Take the road less travelled and explore the hidden treasures of Germany and Central Europe..

FROM  THE  GOLDEN  TOWN  TO  THE  FLORENCE  ON  THE  ELBE

CYCLING  TOUR

FROM PRAGUE TO DRESDEN

TOUR DESCRIPTION :

This cycle tour connects two significant cultural and historical cities. Enjoy the magic of the golden city of Prague before continuing on to Germany through the rural areas of the Czech Republic. Although the trail conditions are still quite adventurous in some places, the unspoiled nature and pretty Elbe towns such as Melnik and Leitmeritz will more than make up for this. You will follow the river to Dresden passing through the bizarre rock formations of the Elbe sandstone mountains.

ITINERARY          7 NIGHTS / 8 DAYS

Day 1: Arrival in Prague

Arrive in Prague from Mumbai. You will be transferred to the hotel from the airport.

Prague, "The Golden City", offers many opportunities for spending your time. The highlights of your stay will include a visit to one of the famous museums, Prague Castle and the magnificent bridges.

Overnight in Prague

Day 2: Individual Sightseeing in Prague

After breakfast, explore the city of Prague.

Leave for a grand city tour of Prague by Bus (with pick-up at the hotel). - During the grand city tour, you will be given all the basic information about Golden Prague's historic monuments - the State Opera, the National Museum, Wenceslas Square, the Charles Square, Prague Castle. There a walk around the Castle courtyards awaits you, where amongst other things, you will have the opportunity to see St. Vitus Cathedral. The bus will then take you across the Vltava to the Old Town - St. Nicholas church, the Týn Cathedral and the Old Town Hall with its astronomical clock (HORLOGE) and apostles. Here, not far from the modern city centre, the tour ends. Duration: 3.5 hours

The historic centre is ideal for exploring by foot, and the friendly atmosphere in the shops, cafes and wine bars make it a delightful place to visit. Situated on both sides of the River Vltava, the highlights of Prague include the sixteen arches of the 14th century Charles Bridge, the Old Town Square and the irregular cobbled square with its famous Astronomical Clock. You can also discover the Old Town an Malá Strana, the baroque church of St. Nicholas, and Wencelas Square. The square is one of Prague’s most historic places. It was named in 1848 after St Wenceslas, and it contains the statue of St Wenceslas on horseback.

Overnight stay in Prague

Day 3: Prague – Melnik (50 kms)                             

After breakfast, check out of hotel and leave from Prague. Along the river Vltava you will cycle to Melnik – the centre of the Bohemian wine route. The Mělník castle belongs to the most important sights of this town. The castle is built in the Renaissance style and the features of this style are the Arcades in the north and south part of the castle and the sgraphitos on the walls. Below the castle there are large wine cellars. From Melnik castle you can enjoy a wonderful view of the spot where the Elbe and the Vltava rivers converge.

Overnight stay in Melnik

Day 4: Melnik - Litomerice (46 kms)            

After breakfast, leave from Melnik to Litomerice.  You will pass Terezin – the former Jewish Ghetto. In the years 1941 - 1945, Terezín became the largest concentration camp in Czechoslovakia. Over 140,000 Jewish men, women and children were brought there from around the country, as well as from Germany, Austria, Holland, Denmark, Slovakia and Hungary.

Litomerice with its superb houses is the political and cultural centre of the region. The Litoměřice region, characteristic of riverside lowlands and with its volcanic outcrops offers a rich variety of natural features. A plethora of natural and cultural landmarks with a well-developed network of footpaths make Litoměřice a popular destination for visitors to this corner of Bohemia.

Overnight stay in Litomerice

Day 5: Litomerice - Decin (50 kms)                 

After breakfast, today’s leg will take you to Decin via Usti nad Labem.  On the way you will pass Strekov Castle. It is a gothic castle standing on the cliff above the Elbe river. It was founded in 1319 by the nobleman Pesek of Strekov who received the permission from John of Luxemburg who was the King of Bohemia. During the following five centuries the castle changed hands several times. The owners were German noblemen and Czechs like Vaclav Popel of Lobkovice.

Overnight stay in Decin

Day 6: Decin - Bad Schandau (20 kms)          

After breakfast, leave from Decin for Bad Schandau.

