Holland & Belgium – Amsterdam to Bruges Aboard Magnifique III

Depart for Amsterdam on an overnight flight.

AMSTERDAM, HOLLAND / EMBARK MAGNIFIQUE III

MORNING
■ Arrive in Amsterdam and meet for lunch at a local favorite.
AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Guided tour of the Rijksmuseum. Enter the country’s preeminent museum, designed like a cathedral in 1885 by Pierre Cuypers. Stand before Rembrandt’s Night Watch, the quiet glow of Vermeer’s Milkmaid, and the bold
strokes of Van Gogh’s early works.
■ Meet Magnifique III for an afternoon embarkation, relaxing and unpacking before gathering for the evening’s welcome dinner as we cruise to Vianen.

VIANEN/ KINDERDIJK / DORDRECHT

MORNING
■ Cruise to Kinderdijk, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Take a boat to this village and walk through one of the most extraordinary feats of Dutch engineering: 19 monumental windmills, built in the 1730s.
AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Savor lunch at a country estate along the idyllic Vecht, a river once lined with the summer homes of Amsterdam’s merchant elite.
■ Exclusive visit to the Rotterdam region’s only historic country estate (pending confirmation). Go behind the scenes inside this 18th-century, Rococo-era mansion still owned by descendants of its original family and normally closed to the public.
■ Return to Magnifique III for dinner.

DORDRECHT / ANTWERP, BELGIUM

MORNING
■ Guided tour of Dordrecht. Explore one of Holland’s oldest cities, joining a guide to stroll its cobblestone streets alongside canals and see a selection of its 950 monuments and medieval houses. ■ Transfer to Antwerp, and enjoy lunch upon arrival.
AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Guided look at major paintings by Peter Paul Rubens inside Antwerp’s Cathedral of Our Lady. Explore Antwerp’s tallest building, which houses some of Rubens’s most revered works, including his 1626 achievement Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
■ Guided tour of St. Paul’s Church. Admire masterpieces by Rubens, Van Dyck, and Jordaens, including their contributions to the famed 15 Mysteries of the Rosary cycle.
■ Classic Flemish dinner at Sir Anthony Van Dyk. This 16th-century patrician home offers a rare dining experience inside one of Antwerp’s most protected historic enclaves.

ANTWERP / SINT-AMANDS

MORNING
■ Curator-led tour Antwerp’s Royal Museum of Fine Arts (KMSKA). Join an expert guide to explore the museum’s 600 years of creative treasures.
■ Chart art’s evolution in the Low Countries from 15th-century Flemish portraits to 20th-century Belgian Expressionist canvases. Step into the vivid imaginations of Van Eyck, Rubens, Rodin, and Ensor.

AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Lunch is at leisure.
■ Guided tour of the Hendrik Conscience Heritage Library. Go behind the scenes in one of Belgium’s most atmospheric library spaces, the 17th-century Nottebohm Room, normally closed to the public.
■ Transfer to Magnifique III in St. Amands, and enjoy dinner on board.

SINT-AMANDS / GHENT

■ Enjoy a morning cruise from Sint-Amands to Ghent.
AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Lunch at leisure upon arrival in Ghent.
■ Guided tour of Ghent’s bustling city center. On this guided exploration, stops include the 12th-century Gravensteen, Flanders’s only medieval castle with a nearintact defense system.
■ Private tour of St. Bavo’s Cathedral. Step into a 1,000-year-old sanctuary built over the foundations of a Romanesque church and now dominated by Gothic spires.
■ Inside, encounter The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb (Ghent Altarpiece), one of Western art’s most important works. View this brilliant polyptych—painted by the Van Eycks in 1432—in its newly restored glory, returned to its original home.
■ Gather for dinner aboard Magnifique III.

GHENT / YPRES / BRUGES

MORNING
■ Special before-hours tour of Hotel d’Hane Steenhuyse. Enjoy exclusive access to this stately 18th-century residence, once the seat of Ghent’s aristocracy and a diplomatic stopover for Louis XVIII, Tsar Alexander I, and John Quincy Adams.
■ Stroll through its gilded Louis XV salons and austere Louis XVI galleries featuring paintings by Rubens and Van Reysschoot.
AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Gather for lunch in Ghent, then transfer to the historic town of Ypres.
■ During World War I, Ypres was the site of three devastating battles along the British lines of the Western Front, and you will experience how the town commemorates this history.
■ Guided tour of medieval Ypres. During the Middle Ages, Ypres prospered as a center for clothmaking. A visit to the medieval Market Square, the Gothic spires of the Cloth Hall, and the 13th-century Cathedral of St. Martin will transport you to the city’s zenith.
■ Expert-led visit to the In Flanders Fields Museum. Join your expert guide at the museum to uncover WWI artifacts and personal accounts that detail the soldiers’ experiences.
■ Exploration of Sanctuary Wood. Walk through preserved trenches and see the lasting impact of the war on the landscape.

■ Tour of the Hill 60 memorial site. This man-made hill, 60 meters high, was formed from earth excavated during the construction of the nearby railway. Here, you will gain a unique perspective on the region’s strategic importance during the war. British, Australian, and German forces fought intense underground battles using tunnels and mines, resulting in massive explosions and heavy casualties. Hill 60 now serves as a memorial site for WWI soldiers.
■ Visit to Tyne Cot Cemetery. Conclude your tour at the world’s largest Commonwealth war cemetery, where nearly 12,000 soldiers are laid to rest. The rows of white headstones and the memorial bearing the names of
almost 35,000 missing soldiers offer a powerful reminder of the human cost of war.
■ Transfer to Bruges, where dinner is at leisure.

BRUGES

MORNING
■ Special-access tour of the Adornes Domain. Enter this private 15th-century family compound still owned by descendants of its founders. Light refreshments will be served.
AFTERNOON / EVENING
■ Lunch is at leisure.
■ Private tour of the Church of Our Lady. Stand in awe of the church’s imposing, nearly 400-foot brick tower, the world’s second-highest of its kind.

■ Inside, witness Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child, an early 16th-century marble masterpiece and his only sculpture to leave Italy during his lifetime.
■ Tour the Groeninge Museum. Enjoy a comprehensive six-century survey of Flemish and Belgian paintings, from Flemish Primitive masterpieces, to major 18thand 19th-century Neoclassical works, to Post-war and Modern art.
■ Gather for a festive farewell dinner aboard Magnifique III.

BRUGES / DISEMBARK / BRUSSELS / RETURN

■ Disembark in Bruges after breakfast and transfer to the Brussels airport for flights home.