Make your way to your local airport where you will board your overnight flight(s). Your meals will be served on board.

Upon landing at Oslo Airport, make your way to the baggage claim area and collect your luggage. Proceed to the arrival hall where you will be greeted by your tour guide and/or driver. Transfer to your hotel in Copenhagen for a delicious dinner and a restful overnight.

This morning following breakfast, we will be shown the spires of Oslo and told the story of Blanche of Namur, who arrived there in 1374 to become the consort monarch of King Magnus VII of Norway. You will hear about Saint Bridget of Sweden, who served as Mistress of the Robes to Queen Blanche before leaving for Rome in 1349. The royal couple made large donations to Saint Bridget’s planned Vadstena Abbey. You will visit Frogner Park, the world’s largest sculpture park for a single artist. The park houses controversial works by Gustav Vigeland, featuring more than 200 sculptures in bronze, granite, and wrought iron. Following lunch will be a guided tour of Akershus Fortress, founded in 1299 during the reign of King Håkon V. The medieval castle had a strategic location at the end of the headland and withstood several sieges throughout the ages. King Christian IV (1588-1648) had the castle modernized and converted into the Renaissance royal residence that you see today. The day will end with evening Mass at Saint Olav’s Cathedral, followed by dinner and overnight at your hotel in Oslo.

After breakfast we will take the highspeed train from Oslo to Stockholm, traveling in the comfort of First Class all the way. The journey will take just over five hours and pass through the beautiful lake country of southern Sweden. Lunch is provided on board the train. On arrival in Stockholm, we will have a coach transfer to the hotel where you can relax and unwind. The evening will end with a delicious dinner and an overnight at your hotel in Stockholm.

After breakfast, we start our grand tour of Stockholm, including a visit to the City Hall’s “Gold Room.” We will then continue into the heart of the city to visit the Cathedral, walk through the Old Town, and see the Royal Palace. This afternoon we will enjoy a cruise for about 3 hours around the Stockholm archipelago to experience the untouched nature and beauty of the scenery so close to the city. The onboard guide will tell you all about the surrounding sites during this breathtaking and informative outing. The evening will end with the celebration of Mass at Saint Eugene or Saint Eric Church, a delicious dinner, and a restful overnight at your hotel in Stockholm.

Today our journey will lead us through southern Sweden, heading first to Linkoping. We will visit the Cathedral, located where a small church in the form of a cross was built in the 12th century. After 100 years the church became too small – it was decided that a bigger church was needed, which took 300 years to complete. We will visit the nearby Vreta Abbey, founded at the beginning of the 12th century by King Inge the Elder and Queen Helena, on the request of Pope Paschal II. It is the oldest known abbey in Sweden. Continue our journey to Vadstena Abbey, Motherhouse of the Bridgettine Order, located on the shores of Lake Wetter, in the Diocese of Linkoping. Although founded in 1346 by Saint Bridget, upon arrival at the abbey in 1374 she found just a few novices under an Augustinian superior. They chose Saint Catherine as their abbess. The evening will end with the celebration of Mass at Vadstena Abbey, a delicious dinner, and a restful overnight.

After breakfast, the day will begin with a scenic drive along the northern shore around Lake Wetter to visit Sweden’s oldest Christian place Varnhem Abbey. You will find a churchyard from the Viking era, evidence of their conversion to Christianity over 1,000 years ago. Following lunch, we continue to the port city of Gothenburg where we will visit the splendid Botanic Gardens – one of the largest and best in Europe – with over 16,000 species of plants in the different greenhouses and areas like the rock garden and herb garden. This evening we will celebrate Mass at the Church of St. Mary Magdalen in Gothenburg, followed by a dinner and overnight.

Following breakfast, we travel south to the Scania (Skåne) region of Sweden to visit Lund Cathedral. The Cathedral was consecrated in 1145 and contains many well-known artifacts and features of considerable historical interest. Among them is a magnificent horological artistic masterpiece from 1424. This early time and dating machine remains in working order with rotating mechanical figures marking the passage of time. There are also three bronze pillars with mounted statues from around 1240. The finely carved oak choir stalls are from the mid-14th century, the majestic altar dates from 1398, while the fine Absidens mosaic by Joakim Skovgaard is from the 1920s. We will then head to the coastal town of Ystad to visit the Franciscan Ystad Monastery. Founded in 1267, this is the oldest medieval monastery in Sweden and, together with Vadstena Abbey, is one of the best preserved. Today the monastery houses a museum that presents several temporary exhibitions covering the many different uses of the building over time. Continue to the city of Malmo with its famous Turning Torso, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. This neo-futurist residential skyscraper is the world’s first twisted skyscraper and the tallest building in Scandinavia. The day will come to a close with evening Mass at Our Saviour’s Church in Malmo, dinner, and an overnight.

After breakfast we check out of the hotel and take a short coach transfer across the Øresund Bridge to Copenhagen Airport for our flight back home, saying farewell to our Viking friends after a memorable tour of Scandinavia.

*206 Tours Disclaimer:
Occasionally local religious and national holidays, weather, traffic conditions and other events may necessitate changes in the sequence of events or the missing of certain events/places. Though every effort will be made to follow the itinerary, it should be considered as an indication, rather than a contract of events and places to be visited.