EXCURSIONES EN TIERRA

Your tour begins with a scenic transfer to Gdansk. En route, you will drive through the small town of Oliwa passing the Abbot's Palace and gardens and the beautiful Oliwa Cathedral, located on the grounds of a former Cistercian monastery.

Next, you will Pass by the Gdansk Shipyard and the Solidarity Monument Square with its famous monument commemorating the deaths of shipyard workers shot down in December 1970. Arriving at Gdansk's old town, the historic heart of the city, you'll leave your coach behind and commence a guided walking tour that begins near the Golden Gate, a grand ornamental arch that once allowed access through the medieval city's defensive walls.

Continue along Long Street, lined with marvelous buildings decorated with elaborate facades crowned by myriad ornate gables. Pass the Town Hall, Long Market and the beautiful 15th-century merchants' palace of Artus Court. Pause at Neptune's Fountain to admire this monumental symbol of Gdansk's Hanseatic past and its connection with the sea before walking down to the waterfront. Then turn up Mariacka or St. Mary's Street, which delights its visitors with its lively atmosphere, quaint shops and lovely terraced buildings.

The pride of Gdansk, Gothic St. Mary's is the world's largest brick church, accommodating some 25,000 worshippers. Situated in the center of Old Town, this medieval church took 159 years to build, and its deceivingly plain exterior belies a bright, spacious interior with large windows and more than 30 beautifully decorated chapels. The high altar displays a lovely polyptych, the floor is covered with ancient tombstones and the northern transept holds an amazing 15th century astronomical clock, complete with the zodiac cycle and a calendar of the saints.

Following some free time to do a bit of exploring or shopping on your own, you will rejoin your coach and transfer back to the ship.

Walk the fascinating Old Town of Gdansk, visiting such landmark sites as St. Mary's Church and the renowned Oliwa Cathedral where you'll be treated to a musical performance.

Your tour begins with a scenic drive to the historic heart of Gdansk where upon arrival, you'll start your walk near the Golden Gate. This grand ornamental arch once served to allow access to the city through its medieval defensive walls. During your walk, you'll pass the Town Hall, Long Market and the beautiful 15th-century Palace of Artus Court.

Visit St. Mary's Church - the pride of Gdansk. Situated in the center of Old Town, this medieval church took 159 years to build. Its deceivingly plain exterior belies a bright, spacious interior with large windows and more than 30 beautifully decorated chapels.

Following some free time to explore on your own, your tour continues to Oliwa Cathedral. Located on the grounds of an old Cistercian monastery, the Oliwa Cathedral dates back to the 13th century and is a mix of Romanesque, Gothic and Rococo styles. One of the most important attractions of Oliwa lies herein, an impressive complex of three organs consisting of 7,876 tin and wood pipes which can imitate sounds of different musical instruments and natural voices. During your visit, you will be treated to a brief musical performance before returning to the ship.

Enjoy a scenic drive that includes photostops at some notable landmarks, such as the impressive Oliwa Cathedral.

Your tour begins with a 45 minute drive to the Oliwa Cathedral where you will stop for photos. Located on the grounds of an old Cistercian monastery, the Oliwa Cathedral dates back to the 13th century and is a mix of Romanesque, Gothic and Rococo styles.

Next, you will drive to the Green Gate where you will disembark your coach and walk to the Long Market. Enjoy some brief free time here to perhaps pick up a souvenir or if you choose, view the Main town Hall and Artus Court.

Continuing on, you'll drive to "Solidarity Square", with its famous monument commemorating the deaths of shipyard workers shot down in December 1970 by the Communist regime. After a photostop here, it's on to the Nowy Port lighthouse. One of the most beautiful lighthouses of Northern Europe this 90 foot high structure was built in 1893 and put in service in 1984. According to a legend, it was a twin of the most beautiful lighthouse in America - the lost Main Lighthouse of Cleveland, Ohio. It was also the first lighthouse on the Baltic Sea to use electricity.

Situated at the entrance of the harbor of Gdansk, the Nowy Port lighthouse combined three distinct functions: that of a coastal lighthouse, a harbor pilots tower, and a time ball station. Like in Greenwich, England, the time ball, which measured 5 feet in diameter and weighed 150 pounds, dropped every day at noon to give a precise time signal to the captains of the ships lying at anchor in the Bay of Gdansk. This allowed them to adjust their chronometers, which in turn allowed them later to establish their ship's position (more precisely the longitude) on the open sea. After your stop here, you will transfer back to the ship.

Explore Gdansk's legacy of war and peace during a visit to the Stutthof Concentration Camp Museum.

Located around 50 km from Gdansk, Stutthof Concentration Camp was the first camp created by the Nazis outside Germany. The first prisoners arrived here on 2nd September 1939, exactly 250 Polish citizens and prisoners of war. Not long after that, because only two weeks later, there were around 6,000 prisoners. Most of them were executed by the SS- the plan to annihilate the whole Polish intelligentsia of Pomerania was the main reason why the camp was established. It was also the main place in the fight of the Nazis against the Poles who refused to sign an application for joining the German nationality list and thousands of other people.

The camp was initially composed of eight barracks blocks for the inmates and a huge building (the "kommandantur") for the SS. It was called "the old camp". In 1942, the SS began to build a "new" camp and 30 other barracks were added. In 1943, the Nazis added a crematory and a gas chamber. The gas chamber had a maximum capacity of 150 people at one time. When the SS had too many people to execute, they also used carriages as gas chambers. Between September 2nd 1939 and May 10th 1945, 127,000 prisoners were registered upon their arrival to the camp. However, the real number is certainly much higher- the inmates who were selected for immediate execution at their arrival were not registered. The camp was not liberated until May 9, 1945.

Nowadays, the mission of the museum is to take care of the remains of the former Stutthof camp, preserving knowledge about the period between 1939-1945 in Pomerania and memory about prisoners of Stutthof.