Variety, reinvention and history in Germany
Germany has been voted by Lonely Planet as one of its top ten countries to visit in 2010. The country was singled out for its variety, reinvention and also history, and specialist tour operator, Dertour, has a number of special holiday experiences for 2010, whether it is a new walking trail along the Rhine, or a once-in-a-lifetime visit to the Oberammergau Passion Play, which is held every 10 years.
There is also a cultural tour of East Germany including the city of Dresden, of which Lonely Planet says: “where the domed Frauenkirche church is once again the diamond in the shining tiara that is the city’s famous skyline”.
CULTURAL HEART OF GERMANY TOUR – This new week long tour from Dertour visits the East of Germany with special emphasis on the Bauhaus movement and the regeneration of the ‘old’ East. The route includes the states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia – the centrepieces of German history and culture – and starts in Eisenach and then on to the cities of Leipzig, Dresden and Weimar, returning via Cologne before arriving back in London. These cities have long been at the heart of Germany’s culture, having been shaped by the many famous and influential poets and composers who have lived and worked in these particular areas of Germany. Priced from £769 per person to include return rail from London St Pancras, seven nights bed and breakfast accommodation, all transport and transfers. Valid for departures from March – October 2010. Based on two sharing.
NEW WALKING TRAIL - The 320km long Rheinsteig trail is a real nature experience beginning at Wiesbaden and ending in Bonn, and meandering through villages along the Rhine such as Linz and Leutesdorf along the way. Many of the stages can be shortened by taking a riverboat. The trail is exceptionally well signposted and allows either ambitious long-distance walking or a variety of more leisurely short tours. Between Rüdesheim and Koblenz, you walk through the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage landscape boasting a variety of romantic castles. Worth seeing among other castles is the Pfalzgrafenstein Castle in Kaub, which stands on an island in the river North of Koblenz, and also the Marksburg Castle in Braubach. Next are the Taunus hills and the lofty peaks of the Westerwald forests, followed by the outstanding conservation area for the Siebengebirge hills with the famous Mount Drachenfels that towers over the Rhine.
Dertour offers the tour in three sections (each taking a week). A sample package for the middle section (St Goarshausen – Leutesdorf) which takes you via Braubach, Koblenz and Rengsdorf, is priced from £699 per person to include flights from Heathrow to Cologne and rail transfer, seven nights bed and breakfast accommodation, luggage transfers between hotels, and a walking map. Based on two sharing a twin room.
OBERAMMERGAU PASSION PLAY - Every ten years since 1634, the Bavarian village of Oberammergau stages its world-famous Passion Play. The last time it was held, in 2000, over 530,000 people from all over the world attended, so early booking for the 41st production in 2010 is essential so that you don’t miss out on this world famous cultural and religious event. There won’t be another opportunity until 2020 and in previous years demand for tickets has always been much higher than the number available.
Dertour offers a number of tours to take in the 2010 production, which will run over 102 days and performed up to five times a week on the open-air stage of the Passion Play Theatre. The premiere will be performed before an international audience on Saturday 15 May 2010, and, for the first time in its history, the play will begin in the afternoon and resume in the evening following a relaxing dinner. It will also benefit from a revised script and a musical score adapted from Rochus Dedler’s original composition.
As one of the UK’s leading tour operators to Germany and beyond, Dertour offers visitors to the 2010 Passion Play the backup of its own office located in Oberammergau, the services of a local representative as well as providing hotel accommodation in the Passion Play village itself as well as within walking distance of the theatre or three miles away in neighbouring Ettal.
Prices start from £829 per person to include three nights bed and breakfast accommodation in a four star hotel in Bavaria’s capital, Munich, and one night in Oberammergau on full board basis, plus return flights from Heathrow, return transfers from Munich to Oberammergau, tickets to see the play, lunch before the play and dinner in the long interval. Extras also included: free shuttle services between Oberammergau and Ettal, Passion Play 2010 programme and entrance to the Oberammergau Museum. Valid for travel on selected dates between May and September 2010.
For bookings and more information, visit dertour.co.uk.