THE TOUR INCLUDES: - Top category seats for 6 performances as listed - 9 nights accommodations at the 5-star Hotel Palace Praha in Prague and the 5-star Hotel Ambassador in Vienna. Both are ideally located in the Old Town centres. - Full breakfast daily, 3 lunches, 3 dinners, 1 special brunch, light snack at the Kaiserball. - private highlights tours in each city, plus the Janácek Museum in Brno, the picture gallery at Upper Belvedere and the Albertina in Vienna. - private Airport-Hotel transfers - luxury minicoach transfer between cities. - tour direction by an Aria Tours director - a comprehensive tour handbook containing travel info, performance synopses and a detailed daily itinerary Cost: $6995 US Single Supplement: $1250 US Optional Events: Christmas Concert: $100 US Götterdämmerung: $300 US Die Fledermaus: $300 US Spanish Riding School: $300 US Waltz lesson: $60 per person Deposit: $2500 Balance due: September 23, 2008

OPTIONS FLIGHTS We will be happy to make any flight arrangements, including reward travel with your preferred carrier, for $75 per person. Inbound flights should be made to Prague, departing December 23 (from North America); return flights should be from Vienna, departing January 2. AIRPORT-HOTEL TRANSFERS We include airport-hotel transfers (group) on the published tour dates. Transfers are not included for early arrivals or extended stays, although we can easily make these arrangements for you. TOUR ADDITIONS The itinerary can be customized to meet your needs and desires. Please call us to discuss any changes or amendments you wish to make. INSURANCE We strongly recommend that all tour members purchase cancellation insurance upon registration. We can assist you with this, though you are welcome to purchase a policy at your own discretion. If you would like information on the policies offered by our supplier, please contact us for details, or click HERE for an insurance brochure and application.

Prague is quite simply one of the most stunning cities in Europe, a UNESCO World Heritage listed gem much eulogized as the ‘City of a Thousand Spires’ and countless other clichés. Even the most hardened cynic cannot fail to be impressed strolling across Charles Bridge or unfurling into the Old Town Square for the first time. This is a city where just ambling around the impressively well-preserved historic core (stopping off for a fortifying glass of one of the excellent local beers, popping into boutique shops or one of the myriad museums, whilst admiring the smorgasbord of architectural styles that crowd all around on the way) is the real pleasure.

Part of Prague’s charm is that it is a rewarding place to visit at any time of year, but at Christmas it is magical--whether listening to the abundant strains of seasonal music or trudging across the crisp snow of Old Town Square and enjoying a glass of mulled wine at the Christmas Market, the slick, but still deeply characterful Czech capital seldom disappoints.

We will stay at the superb and charming Art Nouveau Hotel Palace Praha, and attend operatic performances at both the State Opera and Estates Theatre.

Vienna (Wien) is a unique blend of the historic and the modern, so full of tradition it can be read on the face of the city, yet with a forward-looking approach that will surprise the visitor. Vienna’s role as the seat of the Hapsburg Empire for centuries can be seen in the wealth of architecture and in the city’s artistic and musical heritage. Many of the world’s most important composers, including Beethoven and Mozart, have lived and performed behind Vienna’s Baroque façades. In addition to this Baroque splendour, there are excellent examples of the Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) architecture that also flourished here.

Vienna’s location on the east-west trade route along the River Danube played an important part in its history – an empire that once covered a large part of Europe was ruled from here. Even today, Vienna is the financial and administrative capital of Austria and home to a number of international organisations, including the United Nations. And with the fall of Communism, Vienna is once again at the centre of Europe.

We will stay at the elegant Hotel Ambassador Wien, steps from the Vienna State Opera and the Stephansdom. In addition to several operatic performances (to be announced in May), we will attend concerts at the Musikverein (Strauss) and Konzerthaus (Beethoven's 9th Symphony), and we will enjoy New Year's celebrations at the Imperial Kaiserball at Hofburg Palace.

THE ITINERARY

Tuesday, December 23...Departures for Prague
Departures (from North America) for Prague. For those who wish to arrive today, you will be able to attend one (or several) Christmas Concerts throughout the city. Details available in Autumn '08.

Wednesday, December 24...Prague
Arrivals in Prague. You will be met at the airport and transferred to the Hotel Palace Praha, a luxurious Art Nouveau gem in the heart of Old Town. After settling into your room, in the early evening you will join the group for a festive Holiday Welcome Dinner in the hotel's Gourmet Club Restaurant. Afterward, you will have the option of attending the moving Midnight Holy Mass at the St. James Church near our hotel.

