The Great Cities Of Eastern Europe

Having spent the last few holidays in France and Spain we were after something a bit different this year, so looked to the east of Europe. As it happened, once I’d started reading there were plenty of cities which appealed, and we decided to try and fit in more than one destination.

Scheduling such a trip seemed a bit tricky, as there was a danger of spending too much time travelling and worrying, not enough time seeing the sights. Here lies the beauty of escorted holidays, as we discovered, where somebody else does all the hard work for you, allowing you to enjoy multiple destinations without overcrowding your week.

I was thus delighted that I did not have to choose between Prague, Vienna and Budapest, as our holiday scheduled all three in the itinerary with hotels and transport taken care of. In this end, it was like three romantic city breaks rolled into one, beginning in the breathtaking Prague with an insightful guided tour.

The old town is a living monument to Prague’s past, the astronomic clock acting as a charming centre piece. A coffee in Old Town Square allowed us to soak up the atmosphere of the city with wooden-beamed town houses surrounding. A walk over the statue-clad Charles Bridge led us to the castle: a walled wonder full of art, architecture and curiosities. The cottages of Golden Lane are fairytale cute, and are the best looking places to do a bit of souvenir shopping. St Vitus’s Cathedral is a Gothic beauty bedecked with buttresses, gargoyles and stained glass.

Seduced and swooning from Prague’s beauty we were whisked on to Vienna through forests of fable and rustic countryside. Cake, concertos and Klimt were the things I hoped to find there, and I wasn’t disappointed. During a visit it is important to gaze intellectually from the windows of a coffee house whilst stuffing your face with a cream cake, as so many artists and famous brains have done before. Likewise, cultural refinement is best experienced during a ‘Sound of Vienna concert’ in which you can festoon yourself in finery and soak up the sounds before a sumptuous three course dinner.

Feeling positively regal we continued our soiree as well fed culture-vultures with a three day trip to Budapest. The city is divided by the river, the castle and the parliament buildings facing each other across the water. Storybook architecture and historic sites characterise the mellow streets of Buda on the west side of the river, whereas Pest on the east bank is a vibrant hub of colour, culture and culinary artistry. The streets of the old town are the setting of many a Hungarian fable, best explored on foot. Bath houses abound, with a dip in an ice cold plunge pool sure to provoke enlightenment, and steam rooms sweating you of your sins. A candlelit cruise along the river was the perfect way to end our escorted holiday, with the lights of the city reflecting off the water.