European Tours

10 Day Luther Sites of Reformation

Best of Luther & Germany Highlights
via Lufthansa Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta, or Swiss Air

DAY 01 – DEPART NORTH AMERICA
Tour members depart Chicago O'Hare International Airport on our flight to Frankfurt. After take-off, enroute to Europe, we will be served dinner, see a movie, sleep a little, and then have breakfast.

DAY 02 – FRANKFURT / MARBURG / FULDA
Morning arrival at Frankfurt Airport where we are met by our tour escort and motor coach and commence our touring program. We drive northwards to the old university town of Marburg where we can see St. Elizabeth's Church and the Landgrave's Castle, before continuing on our way to the historic town of Fulda. Fulda was a centre of religion and scholarship in the Franconian Empire and was designated a town in 1114. In the 18th century during the Baroque Age it reached its most important period; it was the residence of the Prince Abbotts and Prince Bishops, and a university was founded. We will see the Town Castle, St. Michael's Church and visit the Cathedral (time permitting). Dinner and overnight at our hotel.

DAY 03 – FULDA / WARTBURG / EISENACH / ERFURT / THURINGEN
This morning we travel eastwards for a visit to the formidable Wartburg Castle where Luther found refuge during the Imperial Ban. The castle, built in the 11th century, is where Luther translated the New Testament in the years 1521-1522 – we will see the "Luther Stube". A short drive brings us to Eisenach, birthplace of Johann Sebastian Bach, which we will see. We will also visit the Luther House museum before continuing to the historic town of Erfurt, where Luther studied at the university. Our tour in Luther's footsteps will include a visit to the Cathedral and Church of St. Severi's, a view of the Kramer Bridge lined on each side with timber-framed houses restored to their original condition, and then a highlight visit to the important Augustinian Monastery, built in 1277 and now beautifully restored. The Monastery contains an exhibition on Martin Luther who was a monk here from 1505 until 1511. We then drive to our hotel in the Thuringen area for overnight.

DAY 04 – THURINGEN / HALLE / EISLEBEN / THURINGEN
Our first visit this morning will be to Halle, where Luther stayed in 1510 for the granting of an appeal to the Pope (Dispute of the Order of St. Augustin). We will see the Market Church of our Dear Lady, and hopefully visit a special exhibition showing Luther's death mask and hands, documents about him, and a Holy Bible with his handwritten notes. Then to Eisleben which ranks amongst the most significant of all places having a connection with him, although he only spent a little time here – he was born here on 10 November 1483 and died here on 18 February 1546; old manuscripts indicate that he felt a special affinity towards Eisleben. We will visit the house of his birth and see the house where he died, St. Andrew's Church where he preached his last sermon and where his body was laid out, the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul where he was christened, and the Luther Monument. Some time at leisure to see the market place and other points of interest such as St. Anne¼s Church with the famous biblical scenes hewn in stone and the buildings of the former St. Augustine's Monastery before returning to our hotel in the Thuringen area for overnight.

DAY 05 – THURINGEN / LEIPZIG / WITTENBERG / DESSAU / THURINGEN
Drive this morning to the beautiful city of Leipzig, Bach's city, where our sightseeing will include St. Thomas Church where Bach was organist and choirmaster; we will also view the Renaissance Town Hall before driving northwards to Wittenberg, birthplace of the Reformation, city of Frederick the Wise who was patron and protector of Luther. Luther lived here from 1508 until his death. We will visit All Saints Castle Church where Luther nailed his 95 These to the door and which contains the graves of Luther and Melanchthon, see the University where Luther taught, and visit Melanchthon's House as well as the Luther House which is the largest and greatest museum of Reformation history in the world. We will also visit the Stadtkirche of St. Marien where Luther used to preach, and see the Luther monument and the renaissance Town Hall. Time permitting, we will drive then to Dessau, where, on 2nd April 1534 the Dessau Princes (Georg, Johann and Joachim) professed the Reformation and where Martin Luther preached before them and the citizens of Dessau. We will see the main points of interest including St. John's Church before returning to our hotel in the Thuringen area for a late dinner and overnight.

DAY 06 – THURINGEN / NURNBERG / MUNICH
Drive through the southern part of the old East Germany and continue by way of motorway passing through lovely towns and villages on the way to Nurnberg, the city of Durer and the Meistersingers, a city surrounded by thick walls and overlooked by its landmark castle. Nurnberg has a very interesting Old Town reflective of the city's long and historic past; we will see its old fortifications and, time permitting, we will stop outside the end of the road, where we walk to the castle to enjoy the fine view across the housetops with their pointed gables and the tall church spires. Drive further south by way of Ingoldtadt on the Danube to Dachau for an optional tour. Dinner and overnight in Munich.

DAY 07 – MUNICH / NEUSCHWANSTEIN / OBERAMMERGAU / MUNICH
Our full day tour of Bavaria commences with a drive through spectacular mountain scenery, past snow-capped Alps, crystalline lakes and rustic villages to Neuschwanstein to see the famous castle built by mad King Ludwig and the basis for Walt Disney's famous fairytale castle. A short drive then brings us to the tiny village of Oberammergau, site of the world famous Passion Play which is performed once every ten years; we will visit the general area of the Passion Play theatre and see the many beautiful painted houses which make this such an attractive village before driving on to Munich, Bavaria's lively capital. Our orientation sightseeing tour here will include the Gothic Town Hall, the Marienplatz, Karlstor Gate and Our Lady's Cathedral. Dinner and overnight in Munich.

DAY 08 – MUNICH / AUGSBURG / ROMANTIC ROAD / HEIDELBERG
Martin Luther stayed in Augsburg on his way from Rome in March 1511, and it was here most significantly that he defended his 95 theses in the debate with the representative of the Church of Rome in 1518. During his stay in Augsburg the foundations were laid for the decisive development of the Reformation and thus of the Christian Church. We will see the Renaissance style Town Hall, the Church of the Holy Cross (Luther's lodgings after his journey to Rome in 1511), and the impressive Augustus fountain as well as visiting St. Anne's Church with its small Luther courtyard and the memorial Chapel of the Fugger. Our scenic drive continues past the medieval villages of Donauworth and Dinkelsbuhl to Rothenburg ob der Tauber, one of Europe¼s finest preserved medieval towns. We will see the main points of interest including the beautiful gateways and towers, imposing town walls and cobblestone streets as well as the Renaissance style Town Hall and the Ratstrinkstube featuring the Meistertrunk clock, before continuing to Heidelberg for overnight.

DAY 09 – HEIDELBERG / WORMS / RHINE TRIP / RHINELAND
A short drive this morning brings us to the romantic medieval city of Heidelberg, delightfully situated on the Neckar River, where we will visit the castle ruins, the University and also the famous Stone Bridge, said by many to be Germany's most beautiful bridge; we also see the Red Ox Inn of "Student Price" fame, before driving the short distance to Worms, city of the 1521 Edict, where we will see the impressive Monument to the Reformation and visit the Cathedral in this important centre of the Reformation. Worms was the site of Luther's trial for heresy and it was in the Cathedral, standing before the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V that he uttered his faith affirming, death defying proclamation... "Here I stand, I can do no other. God help me." We then drive to the River Rhine and St. Goar where we board our steamer for a cruise on this busy waterway – past ruined castles, terraced vineyards, attractive riverside villages and the famous Loreley Rock; we disembark at Kaub and drive along the banks of this beautiful river to our Rhineland hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 10 – RHINELAND / FRANKFURT / USA
Transfer this morning to Frankfurt Airport for our return flight to the United States at the end of our enjoyable tour.

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