May 10 Fly from Vancouver to Osaka
Depart your home city and fly to Osaka with Cathay Pacific Airways.

May 11 Osaka, Japan
Upon arrival, you will be met and transferred to hotel by a private car.

May 12 Osaka, Japan
Full day Kyoto Sunrise tour with lunch.

May 13 Osaka, Japan
Day at leisure.

May 14 Kobe, Japan
Morning at leisure. Afternoon transfers to the cruise terminal for your luxury cruise aboard the Seabourn Pride.
Ship departs at 06:00pm
Kobe, an important port city for many centuries, was one of the first Japanese ports to be opened to foreign trade in the late Edo Period. Today, Kobe is one of Japan's ten largest cities. Sustaining heavy damage from the devastating Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995, the city has fully recovered, and remains one of Japan's more cosmopolitan cities. A typical Japanese harbour town, foreign culture was introduced here centuries ago, Kobe's food and architecture posses a diverse and exotic flavour.

May 15 Cruising the Pacific Ocean

May 16 Kagoshima, Japan
Ship arrives Kagoshima at 08:00am and departs at 06:00pm
Capital of Japan's southernmost prefecture, Kagoshima faces the Kinko-wan Bay and the active Sakurajima Volcano. Kagoshima played an important role in Japanese history, starting in the early 7th century when Bounotsu Port was a base for trading with China and other Asian nations. The region, formerly known as Satsuma was dominated by 29 generations Shimazu lords for over 700 years until the 1867 Meiji Restoration. Between the 9th and 15th centuries, Satsuma was an important trading port with the countries of east Asia, as well as Europe, becoming one of Japan's earliest points of contact with the West.

May 17 Nagasaki, Japan
Ship arrives Nagasaki 08:00am and departs at 06:00pm
Nagasaki is situated on the West Coast of Kyushu on a scenic bay. Located closest to the Asian mainland, it has historically been an important trading center and highly influenced by Chinese culture. When Japan chose to isolate itself from the Western world for two hundred years starting in the mid 1600's, Nagasaki was the only port open to certain western vessels. After the Opium War in China, the Japanese emperor was forced to open additional ports to foreign concessions. In 1846, U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry and his Navy fleet forced Japan to open up to trade with the USA and soon after other nations followed similar treaties, breaking the self-imposed isolation of Japan. In recent history, Nagasaki became the second city after Hiroshima to be destroyed by an atomic bomb towards the end of World War II.

May 18 Busan, South Korea
Ship arrives Busan at 08:00am and departs at 11:00pm
Busan is the second largest city in South Korea, and the country's seaside connection to Japan and the West. Lovely urban scenery, the Pusan International Film Festival, and near-by hot springs has made Busan a popular leisure destination. Busan has the sophistication of a major city, as well as famous beaches that lure visitors from all over the world. Busan is a microcosm of South Korea, a nation whose economic success often obscures, to Westerners, one of Asia's most sophisticated and venerable cultures.

May 19 Yeosu, South Korea
Ship arrives Yeosu 08:00am and departs at 06:00pm
Old Yeosu City, founded in 1949, and Yeocheon City, founded in 1986, were merged into a new city in 1998. The city of Yeosu consists of the Yeosu peninsula as well as 317 islands (49 inhabited, 268 uninhabited). Lying about midway along the southern coast of South Korea, it is separated from Namhae County in South Gyeongsang Province to the east by a natural waterway. Yeosu translates to "Beautiful Waters."

May 20 Cruising the Yellow Sea

May 21 Incheon (Seoul), South Korea
Ship arrives 08:00am and departs at 08:00pm
Incheon, famous as the site for MacArthur's strategic landing during the Korean War, provides Korea one of the few ports along the Yellow Sea. Off the coast are numerous islands, some still uninhabited. Many people who live in Inchon make the arduous trek to Seoul each day, and Seoulites flock here on the weekends to enjoy fresh fish and visit the islands. Inchon has been the major port serving Seoul since the early days of the Choson Dynasty.
Seoul became Korea's capital city in 1394 at the beginning of the Choson Dynasty (1392-1910). Currently home to 10.1 million people, it is the financial, political, commercial, recreational, educational, and cultural center of the Republican nation. Seoul is a blend of the old and new, where skyscrapers tower above the graceful architecture of ancient gates, palaces, and temples, thus reflecting the legacy of its previous era.

May 22 Cruising The Yellow Sea

May 23 Dalian, China
Ship arrives Dalian at 06:00am and departs at 01:00pm
Compared to ancient capital cities such as Beijing, Xi'an or Nanjing, Dalian is a young city with only a 100-year history. Situated at the tip of China's Liaodong Peninsula, it is China's northernmost ice-free seaport, and the trading and financial centre in northeastern Asia. In the late 1800's, a group of Russian architects fascinated with French culture came to Dalian and built elegant squares with artistic sculptures, lush lawns and western-style fountains. Zhongshan District, originally the Russian residential area and location of Nicholas Square, is a bustling downtown area of the city. The square has ten avenues radiating from it and is one of the most famous parks in the city. Renmin Square, originally called Stalin Square, and the administrative centre of the Russians, now houses the Chinese government's financial institutions in European-style buildings.

May 24 Xingang, China - Beijing
Ship arrives Xingang at 07:00am
Disembark, meet Silk Holidays representative and be transferred to your hotel by a private car.

May 25 Beijing
Full day private tour - visit Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. After lunch visit the Temple of Heaven & Summer Palace.

May 26 Beijing
Full day private tour - visit the Great Wall and Ming Tombs.

May 27 Beijing
At leisure before transfer to airport for your flight home.

Package prices exclude Taxes & Fuel Surcharges & port charges, are based on minimum two people travelling. Prices and schedules are subject to change without prior notice. Deviation/amendment Fee and restrictions will be applied. Please contact Silk Holidays for details.

For responsibility, booking terms & conditions. Please ask your booking agent for a copy of "Silk Holidays & The Yachts of Seabourn - General Booking Terms & Conditions"

Updated: Dec3 2009