Austria
Vienna, Salzburg, Hallstatt, Melk
The country every choral director asks for first. Vienna's churches and halls, Salzburg's baroque old town and the lakes of the Salzkammergut, with audiences that expect and reward visiting ensembles.
Destinations
Nine countries, one standard
Every country below has venue partners we have booked before, hotels that know what a school group needs, and coach operators we have used for years.
Country by country
Sample itineraries
What each destination offers a performing ensemble
Italy
Rome, Florence, Venice, Siena, Orvieto
Basilica Mass participation in Rome, Renaissance churches in Florence and a concert on the Venetian lagoon. Short transfers and generous audiences make Italy our first recommendation for bands and orchestras.
United Kingdom
London, Bath, Oxford, Cambridge, York, Edinburgh
The choral tradition of England and Scotland, in English. Wren churches, college chapels, evensong and the Edinburgh Old Town, with the easiest logistics of any route for a first tour abroad.
France
Paris, Strasbourg, Versailles, Normandy
Historic Left Bank churches with resident music programs, the cathedral quarter of Strasbourg and, for groups who ask, a commemorative performance in Normandy.
Switzerland
Lucerne, Interlaken, Zurich
A lake concert in Lucerne, a cogwheel railway into the Alps and the mountain day every student remembers. Usually paired with France and Austria in a 12-day loop.
Germany
Munich, Heidelberg, Cologne, Berlin, the Rhine
Baroque city churches in Munich, the Rhine castles and Cologne's cathedral quarter. December departures add Christmas markets and some of the warmest audiences of the year.
Czech Republic
Prague, Český Krumlov
Prague's dedicated concert churches, with fixed staging and local audiences used to visiting ensembles, plus exchange concerts with Czech school ensembles.
Spain
Barcelona, Montserrat, Madrid, Toledo
Late-evening concerts, warm audiences and two very different cities. Choirs may sing in the abbey basilica at Montserrat; bands get open-air sets where permits allow.
Ireland
Dublin, Kilkenny, Killarney, Galway
Cathedral concerts in Dublin and Galway, a medieval town, the Ring of Kerry and audiences who sing back. Direct flights from the East Coast and six nights make it the most affordable first tour.