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| Daily Itinerary: |
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| Day 1 | Tuesday, 8/31/2010 - Fly to Frankfurt
Board your overnight transatlantic flight. | |
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| Day 2 | Wednesday, 9/1/2010 - Arrival in Frankfurt, Germany
Time to rest or to 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. |
Dinner |
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| Day 3 | Thursday, 9/2/2010 - 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, terranced 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. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 4 | Friday, 9/3/2010 - Cologne-Berlin
Enjoy a fast train ride to Berlin, capital of reunited Germany, where sightseeing with 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. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 5 | Saturday, 9/4/2010 - Berlin
The afternoon is free, and an optional excursion to historic Potsdam is available. Tonight is your chance to sample Berlin’s fine restaurants and nightlife! | Breakfast |
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| Day 6 | Sunday, 9/5/2010 - Berlin-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 Nuremburg, the town of children’s toys and gingerbread. It is also the birthplace of painter Albrecht Durer and poet and meistersinger Hans Sachs. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 7 | Monday, 9/6/2010 - Nuremberg-Rothenburg-Munich-Oberammergau
Admire Nuremburg’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 continue via Munich to picturesque Oberammergau. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 8 | Tuesday, 9/7/2010 - Oberammergau
Today enjoy the highlight of your vacation: the original Passion Play, held every ten years, and performed by the inhabitants of Oberammergau. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 9 | Wednesday, 9/8/2010 - Oberammergau-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. Have lunch in charming Lindau, then continue north and visit the baroque church at Birnau. Enter the pine-clad hills of the Black Forest and enjoy a Woodcarving Demonstration on your way through to your hotel. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 10 | Thursday, 9/9/2010 - Black Forest-Heidelberg-Frankfurt
A leisurely departure this morning for 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. Next back to Frankfurt for a farewell dinner with your companions of a fascinating vacation. | Breakfast
Dinner |
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| Day 11 | Friday, 9/10/2010 - Fly Home
Your homebound flight arrives the same day. | Breakfast |
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