13 Day Best of Germany Tour 2020

Patti,
I’m signed up for this tour 8/25-9/06! I’m traveling with a friend and we plan to arrive 2 days early in Hamburg and stay after 3 days in Berlin. I think it will be an amazing tour!

Which tour dates are you considering?

Good morning Judy,

Thank you for your response. I believe you and I had a conversation early this year re: the 13 Day Turkey Tour (AMAZING!!).

I'm planning on signing up for the 08/04/19 - 08/16/19 tour so I would just miss you! Given that you are planning a post tour holiday in Berlin, you may be interested in this gentleman (someone on the RS site - under Day Tours - posted his information): https://www.theberlinexpert.com. If you happen to find anything interesting re: food tours (I believe it was you who told me about that food tour in Istanbul) or any other day tour in Berlin, please feel free to send me a private message with the information.

My Fall semester doesn't begin until August 26th so I will plan on doing something similar to your post tour holiday (re: Berlin) or a friend suggested visiting Vienna. No real plans yet.

Patti

Yes, Patti, I remember. I thought you might be my Turkey correspondent. I will make note of the link you included for trip planning in Berlin. I leave in 3 weeks for the Munich Salzburg Vienna tour! Really need to get in gear for it. I’ve been busy with life. Need to buy a new suitcase as Delta knocked off a wheel back in the spring on my return flight from Israel. I’ll be ready but little things need to happen first.
I’m sure you can’t go wrong with pre- and post- travel plans. How many days do you have?

I haven't been on that tour but I would add in a few extra days in Berlin after. Before I think either Paris or London would work well.

Hi Jkelman:

Thank you for your response. Yes, I think Berlin would be a good place to spend a few extra days post tour (friends that have previously visited tell me, "Berlin is the 'coolest' city!"). I am always interested in visiting places that I have not yet visited ...... I was also thinking of Vienna.

Hi Judy:

That's right, you visited Israel - how lovely! You will have to let me know all about Vienna (I know that 8 day tour is going to be a bit of a whirlwind!). Are you planning on attending a concert? The tour that I am planning on signing up for ends on 08/16 which means I have nine days before I have to return to the States (my Fall semester begins on 08/26). I'm curious what airline did you use (and might recommend)?

Yes, Patti, I will let you know about Vienna. This tour is a whirlwind. I plan to attend a concert in the Musikverein which is supposed to be fabulous. There are two art exhibits I want to see: Albrecht Durer at the Albertina and Caravaggio and Bernini at the Kunsthistoriches Museum. In addition to the Christmas markets! I’m limited in vacation days and only have one day post-tour in Vienna. I plan to make the most of every minute.
I will have 2 days in Munich before the tour starts.
Wow! 9 days will be wonderful for you to spend more time in Berlin plus go to Vienna.
I am flying Delta as Atlanta is a major hub. I got a good airfare for this MSV trip - we haven’t bought our tickets yet for the Best of Germany.

My husband and I did this tour in June. We added Bruges at the front ( I was not a Hamburg fan and am glad we didn’t add days there) we added 3 days in Berlin which I recommend. Then spent a week in Switzerland hiking which was a great way to unwind from the very fast paced Germany tour.

Good morning KathiMc,

Thank you for your response regarding your recent Best of Germany tour.

I have heard that Bruges is beautiful .......... did you book a "multi city" ticket? Absolutely everyone I've spoken to tells me to spend at least an additional three days in Berlin (thank you for the tip!).

Have a great day.

Patti

Believe it or not ,it was cheaper for us to fly into Amsterdam and train to Bruges, rather than take the exact same flight, stop in Amsterdam and continue on to Brussels, makes no sense. After 3 days, we took Brussels Air to Hamburg.

We did a day trip to Potsdam, as well as Sachsenhausen concentration camp withBerlin Walks. We then flew to Zurich.

I agree with the comments about spending a few extra days in Berlin and vicinity after the tour (I took the tour a year ago). I also arrived in Hamburg a day before the tour started and really enjoyed seeing the city in advance, particularly since there was a street festival going on.

BOG was our first RS tour in 2018. I loved Hamburg and would have liked more time there, we got there a day early, but it was not enough. The tour was wonderful, very busy. By the time we got to Berlin, I was beat. It was hot, and my ankle was bothering me, so I was OK with not spending any extra time there. We loved the tour so much, that we booked GAS for May 2019 almost as soon as we got back home. We had such a wonderful time on both, I'd like to go again. It might be too hot in August, a lot of places are not air conditioned. But, whatever you do, have a wonderful time. Cathey

Patti, We did the Best of Germany tour this year and it was fantastic. We traveled 10 days prior to the tour on our own using the trains and had a great experience seeing some small towns in the Black Forest and Rhine river regions. We stayed 3 extra nights after the tour in the hotel in Berlin that RS had us all booked in and it was well worth our time and money too see more of Berlin and surrounding areas. I loved traveling through Germany. (The small bit of German I acquired helped a lot in the small towns!) I appreciated all the information/help that RS Forum people provided. We went in May/June for the milder weather--August will be hot and humid so be prepared for it.

Good afternoon everyone,

Thank you to everyone who responded to my initial post regarding "The Best of Germany 2020" tour. My semester has been incredibly crazy (students and papers!) so I apologize to those that were kind enough to respond to my initial post.

I am definitely not a fan of traveling during the month of August, but this is the only time that I can travel (My preference is to travel during the Spring; however taking even two days off during the semester is currently frowned upon so I take what I can get). I am definitely going to try and see if my schedule will allow me to stay in Berlin for another three days before I have to fly home and start the Fall semester.

I am toying with the idea of booking the GAS 2020 tour because of the wonderful reviews AND iit would fit into my schedule (I have heard only wonderful reviews for this tour).

Again, thank you all who responded to my initial post. Happy Holidays!

Patti

Patti,
You might book the GAS tour in addition to the Best of Germany tour? That would be awesome. I just returned from the Munich Salzburg Vienna tour which is an amazing experience. MSV is half of the GAS tour. There is so much to love in these tours.

My friend just informed me yesterday her daughter is pregnant and due in August so we may change our BOG tour date to Oct 6-18, which I prefer because I think the weather may be milder than August.

Hi Judy,

I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed your recent trip. I would definitely love to hear more. Please feel free to send me a private message when you have some time.

Best,

Patti

I did the tour 9/24-10/6/20. We were there for October Fest which was really great. I had previously done Berlin, Vienna and Prague and was enamored with Berlin. Since I had been there before, i didn't mind that we didn't spend that much time there in 2020. It is a city that does need more time to explore. In 2016, we did a Berlin bunker tour which was so interesting. We got our tickets before we left and made sure we were on an English speaking tour. Afterwards we spent time on one of the rubble mountains that is now a park.
Go a day early to Hamburg so you can go to the Miniatur Wunderland. This is one of the best things I have ever seen. I got my ticket before I left the states and had an early entry time because it gets crowded. Easy to get to.