Between Decin and Bad Schandau you will see the impressive sandstone massif in the Bohemian and Saxon Switzerland region. Germany preserves more than 36,000 hectares of Elbe sandstone massif made by the Elbe River over a period of 100 million years. The tourists will experience many fascinating things here like the eroded rock formations, which dates back to Cretaceous period.

Overnight stay in Bad Schandau

Day 7: Bad Schandau - Dresden (45 kms)      

After breakfast, leave from Dresden.

Along the towering Elbe Sandstone massif and delightful riverbank meadows you will cycle to Dresden, the “Florence of the Elbe”. Whether the famous Zwinger, the Semper Opera or the Court Church – a tour of the former royal residence by bicycle will take you past many sites.

Individual ferry crossing in Königstein.

Overnight stay in Dresden

Day 8: Dresden - Prague

You can of course always extend your trip with extra nights in Dresden or other towns. We will be pleased to arrange additional accommodation for you.

After breakfast, leave for a Big City tour with the the “Hummelbahn” (   red buses)

The tours start daily at 09.30 hrs from the city centre (Wilsdruffer Straße).

It leads the guests to the “Großer Garten”, through different Art Noveau formed districts as well as beautiful exclusive residential areas in the eastern part of Dresden. There you cross the River Elbe via bridge “Blaues Wunder”. Along the unique Elbe meadows the route goes to the “Pfunds Molkerei – the most beautiful dairy in the world”. Through the new town of Dresden you are finally crossing the Augustus bridge and see the cathedral, as well as the Semper Opera and go back to the starting point of the tour. Duration: 1.5 hours.

You will be transferred by van from Dresden to Prague where you will take your flight back to Mumbai.

INCLUSIONS :

*         7 overnights in en-suite rooms with rich continental breakfast in three and four star hotels

*         Welcome drink in Prague

*         Luggage transport between the hotels

*         1 package detailed information material and cycling maps per room

*         24 h telephone service

*         Ferry crossing fees (Königstein)

*         Visitors tax in Bad Schandau

*         Prague city tour by bus.

*         Dresden city tour by bus.

*         Bike Rental

EXCLUSIONS :

*         Tickets for evening entertainment

*         Any additional lunch or dinner at the hotels or local restaurants.

*         Additional cost for a milometer – needs to be booked in advance.

Tour costing : EURO 715 (minimum 2 pax)

More Off-the-Beaten-Track Ideas...

Romantic Rhine Tour (4N/ 5D)

Itinerary:

Day 1: Arrival Frankfurt. One hour drive to Heidelberg. You have a chance to see the beauty of this town and the castle ramparts by night, and to visit the various wine cellars and pubs. Overnight in Heidelberg.

Day 2: We visit Heidelberg Castle after which we depart for the infamous Bridge at Remagen - known for the battle fought between the allied forces and the Nazis at the end of World War II. From here the allied forces moved on to liberate Berlin allthough the Russian Red Army arrived there first. We spend the night in an authentic German village called Villip near the former capital of Bonn.

Day 3: Visit Beethoven´s house and take a short walk-about in the core city of Bonn followed by a Rhine cruise upto the picturesque town of Linz. This area is well known for its seven hills which denote the seven dwarfs of Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs by the Brothers Grimm. We proceed to Cologne to visit the famous Gothic cathedral and the chocolate museum for the sweet-toothed. Enjoy the night life of Cologne city and return to our village for the night.

Day 4: We embark on our water castle tour of the Rhineland whereby we will visit 4 castles from the medieval times. Take a drive down the romantic Ahr valley and try some of the most exquisite wines of Germany.

Day 5:  Drive to Frankfurt via Koblenz. Visit the confluence of the rivers Moselle and Rhine at Deutsches Eck. City tour of Frankfurt if time so allows. Departure from Frankfurt airport.

Inclusions:

• Pick-up/drop-off at the airport.

• Complete Tour in a comfortable driver-guided VW or Mercedes van with a maximum capacity of 8 passengers per vehicle. We however recommend 7 passengers per vehicle for more comfort.

• Bed and Breakfast accommodation in comfortable 3 star hotels incl. of taxes, service charges.

• Welcome drink.

• Four breakfast buffets.

• 3 dinners.

• Entrance fees included at Beethoven´s House in Bonn and Rhine River Cruise.

• Arrangement for Jain and vegetarian meals.

