“It’s beginning to look a lot like    Christmas!” Board your           comfortable motorcoach this       morning and get acquainted with your fellow travelers as we begin this festive holiday tour. In Hannibal, Missouri, you’ll enjoy lunch at the Ole Planters Restaurant, along with a special welcome by Mark Twain’s most famous characters!  Arrive in Peoria Illinois just in time for the 26th annual Peoria Festival of Lights Parade! The parade features floats shaped entirely from lights, including Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, a 70-foot long float of the world famous Clydesdale horse team pulling a delivery wagon, Frosty the Snowman, the starship Enterprise, and a 95-foot-long smoke-spewing Chinese Dragon. In historic Bishop Hill, a charming 1846 Swedish settlement, nestled in the heart of the Illinois prairie, celebrates Julmarknad which honors the Scandinavian custom, in which farmers and craftsmen gathered in village squares to sell their goods. You'll find Swedish folk characters wandering through the village to the delight of young and old alike, along with lots of gifts, handmade wares, antiques, quilts, collectibles, baked goods, and Swedish imports. Visit the Amana Colonies in Iowa all aglow with Christmas Lights.  Rejoice in the holiday spirit as you stroll through the Tannenbaum Forest which features dozens of decorated live Christmas trees, a 17’ tall German Christmas pyramid, live animated storybook characters, a nativity scene and, Santa, of course.  This evening enjoy a delicious “Family Style” dinner at the Ox Yoke Inn, an Amana tradition since 1940. Following morning tour the Amana Colonies with a local guide. Settled in the 1850’s by members of a religious sect mostly from Germany, the Amana Colonies are seven quaint and closely united villages. Stop in the different villages to sample fresh baked bread, wine and cheese, watch them furniture and much more.