Grand Europe Kochi to the Vatican
Nine countries on one road, west to east, with no doubling back. London, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, the Rhine, the Swiss Alps, Slovenia and Italy, ending at the Vatican.
Emirates flights, the Eurostar London to Paris, UK and Schengen visas, 4-star hotels and all meals — one booking.
About This Trip
The full sweep of Western Europe in one journey. You start in London, cross to Paris by Eurostar under the English Channel, then move east and south through Belgium, Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia and Italy before flying home from Rome. The route runs in one direction throughout, so you never cover the same ground twice. Dinners are set at your hotel each night, which frees up around three extra hours of sightseeing a day.
Duration
15 Days
Countries
9 Countries
Flights
Emirates Flights
Rail
Eurostar London–Paris
Hotels
4-Star Hotels
Visas
UK & Schengen
Day by Day
London and Windsor, Paris by Eurostar, Brussels and Amsterdam, the Rhineland and the Swiss Alps, Slovenia and Italy, ending at the Vatican.
The tour begins at Kochi International Airport. After emigration and customs, you fly to London with Emirates, the capital of England, where your coach takes you to the hotel.
Dinner and overnight in London.
A half-day London city tour with a local expert: Big Ben, St Paul's Cathedral, the Houses of Parliament, Oxford Street, Piccadilly Circus, Westminster Abbey, Tower Bridge, Downing Street, London Bridge, the National Gallery, Harrods and Baker Street; then a walk through St James's Park to Buckingham Palace, the monarch's London residence since 1837. After lunch, a Thames cruise past the Houses of Parliament, HMS Belfast, City Hall, Westminster and the London Eye, then the Tower of London — once palace, prison and armoury, with the Koh-i-Noor among the Crown Jewels (subject to availability) — and a walking visit to Tower Bridge. In the evening, a ride on the London Eye.
Dinner and overnight in London.
To Windsor Castle, the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world (about 13 acres): the State Apartments, the Royal Museum, and St George's Chapel, burial place of ten monarchs including Henry VIII and Charles I (Queen Mary's Dolls' House and the Semi-State Rooms subject to availability). After lunch, Madame Tussauds. Later, board the Eurostar at London St Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord, through the Channel Tunnel at up to 300 km/h. The evening is an illumination tour of Paris.
Dinner, then overnight in Paris.
The Louvre, behind its glass pyramid, holds more than a million objects — the Mona Lisa, Michelangelo's Dying Slave, the Venus de Milo, the apartments of Napoleon III and the Code of Hammurabi. A panoramic tour along the Champs-Élysées, past the Arc de Triomphe and the Place de la Concorde. After lunch, up to the third level of the Eiffel Tower (subject to availability). In the evening, a cruise on the Seine.
Dinner and overnight in Paris.
Drive to Brussels, home to many EU institutions: the Grand-Place and, nearby, the Manneken Pis. After lunch, the Atomium, built for the 1958 World's Fair — 102 metres tall, its nine steel spheres forming a magnified iron crystal cell. Later, on to Amsterdam.
Dinner and overnight in Amsterdam.
Into Holland: Keukenhof, the garden of Europe, in tulip season, or Madurodam, a 1:25 miniature park, after the garden closes. Then Zaanse Schans near Zaandam — a working windmill, the clog workshop and the Catharina Hoeve cheese farm — with free time to walk. In the evening, a cruise through the Amsterdam canals, then on to Cologne.
Dinner and overnight in Cologne.
Cologne Cathedral, a World Heritage Site since 1996 and one of Germany's best-known Gothic buildings. On through Frankfurt, the financial centre on the Main with its modern skyline, and continue to Stuttgart, home of Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Porsche.
Dinner and overnight in Stuttgart.
The Mercedes-Benz Museum (subject to availability), outside the Daimler factory gate. To Titisee in the Black Forest — cuckoo-clock country, with a visit to the cuckoo clock village. After lunch, cross into Switzerland at Schaffhausen for the Rhine Falls, the largest waterfall in Europe (about 150 m wide, 23 m high), with free time. Later, transfer to Central Switzerland around Lake Lucerne.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
Up Mount Titlis, the highest peak in Central Switzerland, changing cable cars as meadows give way to snow, the last stretch on the Rotair, the world's first revolving cable car. At the top, around 3,020 metres, the Ice Flyer chairlift over the glacier and lunch on the mountain. Then Lucerne: the lake, the covered Chapel Bridge and the Lion Monument carved into the rock, with time for Swiss chocolate and souvenirs.
Dinner and overnight in Central Switzerland.
Cross into Italy through the Gotthard Road Tunnel, 16.9 km beneath the St Gotthard Pass. After lunch, Milan and its Gothic Duomo. Later, transfer to the hotel.
Dinner and overnight in Padua.
Into Slovenia for Postojna Cave — an underground train carries you deep among stalactites and stalagmites — and nearby Predjama Castle, built into a cliff face, the largest cave castle in the world. Return to Padua's main square and the Basilica of Saint Anthony, where the saint is buried.
Dinner and overnight in Padua.
To Venice, founded in the fifth century across 118 islands: board a private boat at Mestre to St Mark's Square — St Mark's Basilica, the Doge's Palace, the Campanile and the Bridge of Sighs. After lunch, Pisa and its Leaning Tower, the cathedral's freestanding bell tower.
Dinner and overnight in Pisa.
To Rome. After lunch, a city tour with a local expert: St Peter's Basilica and square (Bramante, Michelangelo, Carlo Maderno and Bernini), Circus Maximus, Piazza Venezia, the Tiber, the Roman Forum, Castel Sant'Angelo, the Monument of Victor Emmanuel II, the Arch of Constantine and the Arch of Augustus, and the Colosseum (subject to availability).
Dinner and overnight in Rome.
Vatican City, the smallest country in the world (around 44 hectares). At St Peter's Square, the Papal Audience — held Wednesdays when the Pope is in Rome, and not part of the itinerary otherwise. Later, transfer to Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino Airport for the flight home via Dubai.
Meals: breakfast.
You arrive in Kochi. The tour ends here.
What's Covered & What's Not
Cancellation Policy
| When you cancel | Charge |
|---|---|
| 15 days before departure | 50% of the tour cost |
| Within 14 days of departure | 100% of the tour cost |
Nine Countries, One Road.
Seats on each Grand Europe departure are limited and the visa work needs a clear run before you fly, so early booking helps. Send us an enquiry and our team will walk you through the departures, the payment schedule and the documents you will need.