Daily Itinerary – Germany

Saturday, May 13, 2023 –  Welcome to Europe!
We’ll meet at our centrally located hotel in Cologne in the late afternoon and head out to the massive beer hall Früh am Dom for our welcome dinner.
Sleep in Cologne (3 nights)  / Bus: none / Walking: Light
Meals provided:  Dinner

Sunday, May 14, 2023 – Düsseldorf’s Altbier Scene

After a hearty German breakfast we’ll take our private coach to Düsseldorf.  Your guide will take you on a historic tour of the old town and a walking beer tour visiting some or all of these local favourite altbier brewpubs: Uerige, Schlüssel, Im Goldenen Kessel, Kürzer, Im Füchschen…  When you’ve had your fill, our dirver will take us back to Cologne where you have a free evening.
Sleep in Cologne / Bus: 2 hours / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast

Monday, May 15, 2023 – It’s all about the Kölsch

One of the most fiercely protected food products in Europe, from where it can be brewed to how it must be served, Cologne’s distinctively refreshing Kölsch beer needs to be experienced in the city that birthed it.  Join your guide for a day that will mix the medieval with the modern and will never leave you thirsty.  After breakfast your guide will take you to Cologne’s top tourist site, the massive Kölner Dom Cathedral where you’ll learn about the centuries long construction of this gothic monolith, as well as some of the Roman and 20th century history of the city itself.  Within close proximity are many of Cologne’s Kölsch brewpubs, and you’ll visit some or all of Gaffel, Sion, Paffgen, and more.
Sleep in Cologne / Bus: none / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast

Tuesday, May 16, 2023 – Rauch and Roll

After breakfast we’ll board our private coach and roll on out of Cologne, heading southeast towards Bavaria.  But first, we’ll take a break from the road in the beer capital of Franconia – Bamberg.  Bamberg’s old town, with its mid-river townhall and four-towered cathedral, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  It’s also the centre of the region with the most breweries per capita in the world.  After a welcome beer at Spezial, we’ll visit the Weyermann Malting visitor centre and then have an exclusive tour and tasting in the Schlenkerla Brewery, famous for their Rauchbier.  After visiting some other sites in town you can settle into a fine dinner at Schlenkerla where we’ve reserved tables for 6:00 PM.  The rest of the evening is for you to explore some of the other brewpubs in town.  Sleep in Bamberg  (1 night) / Bus: 4.5 hours / Walking: Light
Meals provided: Breakfast

Wednesday, May 17, 2023 – Das Münchner Kindl

After breakfast we’ll hop on our coach and head to Munich.  When we arrive, we’ll drop our luggage at the hotel and head to the Viktualienmarkt where you can have lunch in their beer garden or the adjacent der Pschorr Wirtshaus where you can try their oak barrel ice-cellared Edelhell.  The rest of the afternoon and evening is yours to explore with plenty of advice from your tour guide.
Sleep in Munich (4 nights)/ Bus: 3 hours / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast

Thursday, May 18, 2023 – Castles and Cloisters
This morning our private coach will pick us up at the hotel and take us to the edge of the Alps to visit the most famous castle in the world, Neuschwanstein.  After our guided tour of the castle’s interior and some time to enjoy the mountain views surrounding it, we’ll head to Kloster Andechs where we’ll have lunch and beers on their sprawling patios.
Sleep in Munich / Bus: 5 hours / Walking: Strenuous (the hike up to Neuschwanstein is short but steep)
Meals provided: Breakfast

Friday, May 19, 2023 – Heft a Hefe, Master a Maß
After breakfast we’ll walk to the nearby Spaten-Franziskaner Brewery for an insider’s look at how one of Munich’s big breweries (and one of the official brewers for Oktoberfest) operates.  We’ll get to see the range of production, including the famous Franziskaner Weissbier, and try some special samples with our brewery guide.  After the tour we’ll visit Augustiner Keller for a group lunch in their leafy beer gardens, listening for the frequent bells that mean a new wooden barrel of delicious Augustiner beer has just been tapped!  Late afternoon and evening are yours to explore more of Munich as you wish.
Sleep in Munich / Bus: none / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast and Lunch