Thursday, December 25...Prague
Spend the morning at leisure, celebrating in your own fashion. In the afternoon, we offer an optional Christmas Concert at the State Opera House ($100 US; please request upon registration), a highly enjoyable and light-hearted affair with seasonal music. This evening, we attend a performance of Dvorák's Rusalka, a Christmas tradition, at the State Opera.

Friday, December 26...Prague
Today we visit Prague's historic Jewish Quarter, the best preserved complex of Jewish historical monuments in the whole of Europe. Six synagogues remain, plus the Jewish Town Hall and the Old Jewish Cemetery - the most remarkable in Europe. We will then enjoy a private tour of the Theatre of the Estates, with some delightful insight into the venues history and the life of Mozart, with some surprises along the way... In the early evening (5pm), we enjoy a performance of Mozart's La finta giardiniera at the Theatre of the Estates. Afterward we cross the square to the U Modré ruže (The Blue Rose), one of the finest and most intimately set restaurants in the city, for a special post-performance dinner.

Saturday, December 27...Prague
After breakfast we meet for a coach and walking tour of Prague, featuring New Town, Wenceslas Square, the Old Town and picturesque Mala Strana. As we go, we uncover the origins of one of the best-preserved medieval cities in the world. This evening, we return to the State Opera for a performance of Puccini's Tosca.

Sunday, December 28...Prague to Vienna
After breakfast, we transfer by luxury mini coach to Vienna. We drive through the beautiful Moravian countryside along the way, stopping in the historic UNESCO World Heritage Site city of Brno. We enjoy lunch and a visit to the homestead of composer Leoš Janácek. Upon arrival in Vienna, we check in to our hotel, the 5 star Ambassador Wien, an elegant and historic property in the heart of Old Town Vienna's pedestrian Kärntnerstrasse. Evening at leisure. You may wish to attend an optional performance of Götterdämmerung at the Staatsoper (Welser-Möst; Gould, Halfvarson, Johansson).

Monday, December 29...Vienna
After breakfast we meet for a guided walking tour of Old Town Vienna, for a unique insight into the city's rich history and musical past. We visit St. Stephen's Cathedral, Austria's most eminent Gothic edifice and home to a wealth of art treasures, some of which can only be seen during a guided tour. We will also walk in the footsteps of Mozart, who spent his last ten years in Vienna. We then tour the Albertina Museum, considered to be one of the most important museums in the world. Following the tour, we enjoy lunch at the landmark Café Sirk in the Hotel Bristol, overlooking the Staatsoper. In the evening we attend a performance of Oscar Straus’s Die lustigen Nibelungen at the Volksoper.

Tuesday, December 30...Vienna
This morning we tour the picture gallery at Upper Belvedere Palace. The former summer residence of Prince Eugene of Savoy houses a superb collection of Austrian and international art from the last two centuries, including works by Klimt, Schiele, Waldmüller, Hundertwasser and many others. This evening we attend a very special concert by the incomparable Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Daniel Barenboim: a preview of the New Year’s Concert in the Großer Saal of the Musikverein. Following the concert, we walk to the renowned Hotel Imperial for a post-performance dinner.

Wednesday, December 31...Vienna
Enjoy the day at leisure in Vienna. NOTE: A performance featuring the Lipizzaner Horses at the Spanish Riding School is possible today (11 am). Those interested in taking waltz lessons (1pm) will also be accommodated. In the early evening, we meet and transfer to an unforgettable performance of Beethoven's 9th Symphony at the Konzerthaus, with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Afterwards, we return to the hotel to prepare for the greatest of all New Year's Eve celebrations-the Imperial Kaiserball at the Hofburg Palace. There are musical ensembles in many of salons—be sure to visit them all!. We will enjoy a light snack, waltz to our hearts' content, and ring in the New Year together.

Thursday, January 1...Vienna
After a well-deserved sleep-in, we make the late morning walk to the Grand Hotel and an absolutely lavish New Year's Brunch. We dine whilst enjoying the televised broadcast of the New Year's Concert from the Musikverein (those interested in tickets to the Musikverien for the concert will be accommodated. Please call for pricing and reservation). Today you will have the option of attending the traditional performance of Strauss's Die Fledermaus at the Staatsoper ($300; please request upon registration; cast tba). For all others, the final day is at leisure to say goodbye to Vienna as you see fit.

Friday, January 2...Vienna homeward
Transfers to the airport for departure flights are included.