NOTE: Please enquire for Double, Triple and Group rates. Tours can be extended to fit the requirements of the passengers. If you have more time, an additional 5 days could be used for Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris. Prices subject to itinerary.

Full Circle Germany Tour (9N/ 10D)

Itinerary:

Day 1: Pick up at Frankfurt. Depending on arrival of your flight we drive to picturesque Ruedesheim or the famous Nurburgring where Formula 1 drivers like Niki Lauda or Michael Schumacher came to fame. If time so allows we will do a 20 km lap in our van. The vintage car museum can only be visited from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. Welcome drink and dinner courtesy Imagine Tours.
Overnight in Villip which is a village just outside Bonn.

Day 2: Visit the Beethoven museum in Bonn. After that we will do a 2 hour Rhine cruise up to the beautiful town of Linz and back. We then proceed to Cologne to see the Cathedral. Visit to the Chocolate Museum or shopping on the busy Hoehe Strasse (High street) optional. Due to the Colonians being a happy-go-lucky lot, it is joked that Cologne is most certainly the northern most Mediterranean city of Europe. A visit to the famous Frueh-Koelsch pub beside the cathedral is therefore a must. Overnight in Cologne.

Day 3: Early departure to Amsterdam. Walking tour through Amsterdam with a special guide followed by a boat trip of the famous Amsterdam canals. Evening walk about through the Red Light District or visit to one of the numerous (e.g. van Gogh/Rembrandt/Mme. Tussaud´s/Mariners) museums. Overnight in Amsterdam.

Day 4: Early departure to Hamburg. A boat trip to the old warehouses where tea and spices from the orient were stored before distribution to the rest of Europe. City and Harbour tour - which in Hamburg is especially interesting. A drive down the infamous Reeperbahn which for centuries has been a reprieve for the love-sick sailor. Overnight in Hamburg.

Day 5:  9 A.M. departure to Berlin. Early afternoon city tour on a double decker bus. Lunch courtesy Imagine Tours. Visit to the Museum at Checkpoint Charlie which chronicles the methods East Germans used to escape to the West. Late afternoon trip to Potsdam to visit the beautiful palace of Sansouccis. Overnight in Potsdam.

Day 6: We drive on to beautiful Weimar where Goethe, Schiller, Nietzsche and many more lived and worked for most of their lives. Someone once said that Weimar is actually a park with a city built into it. Although it had little to do with this city, the Weimarer Republik is well known for the period between the two world wars. Drive to Coburg, a city known for its connection to the British crown. Overnight in a farm house slightly outside the city. Weather permitting we will ride on horseback through the woods to see the old border which separated the two Germanys. Optional: Drive to Eisenach and the Wartburg which is a castle where Martin Luther, who founded Protestantism, lived and translated the Bible from ancient Greek into German for the common man to understand the religion which was being dictated to him from Rome. Luther was excommunicated for this deed. Lutherism was essentially the precursor to the 30 years war (1618-1648) between the catholics and protestants and fought mainly in Germany.

Day 7: 10 A.M. departure to Munich. City tour and a visit to the fairy tale castle of Neuschwanstein. Dinner and drinks at the Hofbrauhaus - a Bavarian feature to be seen at least once in a life time.

Day 8: 10 A.M. drive to Gutach in the Black Forest. Shop for kuckoo clocks or other memorablia and experience the Germany which came across to us as children from the Grimm Brothers and other yarn spinners.

Day 9: Drive to Heidelberg. Visit the castle and saunter about town to do your final shopping.

Inclusions:

• Pick-up/drop-off at the airport

• Complete tour in a driver guided comfortable Mercedes Vito (or equivalent) van with a capacity of 8 passengers per vehicle.

• Double occupancy accommodation in comfortable bed and breakfast inns and hotels of 3* category.

• 9 breakfast buffets.

• Dinner on day 1. Lunch on Day 5.

• Welcome and farewell drink.

• Entrance fees include Chocolate museum in Cologne, Beethoven's house and Rhine cruise in Bonn, Heidelberg castle, Amsterdam Canal cruise.

• Local Taxes.

NOTE: Please enquire for Double, Triple and Group rates. Tours can be extended to fit the requirements of the passengers. If you have more time, an additional 5 days could be used for Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris. Prices subject to itinerary.