Saturday, May 20, 2023 – Eins, zwei, g’suffa
This morning you are free to sleep in or choose one of Munich’s interesting tourist sites – the palatial Residenz, or the sprawling Deutsches Museum (one of the largest science and technology museums in the world), or the gearhead heaven of the BMW museum.  A little further out, but easily reached by transit, you can visit the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial site, or Nymphenburg Palace. And if you’re still thirsty, you might want to visit the Paulaner Bräuhaus or the Löwenbräukeller or maybe one of the smaller micro/craft brew pubs in town.  Your guide will give you the advice you need. This evening we’ll regroup for a group dinner at the world famous Hofbräuhaus, hoisting a Maß of Hell or Dunkel, singing “Eins, zwei, g’suffa” (one, two, drink) with the oompah band!
Sleep in Munich / Bus: none / Local Transit (if visiting Dachau or Nymphenburg): 1.5 hours / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast and dinner

Sunday, May 21 – Auf Wiedersehen!

The tour is over after breakfast.  Your hotel is conveniently located steps away from Munich’s central train station where you can easily catch a train out to the Munich International Airport.  And while you’re there, why not have one last Bavarian beer at the world’s only airport brewery, Airbräu, while you’re waiting for your flight?
Meals provided: Breakfast

Daily Itinerary – Belgium pre-trip extension

Wednesday, May 10, 2023 – Welcome to Belgium!
Once everyone has arrived at the hotel in Brussels, we’ll head out for some beer and dinner!
Sleep in Brussels (3 nights) / Bus: none / Walking: Light

Thursday, May 11, 2023 – Best of Brussels
After breakfast you’ll have a chance to explore the centre of Brussels – waffles, chocolate, frites… maybe some beer?  Today at 12:30 you’ll be at the world famous Cantillon Brewery where you’ll get a tour of the famed lambic brewhouse with the requisite tastings at the end.  After the tour, you’ll have time to visit local upstarts like Dansaert and classic staples of the Brussels beer scene like the Delirium Café.
Sleep in Brussels / Bus: none / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast

Friday, May 12, 2023 – The Sacred and the Sour
Our private coach will take us down the Molignée Valley to the peaceful Maredsous Abbey where we’ll have a tour of this historic monastery after which you can try their famous beers and cheeses at lunch in the abbey restaurant.  Then we’ll skip one valley over to the Senne valley and visit the Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen – a traditional lambic brewery and gueze blendery.  After our visit and tasting, we’ll be back in Brussels in time to enjoy one last evening in this beautiful city.
Sleep in Brussels / Bus: 3 hours / Walking: Light
Meals provided: Breakfast

Saturday, May 13, 2023 – La Trappe
This morning we’ll cross the border into the Netherlands to visit the Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven – brewer of the La Trappe line of beers.  Unlike most Trappist breweries, La Trappe brews a wide range of styles and is open for tours of the facility.  The monks also produce fine cheeses and breads, and you’ll be able to enjoy these at lunch in the abbey’s restaurant.  After our stop in the Netherlands we’ll cross another border into Germany and be in Cologne in the late afternoon where we’ll meet up with the rest of the group who will just be arriving in Europe.
Sleep in Cologne / Bus: 4 hours / Walking: Light
Meals provided: Breakfast

Daily Itinerary – Czech post-trip extension

Sunday, May 21, 2023 – Czech it out!

