German Highlights and Oberammergau 2010

Day 1
Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2: Arrive in Frankfurt, Germany
Time to rest or explore the bustling metropolis on the River Main. At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a welcome dinner at your hotel. (D)

Day 3: Frankfurt–Remagen–Cologne
A special treat at the very start of your journey through Germany is a RHINE CRUISE along the most scenic section of the Rhine River with castle-crested hills, terraced vineyards, pretty wine towns, and finally the Lorelei rock. Disembark and drive to the ruins of the bridge in Remagen, where American troops breached Hitler’s West Wall. Spend the afternoon in Cologne and visit the awesome gothic CATHEDRAL. Its twin 515-foot towers, five naves, splendid stained-glass windows, and the shrine of the Three Holy Kings are eloquent testimony to the quality of medieval engineering and craftsmanship. (B,D)

Day 4: Cologne–Berlin
Ride the EUROCITY TRAIN to Berlin, capital of reunited Germany, where sightseeing with a Local Guide in the once-divided metropolis includes the elegant Ku’damm, the restored Reichstag, Charlottenburg Palace, a picture stop at monumental Brandenburg Gate, and the 210-foot Victory Column in the vast Tiergarten Park. Visit the KAISER WILHELM MEMORIAL CHURCH, with its bomb-damaged tower, drive along Unter den Linden Boulevard, and pass the State Opera House and Checkpoint Charlie. (B,D)

Day 5: At Leisure in Berlin
You may wish to join an optional excursion to Potsdam, and tonight, why not sample Berlin’s fine restaurants and nightlife? (B)

Day 6: Berlin–Leipzig
On your way south through what used to be the “other” Germany, visit Leipzig, an important center since the Middle Ages. Visit the THOMASKIRCHE, where J.S. Bach worked, and the Market Square with its fine renaissance buildings. Continue to Nuremberg, the town of children’s toys and gingerbread. It is also the birthplace of painter Albrecht Dürer and poet and meistersinger Hans Sachs. Admire the impressive medieval ramparts and walk through the pedestrian area of the charming Old Town. Visit ST. SEBALD CHURCH, painstakingly reconstructed as a monument to peace from the rubble of near-total wartime destruction. (B,D)

Day 7: Nuremberg–Rothenburg–Munich
Today, focus on Germany’s Romantic Road, which leads from the flat country towards the Alps. Enjoy a walking tour of medieval Rothenburg with its ramparts and towers, cobbled lanes, and 16th-century houses. Then, head south to the Danube Valley and Munich. Enjoy an orientation featuring the Olympic Park and its 1,000-foot-high Television Tower and MARIENPLATZ. View Marienplatz in Munich, Germany
with its Old and New Town Halls. Then, continue to Oberammergau. (B,D)

Day 8: Oberammergau
Afternoon and evening devoted to the PASSION PLAY.

Day 9: Munich–Oberammergau–Lindau–Black Forest
A scenic day starts out with a short stop in the Passion Play town of Obergammergau. Next, a leisurely drive along the panoramic German Alpine Road to the sunny northern shore of Lake Constance, Europe’s largest freshwater reservoir. Stop for a lunch break in charming Lindau, then, continue north and visit the baroque CHURCH at Birnau on the way to your hotel in the Black Forest. (B,D)

Day 10: Black Forest–Heidelberg
This morning, enjoy a WOODCARVING DEMONSTRATION before arriving in Heidelberg, Germany’s oldest university town of Student Prince fame. Time to stroll around and to have lunch in the Old Town, followed by the highlight of today: a visit to the red-walled CASTLE where the GREAT VAT, a 49,000-gallon 18th-century wine cask, attracts particular attention. Then, back to Frankfurt for a farewell dinner with your companions of a fascinating vacation. (B,D)

Day 11
Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (B)

The quaint European village of Oberammergau is world famous for the spectacular Passion Play performed by its residents just once every decade. Keeping a pledge made nearly 400 years ago, this reenactment of the crucifixion of Christ preserves the health and well-being of its residents to this day.

• Professional Tour Director while touring and Local Host to assist you at airports and hotels

Frankfurt: Sheraton Congress (F)
Cologne: Barcelo City Center (SF)
Berlin: Arcotel John (F) or Hilton Berlin (SF)
Nuremberg: NH Huremberg City (F)
Munich: Holiday Inn CIty Centre (F)
Black Forest; Precise Carlton (F) at Donaueschingen
Frankfurt: Sheraton Congress (F) or Holiday Inn Frankfurt North (F)

* The prices shown are U.S. dollars per person, based on double occupancy, and subject to availability. Prices quoted for land arrangements are subject to increase without notice. Once we have received your deposit, land prices are guaranteed. Whenever air-inclusive tour prices are displayed, these prices do not include government taxes and fees, which are additional. Air prices are subject to increase and are guaranteed only from the time that full payment is received. Air-inclusive prices include air from a major U.S. gateway; air from other U.S. airports is available at an additional cost. Sorry, we are unable to offer air from countries other than the U.S. However, for those international customers who are able to arrange their own transportation to the tour origination city, we are able to offer the land portion of the package or tour, at the price quoted.