges for a stroll along cobbled streets, lined with high-gabled houses from the 16th century. Visit the Market Square dominated by the 83 m (272 ft) medieval bell tower, the Belfry of Bruges. Explore Burg Square with its ornate Gothic town hall and glorious frescoes on the walls of the Holy Blood Chapel.

Enjoy a relaxed start and leisurely morning to explore the city of Bruges at your own pace. With your free afternoon, perhaps join an Optional Experience to visit the historic town of Ypres. Explore the market square and attend the famous Last Post Ceremony, commemorating the fallen Allied Forces on the surrounding Flanders Fields.

Travel into the French-speaking region of Wallonia, where picturesque country roads lead you to the late 19th-century Maredsous Abbey. Surrounded by the lush greenery of the Molignée valley, the Benedictine monks have toiled for over 100 years to create a cultural household for arts and crafts and a successful school, brewery and cheese plant. Your visit concludes with a sample of freshly brewed beer and a taste of creamy, golden-crusted cheese.

Continue on to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg to arrive at your 18th-century château home for two nights. In the evening, you will be served a fresh and delicious Farm-to-Table dinner at restaurant Les Écuries du Parc. See the 12th-century Clervaux Castle illuminated on your stroll after dinner.

Your travels continue to Luxembourg City for sightseeing with your Local Expert this morning. Visit the grave of U.S. General George S. Patton, laid to rest alongside the men who fought and died in his great Third Army. Admire the view over the Petrusse Ravine from the Pont Adolphe and stroll through the Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to see the cathedral and the Palace of the Grand Duke.

The afternoon is free for you to explore Luxembourg City at your leisure, or perhaps join an Optional Experience to the ancient Roman city of Trier, birthplace of Karl Marx, to explore with a Local Expert. Later, return to your hotel in the stunning scenery of the Luxembourg Ardennes hills.

Head for Bastogne to visit the Mardasson Monument, a star-shaped memorial dedicated to the U.S. troops who died during Battle of the Bulge in World War II. You may choose to climb to the top for a perspective of what it might have been like during the winter of 1944. Visit the Bastogne War Museum, a fascinating modern and interactive memorial center highlighting the causes, events and consequences of WWII.

Travel through all three Benelux countries today as your journey continues to Rotterdam, the world's largest port rebuilt after wartime devastation. During your orientation with your Travel Director, see the impressive market hall and its radical modern design and the Erasmus Bridge.

Visit one of the manufacturers of original Delft blue pottery before moving on to the Hague, the elegant governmental centre of the Netherlands. See where the Parliament is situated, and the impressive Peace Palace. Select departures visit Keukenhof Gardens, one of the world's largest flower gardens, an unforgettable experience not to be missed. Pass through picturesque villages and windmills of the Dutch countryside to Amsterdam for three fabulous nights.

In the evening, join a dinner cruise through Amsterdam's canals, where the menu reflects the city's longstanding Indonesian influence, a legacy of its colonial history.

Explore Amsterdam at your own pace, where Golden Age architecture and centuries-old canals sit alongside contemporary city life. Stroll past 17th-century merchants' houses, whose gabled facades tell the story of Amsterdam's historic trading wealth. Alternatively, choose to venture into the Dutch countryside on an Optional Experience to IJsselmeer.

Cruise across the lake to Marken and Volendam—two traditional communities known for their wooden houses, fishing heritage and regional dress. While there, you'll have the chance to sample Dutch pancakes, a popular local speciality. In the evening, perhaps visit a canal-side cafe, browse an independent gallery or join an Optional Experience dinner.

Start the morning with a visit to the newly refurbished Rijksmuseum with a Local Expert, Amsterdam's famed treasure trove of Dutch art, housing Rembrandt's ‘Night Watch.' If you choose, continue your cultural exploration with a visit to the Van Loon Museum, an elegant 17th-century canalside house.

Later, journey to the village of Monnikendam, learn the secrets of the Cheese Maker's craft, from milk to the finished product. Then witness a traditional Shoemaker turn a block of wood into clogs. In the evening, join your newfound friends and Travel Director for dinner at a beautiful restaurant in Monnikendam.

Bid farewell to the Dutch capital and your fellow travellers as you transfer to Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport.