A return to Europe, revisiting some venues from our last Tour in 1989 but with lots of new and exciting additions.
75 of the 120 members of the Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra boarded two Dodds coaches with their fiddles, cellos, basses , guitars, accordions, whistles and drums on Sunday 30th June to head for a fantastic Concert Tour of Europe with the first stop in Strasbourg where they performed for the EU Parliament. Then they travelled onto Lichenfels in Bavaria – Prestwick’s Twin Town, Switzerland where they visited CERN and gave a performance of a specially composed tune to commemorate the discovery of the famous Higgs Boson Particle, Paris with a day in Ayr’s Twin Town St Germain-en-Laye, Disneyland and finishing in Brussels.
“The Europe 2013 tour has been one of the best experiences of my life and I will remember it forever”
says 12 year old orchestra member Matthew.
You can see some of the exciting performances the orchestra gave whilst on tour on YouTube.
Tour Itinerary
Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra Europe 2013 Depart Sunday 30 th June – Return Wednesday 17 th July (17 nights)
Strasbourg Lichtenfels Zug / Lucerne Geneva Paris Brussels
Date Activity / Arrangements Overnight
Sunday 30 th June 8.30am Leave Prestwick for Hull (271 miles) 4pm – Arrive Hull 6.30pm – Ferry departs Hull Dinner on ferry FERRY
Monday 1 St July Breakfast on ferry 8.45am – Arrive Zeebrugge 9.45am – Depart Zeebrugge for Strasbourg (342 miles) 6.30pm – Arrive and check in to Ciarus Hostel, Strasbourg Evening meal in hostel Rehearsal in conference room at hostel Free time in hostel STRASBOURG
Tuesday 2 nd July 9.00am – Checkout Ciarus Hostel 9.30am – Arrive European Parliament – Louise Weiss building for security checks and storage of instruments 10.30am -12.30am – Guided tour round Parliament 1pm -2 pm – Concert at Parliament 2.30pm sharp – Board coaches and leave Strasbourg for Lichtenfels (247 miles) 8.30pm – Arrive evening at Schutzenplatz coach park Lichtenfels & meet hosts Evening meal with hosts LICHTENFELS
Wednesday 3 rd July 8.30am – Meet at coach park in Lichtenfels Visit to Vierzehnheiligen Visit to Pottenstein for lunch & guided tour of caves 3.30pm – 4pm Coaches return to Lichtenfels met by hosts for early dinner 5.30pm – Rehearsal at Meranier Gymnasium (local high school) 7pm – Concert at Meranier Gymnasium LICHTENFELS
Thursday 4 th July Coach drivers Rest Day 8am – Visit to Meranier Gymnasium with hosts 9am – Option of swimming / shopping in town / ‘secret tour’ of Lichtenfels 1pm – Return to school to meet hosts Lunch & free time with hosts in afternoon 5.30pm – Meet at the Kur Park , Staffelstein 6pm – Open air concert (on a floating stage!) 7.30pm – Return to Lichtenfels for a lakeside BBQ and party with hosts LICHTENFELS
Friday 5 th July 9am – Farewell to hosts Travel Lichtenfels to Zug , Switzerland (325 miles) 6pm – Arrive & check in to Zug Youth Hostel Evening meal in hostel Free time & evening activities in hostel ZUG
Saturday 6 th July 8.30am – Checkout hostel, travel Zug to Lucerne (20 miles) 9am – Early morning sightseeing in Lucerne 10am – Meet at pier for Mount Pilatus Trip by boat, cog railway and cable car 3.30pm – Leave Lucerne for Geneva (167 miles) stopping for dinner en route 8.30pm – Arrive and check in to “The Bunker” Evening activities GENEVA
Sunday 7 th July 10am – Travel Geneva to La Chaux de Fonds (89 miles) 12.15pm – Lunch and free time in town Audio Visual presentation by Tourist Board Visit to watchmaking museum 3.45pm – Rehearsal at Salle de Musique 4.45pm – Dinner in panorama restaurant 6pm – Concert at Salle de Musique 7.45pm – Depart La Chaux de Fonds 10.45pm – Arrive Bunker (traffic congestion anticipated) GENEVA
Monday 8 th July 8.30am – Depart Bunker 9am – Visit to CERN (local buses to transport us there) Concert in Auditorium – premiere of ‘Higgs Boson’ 2pm – Our coaches pick us up from CERN Free time in Geneva old town & waterfront 4.30pm – Rehearsal at The Scots Kirk, Geneva Dinner in church hall 7pm – Concert at The Scots Kirk, Geneva GENEVA 9.30pm – Arrive Bunker
Tuesday 9 th July 9am – Bid a sad farewell to ‘The Bunker’ Travel Geneva to Paris (336 miles) 6pm – Arrive and check in to Ibis Hotel, Paris Evening meal in hotel. Ceilidh? PARIS
Wednesday 10 th July Coach drivers rest day Disneyland Paris PARIS
Thursday 11 th July 9am (?)- Depart hotel Visit to La Defense & the Grand Arch 11.30am – Take ‘Le Metro’ to the famous Rex Cinema for a backstage tour Afternoon – Arc de Triomphe / Stroll along the Champs Elysees Concert at night – details to be confirmed PARIS
Friday 12 th July 10.30am – Depart Hotel 12 Noon – Visit Versailles and lunch 3pm – Travel to St Germain en Laye Brief Tour & Rehearsal in the St Germain en Laye Church Dinner at the Town Hall 8pm – Concert at St Germain en Laye Church 10pm – Depart St Germain 11pm – Arrive hotel PARIS
Saturday 13 th July 9am – Depart Hotel for sightseeing in Paris Sacre Coeur & Montmartre Notre Dame Trip on the Seine by Bateau Mouche Eiffel Tower Dinner at Flam’s, Les Halle Return to Hotel PARIS
Sunday 14 th July 9am – Depart Hotel for journey to Brussels (179 miles) 11.30am – Visit to Vimy Ridge battlefield site for tour and lunch 3pm (?) – Depart Vimy Ridge 5pm – Arrive at Campanile Hotel Vilvoorde, Brussels 6.30pm – Train into Brussels 7.30pm – Dinner at Chaloupe D’Or in Grand Place Evening sightseeing in Brussels BRUSSELS
Monday 15 th July 10.30am – Depart Hotel 11am – Visit to Mini Europe & Atomium 12.30pm – Lunch at The Village 2pm – Choice of Oceade Water Park or The Atomium 4pm – Return to Hotel Evening – Tour Awards! BRUSSELS
Tuesday 16 th July 9am – Depart Hotel – Travel to Bruges (60 miles) 10.15am – Visit Bruges – freetime and lunch 1pm – Travel Bruges to Sluis, Holland (14 miles) Visit Willie the Clog-maker at ‘Hollands Huis’ 3.30pm – Travel to Zeebrugge (10 miles) 7pm – Ferry departs Dinner on ferry FERRY
Wednesday 17 th July Breakfast on ferry 8.30am – Arrive Hull 9.30am – Depart Hull for Prestwick (271 miles) 5pm HOME!
Recent Comments