Our hearty German breakfast will be followed by a journey across the former Iron Curtain border into the Czech Republic. We’ll stop for lunch in Plzeň (Pilsen) – and visit the Pilsner Urquell Brewery where history was made in 1842 when the first batch of pilsner beer was brewed. Pilsner may be one of the most widely copied beer styles in the world, but there’s nothing quite so good as the original, and Czechs take special pride in this. We’ll also have a your-choice lunch right in the brewery.  A little further to the east and we will be in Prague, where we will will visit Wenceslas Square, where the Velvet Revolution that ended communism in Czechoslovakia took place, and then head out for some delicious beer and snacks from Prague’s burgeoning microbrewery scene.
Sleep in Prague (2 nights) / Bus: 4 hours / Walking: Moderate
Meals provided: Breakfast

Monday, May 22, 2023 – Bohemian Rhapsody
Rhapsody: a state of elated bliss. Which is the state you will be in having an entire day in the magnificent capital of Bohemia, Prague. In the morning, we will visit the Old Town Square and the Tyn Church, followed by a visit to the very traditional Czech micro-brewery U Flek U, producer of the best dark lager in the Czech Republic.  It’s actually the only beer they have.  After some free time in the old town, we will regroup, cross the Charles Bridge, and ascend to the Prague Castle before settling in for a Czech feast at the the Strahov Monastic Brewery.
Sleep in Prague / Bus: none / Walking: Strenuous (moderate if you opt to take the lift up the hill to the castle)
Meals provided: Breakfast

Tuesday, May 23, 2023 – Na shledanou!
The tour is over after breakfast. We will be happy to give you advice on your further adventures in Europe if you are staying on, and if you are heading home – the Prague International Airport is a short train or cab ride away.
Meals provided: Breakfast

Details

Germany price: $1950 per person based on double occupancy.  A limited number of single rooms are available for $2450 per person.

Belgium extension price: $700 per person based on double occupancy.  A limited number of single rooms are available for $895 per person.

Czech extension price: $450 per person based on double occupancy.  A limited number of single rooms are available for $600 per person.

Trip Insurance:  You need to purchase travel insurance from your preferred provider.  We do not sell insurance.

Price Includes:  Accommodations at centrally located hotels, transport by luxury motor coach with professional driver, full buffet breakfast each day, 3 group meals as indicated in the itinerary, the services of a tour guide in Germany and the Czech Republic, entrance fees to any group brewery tours or tourist site visits as indicated in the itinerary, all taxes and surcharges.  Though every effort will be made to keep to the itinerary as described above, it is subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances.

Not Included: Airfare, Trip Insurance, Tip to your driver (recommended €2-4 euros per day per person)

Deposit: A deposit of $500 per person is due to secure a spot on the Germany trip.  A deposit of $700 per person is due to secure a spot on the Germany trip and the Belgium OR Czech extension.  A deposit of $900 per person is due to secure a spot on the Germany trip and both the Belgium AND Czech extensions. The deposit is refundable, minus a $200 cancellation fee, for any reason for 30 days. The deposit is not refundable after 30 days. Space is limited so don’t delay as this tour will fill up quickly.

Final Payment: Final payment for the trip is due no later than February 13, 2023.  Failure to make the final payment can result in your spot on the trip being offered to someone on the waitlist.  The final payment is non-refundable.

Eligibility to Travel: Requirements for entry to the Schengen Area of Europe (which includes Germany, Belgium, and the Czech Republic) are in flux due to the covid-19 pandemic.  As of May 2022, US Citizens must have a valid passport that does not expire within 3 months of the planned final date of their visit to Europe and either proof of vaccination OR proof of recent recovery OR a negative PCR or antigen test to enter most countries in the European Union.  This situation has changed recently and will most likely continue to change.  It is possible that there will be no covid protocols at all by May 2023.  It is up to each individual traveller to know and meet the requirements for entry to Germany (and Belgium / Czech Republic if you choose either extension).

General Terms and Conditions: By signing up for this tour, you are agreeing to the specific terms and conditions above and the general terms and conditions found here.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Craig Bresett             craig@eatanddrinklikeaeuropean.com   or  1 844 689 5433 

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