Spectacular scenery, medieval towns, fairy-tale castles, a fascinating history, and world-class beer…this is Germany! On this Germany tour, you'll see Germany's highlights and visit its most famous cities, as well as its medieval towns and scenic areas. Your vacation begins and ends in Frankfurt with overnights also in the Rhineland, Hamburg, Berlin, Leipzig, Nuremberg, Munich, and the Black Forest area. Magnificent scenery awaits you on this value-minded Germany vacation. Enjoy a cruise on the Rhine River, passing castle-crested hills, terraced vineyards, and pretty wine towns. In Bavaria, visit King Ludwig II's 19th-century Neuschwanstein Castle, nestled high in the Alps. Drive along the Romantic Road with its charming villages, cobblestone streets, walled cities, half-timbered houses, and scenic countryside, and stop in Rothenburg, a walled town that has retained its medieval character. Finally, enjoy Germany's lush Black Forest region, named because the forest is so thick, people called it black. Among the tour highlights are: the famous gothic cathedral in Cologne—known for its twin-steepled towers—that was started in 1248 and completed in 1880; Lübeck, a Hanseatic city and UNESCO World Heritage Site founded in the 12th century and Veste Coburg Castle, built in 1225 and one of Germany’s largest castle complexes. Today, the complex houses the former art collections of the dukes of Coburg. You’ll also enjoy sightseeing of the must-see sights in the cities, including Munich’s Marienplatz, the main square in the city that hosts the Oktoberfest beer festival. In Dresden, see the Zwinger Carillon Pavilion, where the 40 bells of the glockenspiel sound every quarter of an hour. From the beautiful scenery and exciting cities to the historic sights and fun experiences, this Germany tour has it all!
JOIN THOMPSON TRAVEL ON A GROUP DEPARTURE
Sept 20- Oct 1/2020
Highlights of Germany 12 day tour
Call Thompson Travel 306-682-2422 or email thompson_trvl@sasktel.net
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DAY 1 ARRIVE IN FRANKFURT, GERMANY
Check into your hotel. The rest of the day is free. Tonight, meet your Tour Director and fellow travelers.
DinnerDAY 2 FRANKFURT–RHINE CRUISE–COLOGNE–RHINELAND
Today’s highlight is an included RHINE CRUISE to enjoy scenic views of the Rhineland, including the famous Lorelei rock. The next highlight is Cologne with free time to visit its impressive gothic CATHEDRAL, started in 1248 and completed in 1880.
BreakfastDinner
DAY 3 RHINELAND–HAMELIN–HAMBURG
Journey into Niedersachsen to visit Hamelin. Admire its town center with the colorful historical buildings and magically fancy gables echoing the story of the Pied Piper. Continue to Hamburg.
BreakfastDAY 4 HAMBURG–LÜBECK–BERLIN
Start the day with an orientation drive in Hamburg, one of Germany’s greatest maritime cities. Later, depart for Lübeck, formerly a free Hanseatic city and independent state. Lübeck, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is considered the cultural capital of northern Germany. Thomas Mann, Günther Grass, and Willy Brandt—all Nobel laureates—were among the famous residents of this city. Later, arrive in Berlin and enjoy your first evening in the capital of Germany.
BreakfastDAY 5 BERLIN
No longer divided but every bit as fascinating, Berlin was once the city of contrasts with the wall separating two different worlds. Now, the city has developed into a harmonious blend of new and old, preserving its historical buildings and impressive boulevards as well as creating brand new buildings in the most daring architectural styles. See all of this on the included city sightseeing with a Local Guide. Consider an optional excursion this afternoon.
BreakfastDAY 6 BERLIN–DRESDEN–LEIPZIG
Travel southwest to Dresden, the old capital of Saxony and at one time rightly called the “Florence on the Elbe.” See the ZWINGER CARILLON PAVILION and much more on your included sightseeing. Then it’s on to Leipzig, where composers Johann Sebastian Bach and Felix Mendelssohn lived the last years of their lives. It was Mendelssohn who founded the Leipziger Conservatory in 1843.
