12 days incl. air, or 11 days Frankfurt/Frankfurt (ZDGJ)

Itinerary

Day 1

Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2Arrival in Frankfurt, Germany

Time to rest or explore the bustling metropolis on the River Main. At 6 p.m. meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a welcome dinner at your hotel. (D)

Day 3Frankfurt–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 Cliff. Disembark and drive to the ruins of the bridge in Remagen, where American troops breached Hitler’s West Wall. Spend the afternoon in Cologne with plenty of time to 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. (BB,D)

Day 4Cologne–Berlin

Board the EUROCITY TRAIN and arrive in Berlin. Sightseeing with a Local Guide in the once-divided metropolis includes the elegant Ku’damm, the restored Reichstag, Charlottenburg Palace, 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, pass the State Opera House, and Checkpoint Charlie. (BB,D)

Day 5At Leisure in Berlin

A full day to further explore this fascinating city. Tonight is your chance to sample Berlin’s fine restaurants and nightlife! (BB)

Day 6Berlin–Leipzig-Nuremberg

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. (BB,D)

Day 7Nuremberg–Rothenburg–Munich

Admire Nuremberg’s 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. Then focus on Germany’s Romantic Road, which leads from the flat country towards the Alps. You’ll love medieval Rothenburg with its ramparts and towers, cobbled lanes, and 16th-century houses. Now head south to the Danube Valley and Munich. How about a stein of beer at the Hofbräuhaus tonight? (BB,D)

Day 8Munich–Oberammergau

Sightseeing with a Local Guide of Germany’s “Secret Capital” includes the Olympic Stadium, 1,000-foot-high Television Tower, Nymphenburg Palace, MARIENPLATZ with the Old and New Town Hall, and the Gothic Frauenkirche. In the afternoon leave the big city for the garden-like landscape of the Bavarian Alps. Spend the next two nights in the Passion Play town of Oberammergau. (BB,D)

Day 9, Oberammergau. Excursion to Neuschwanstein

Highlight today is a visit to King Ludwig’s NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE, one of the most famous German castles. Follow your Local Guide through this fairytale castle on its craggy outcrop high above a sparkling lake. Afternoon and evening at leisure; ask your Tour Director for suggestions. (BB)

Day 10Oberammergau–Lindau– Black Forest

A scenic day starts out with a leisurely drive along the panoramic German Alpine Road to the sunny northern shore of Lake Constance, Europe’s largest freshwater reservoir. Stop for lunch in charming Lindau, then continue north and visit the baroque CHURCH at Birnau. On the way to your hotel in the Black Forest. (BB,D)

Day 11Black Forest–Heidelberg–Frankfurt

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, then the highlight of today: visit 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. (BB,D)

Day 12

Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (BB)