Christmas Markets Highlights

You will be greeted at the Frankfurt Airport by one of our travel ways staff and transferred to a **** Hotel in Frankfurt. You should have some time to relax after your long flight. We will meet for dinner and take a few minutes to talk about the wonderful week we have planned for you.

After breakfast we will leave Frankfurt and drive south to one of Germany’s most beautiful cities; the medieval city of Rothenburg. It is one of the oldest historic cities in Europe. Rothenburg is completely surrounded by a 400 year old city wall. Much of the wall is still in its original condition. You will have the sense of being transported back in time when you walk the narrow cobblestone streets.

You can stroll through Rothenburg’s famous Christmas market and enjoy being serenaded with Christmas Carols by the local choir. In addition to the Christmas market, we will be stopping at the shop of “Kaethe Wohlfahrt”. This is not only a Christmas shop, but it is also a Christmas museum. No trip to Rothenburg would be complete without a visit to a wonderful Teddy Bear Shop. Now that we’ve worked up a good appetite, we will stop for lunch before leaving Rothenburg.

After lunch our tour continues to Nürnberg. Nürnberg is the city of children’s toys, Gingerbread and the famous grilled Nürnberg sausages. Since we will be arriving late afternoon, this is a perfect time to stroll through the illuminated center of the city where you can shop at the great Christmas market and Gingerbread shop. Here you can sample the best Gingerbread in the world. We will stay overnight at a ****Hotel in Nürnberg.

After breakfast we will visit Soldier’s Field. During WWII thousands of German soldiers paraded here in front of Hitler. From here we board our coach and drive along a wonderful scenic road to Salzburg, Austria.
After lunch we will take a guided walking tour of the historic center of Salzburg. Salzburg is the birthplace of Mozart. The Salzburg Christmas market contains many items related to Mozart. They have even created a special candy in his honor. You will have plenty of time to explore this lovely area on your own.

Tonight we are not tourists. We will have a candlelight dinner in a typical Austrian country restaurant and attend a Mozart concert. We will be staying overnight at a beautiful **** Hotel in the historic Center of Salzburg.

After breakfast we board the coach and head to Munich, the capital of Bavaria. We will be doing some of our sightseeing by bus and some on foot. For lunch you could visit the world’s most famous beer-hall; the Hofbrauhaus individually.

In the afternoon you will have plenty of time to explore on your own. You may wish to include the famous “Christkindl Market”. We will stay overnight at a ****Hotel in Munich.

From Munich we drive directly into the Bavarian Alpine Mountains and visit Linderhof Palace. Linderhof is a charming palace in the Rococo style. The palace was built by the Bavarian King Ludwig II. Afterwards we take a short drive to Oberammergau. Oberammergau is one of the most beautiful of all the remote Bavarian villages and is the home of German’s famous Passion Play which is held only every 10 years.

Dinner will be typical Bavarian fare and will include Zither music in a historic mill of the 18th century. We will stay overnight in Oberammergau at the a famous **** Hotel.

After breakfast we drive to the small village of Fuessen. Here we visit King Ludwig’s famous fairy tale castle “Neuschwanstein”. Upon arrival will we take our coffee break below the castle. Afterwards, we will walk up and tour the castle’s interior.

Next our drive takes us again through Austria and then back into Southern Germany. Our destination is Europe’s biggest freshwater reservoir, Lake Constance. We will drive along the lakeside and stop at the charming little baroque church of Birnau. From here you can see the Swiss Alpine Mountains directly on the other side of the lake.

From there we continue into Germany’s Black Forest. We will be spending the night in the most romantic hotel of the Black Forest.
Tonight we have dinner at the Black Forest Restaurant of the hotel. We will stay overnight at a **** star hotel situated in the Black Forest.

Today we will drive through the southern part of the Black Forest. We will view miles and miles of forests, deep valleys, remote villages and farms. One stop includes shopping at a cuckoo clock factory and department store.

Our next stop brings us to Heidelberg; Germany’s oldest university town. The highlight of today’s tour is a visit to Heidelberg Castle. This is a red-walled castle which contains the Great Vat. This 18th century vat has a 49,000 gallon capacity. Have your cameras ready.

Just in case you still have some shopping left, there is another “Kaethe Wohlfahrt” shop in town. If not, you may just wish to take a stroll through Heidelberg’s historic center.

When all the shopping is done we will return to Frankfurt. Tonight will we go out and celebrate with a wonderful Farewell Christmas Dinner. We will stay overnight in Frankfurt at a **** Hotel.

Transfers to the airport and then we will wave you good-bye.