BreakfastDinner
DAY 7 LEIPZIG–WEIMAR–COBURG–NUREMBERG
Leave Leipzig to visit Weimar, home to many intellectuals of the past but mainly known for the name given to the historical period of the “Republic of Weimar.” This city is also famed as the home of the Bauhaus architectural movement in the 1920s. Next stop is Coburg. Visit the dominating and mighty VESTE COBURG CASTLE, built in 1225. Continue to Nuremberg for a visit to its famous town center, dominated by the imperial castle.
BreakfastDAY 8 NUREMBERG–ROTHENBURG–MUNICH
Drive along the Romantic Road, through towns and villages protected by medieval towered gates and battlements, with squares of half-timbered houses and richly decorated fountains. Visit a fine example of this architecture in the quaint medieval center of Rothenburg. Overnight in Munich.
BreakfastDAY 9 MUNICH
With a Local Guide, take advantage of the included sightseeing tour of the city known as Germany’s “Secret Capital.” Time to admire the beautiful main square, MARIENPLATZ, do some shopping, and sample Munich’s famous beer!
BreakfastDinner
DAY 10 MUNICH–NEUSCHWANSTEIN–BLACK FOREST AREA
Leave Munich and drive into the heart of the Bavarian Alps to visit the most famous 19th-century, neo-romantic castle of the world, King Ludwig II’s fairytale NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE. Enjoy more idyllic scenery on your way through the Black Forest.
BreakfastDinner
DAY 11 BLACK FOREST AREA–HEIDELBERG–FRANKFURT AREA
The day starts with a visit to Heidelberg—location of Germany’s oldest university and inspiration for the German Romantic movement. From here, continue to Frankfurt.
BreakfastDAY 12 FRANKFURT AREA
Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.
BreakfastYou will visit the following 4 places:
Heidelberg
Heidelberg is a German city situated in the south-west of the country. The fifth largest city of the German State of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim, Karlsruhe and Freiburg im Breisgau, Heidelberg is part of a densely populated region known as the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region. As of 2009, over 145,000 people live within the city's area. Heidelberg lies on the River Neckar in a steep valley in the Odenwald. Heidelberg — having been a former residence of the Electoral Palatinate in the past — is the seat of the University of Heidelberg, which is well-known far beyond its and Germany's borders. Heidelberg is also a popular tourist destination due to its romantic and picturesque cityscape's character, including the Heidelberg Castle and the baroque style Old Town. The US Army has had a military base in Heidelberg since 1951.
Nuremberg
Nuremberg is a city on the river Pegnitz and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. When people think of Nuremberg, they usually think of gingerbread, toys, Christmas, the Reich Party Rally Grounds, or the Nuremberg Trials. But the old town of Nuremberg is much more than this and indeed Nuremberg probably comes closest to many tourists' expectations of a typical German city: On the one hand one can find half-timbered houses, gothic churches within a medival city wall in the shadow of the towering imperial castle, which was one of the most important residences of the emporers of the Holy Roman Empire.
Munich
Munich is the capital city of Bavaria (Bayern), Germany. It is located on the River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps. It is the third largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg. There are about 1.35 million people living within city limits, while the Munich Metropolitan Area (including the urban areas of Augsburg, Ingolstadt, Rosenheim and Landshut) is home to over 5 million people.The city is a major centre of art, advanced technologies, finance, publishing, culture, innovation, education, business and tourism in Germany and Europe, and enjoys a very high standard and quality of living. Munich's cultural scene is second to none in Germany, with the museums even considered by some to outrank Berlin in quality. Many travelers to Munich are absolutely stunned by the quality of the architecture. Although it was heavily damaged by allied bombing during World War II, many of its historic buildings have been rebuilt and the city center appears mostly as it did in the late 1800s including its largest church, the Frauenkirche, and the famous city hall (Neues Rathaus).
