10-Day Luther Rail Tour Berlin to Frankfurt (10R06)

Day 1 Berlin

By train, you will get from Berlin Intl. Airport (BER) to your hotel located near Berlin Central Station. Germany´s capital city is the first stop at your Imperial Europe Rail Tour and a great and dynamic metropolis. The unification of East and West Berlin changed the city in many ways. Berlin fascinates visitors and its culture and history are unique.

Your vacation package includes the Berlin Welcome Card. With this card, you will have discounts to 200 museums, city tours, and attractions and it includes a pass for unlimited free use of the Berlin public transportation system. With your tour package, you will receive Berlin Walking tour suggestions as well as information about the public buses “M100” and “M200”: the buses are public double-decker buses which cover the many sights of Berlin and are a perfect way to explore the city by hopping on and off those buses. They run very frequently all day from 5 am until midnight and if you take both routes you will have a circle taking you from the former Center of East Berlin (“Berlin Alexanderplatz”) to the Center of West Berlin (“Bahnhof Zoo”, “Ku´damm” shopping area). Bus M200 takes you south of the “Tiergarten” to West Berlin´s Bahnhof Zoo where you may want to visit the “Gedachtniskirche” (Memorial Church) as well as the KaDeWe, continental Europe´s largest compartment store, which is located close to the Ku´damm. Bus M100 takes you back through the Tiergarten and partly north of it, passing the “Siegessaule” (Victory Column), Bellevue Palace (built in 1786 for the younger brother of Friedrich II, Ferdinand of Prussia, today: seat of the Germany´s President), the Reichstag (German Parliament), the Brandenburg Gate and the Museum Island back to Berlin Alexanderplatz.

Day 2 Berlin

On your second day in Berlin along your Luther Rail tour, your Berlin Welcome Card will still be valid. However, your tour package also includes walking suggestions which cover many of the sights around Brandenburg Gate which can best be visited by foot. From the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag (German Parliament) the walking tour passes by the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, to Berlin´s new city center, the “Potsdamer Platz”, to “Checkpoint Charlie”, to East Berlin´s Culture- and Shopping Street “Friedrichstrasse” (site of the “golden twenties”), to the “Gendarmenmarkt”, where the German and French cathedrals are located, via the promenade street “Unter den Linden” to the Museum Island.

The remains of the wall can be visited at Berlin´s East Side Gallery where parts of the wall have been turned into a piece of art. If you are interested in Third Reich history a “must visit” is the documentation center “Topography of Terror“. It is located at the site from where the Nazis planned and managed most of their crimes. For those of you interested to visit a Concentration Camp Memorial site: a half day trip to the Memorial and Museum Sachsenhausen in Oranienburg can be arranged (see Day 7 of our History Rail Tour “Fascination and Terror –Rise and Fall of the Third Reich”).

It just takes about 40 minutes on the High-Speed “ICE” train from Berlin to Lutherstadt Wittenberg. Check into your hotel which is located in the City Center.

A “must see” in Wittenberg is, of course, the Schlosskirche (Castle Church) where texts of the 95 Theses are cast in bronze on the door. Next you can tour the Lutherhalle (Luther House) Museum. In 1508, when Martin Luther came to Wittenberg, he lived here with other Augustinian monks. Later, Luther and his wife, Katharina von Bora, raised six children here and hosted many guests. You may also want to visit the Stadtkirche St. Marien (St. Mary’s church) where Luther preached and where his children were baptized.

By High-Speed train, you will get to Erfurt. See where Martin Luther studied, bow heads where he prayed and walk the same medieval streets. At almost every turn, there’s a reminder of the man who launched the Reformation. Erfurt was the young Luther’s spiritual home. In 1505 he graduated from the University with a Masters in philosophy. It is said that a violent storm close to Erfurt that same year prompted him to become a monk at the Augustinerkloster (Augustinian Monastery) in gratitude for his survival. Martin Luther stayed there until 1511 and was ordained as a priest in St. Mary’s Cathedral. Even after he had left the city, he often returned to preach to enthusiastic crowds, in the university church (St. Michael’s) for example. It has been more than 500 years since Luther was a student at the collegium maius, the old Erfurt University’s main building, which is now being restored.

The Augustinian Monastery, dating back to 1277, houses an exhibition that shows the life and work of its most renowned resident. You can visit Luther’s cell in addition to its impressive library with many rare books. Another important structure in Erfurt is the Barfusserkirche, or the Black-friars’ “Church of the Barefooted”. Most of the church was destroyed in 1944, but even in its present condition, the church is one of the greatest examples of German ecclesiastical architecture of the 14th and 15th centuries. Luther also preached here in 1529 before the Franciscan monastery was discontinued. Other significant sites for those interested in the Reformation and its leader are the Luther monument (next to the Merchants’ Church on the Anger road) and the “Haus Zum Schwarzen Horn” at Michaelisstrasse 48. This building housed Mathes Maler’s printing workshop, where many of Luther’s pamphlets were printed. Do not miss to try a Thuringer Rostbratwurst, a Thuringian sausage. You will find several grills in the Old Town where these delicious sausages are being served!

Today you will make a day trip to nearby Eisenach, then take the bus up to Wartburg Castle. In 1521, while fleeing from the wrath of the Pope, Luther took refuge in here after a fake kidnapping staged by his friend and protector, Frederick the Wise. Visit the Castle which for many is the most impressing Castle in Germany and stand in the very room where Luther translated Jerome’s Vulgate into the German New Testament. There are guided tours in English at the Wartburg. When you are finished, you can take the bus back into Eisenach and visit the sights in the city center like the Luther House Museum with its fascinating displays about the time & culture of Luther and St George’s Church (Georgenkirche) connected with both Martin Luther and Johann Sebastian Bach. Speaking about Bach: the Bach House Museum is a must-see! In the evening you will take the train back to Erfurt where your hotel is located.

High-Speed “ICE” rail will take you from Erfurt Central Station to Nuremberg Central Station. Travel time is only about three hours. Your hotel is located in walking distance from Nuremberg Central Station (which is located just outside the Old City Wall surrounding Nuremberg Old Town and the Imperial Castle). Nuremberg’s history reaches back to the year 1050, its name “nourenberc” translates into “rocky hill”. Nuremberg’s famous landmark, the “Kaiserburg” (Imperial Castle), towers above the Old town, which is protected by the five kilometers long city wall, many towers and gates can still be visited. The medieval Castle is one of the most important imperial palaces dating from the middle ages from the 11th century (admission not included).

In the Third Reich Adolf Hitlers´Nazi Party had chosen Nuremberg for their Nazi Rallies and if you are interested in that part of history you may want to visit the Documenation Center Nazi Rally Grounds which are located just south of the Old Town.

Nuremberg in Reformation time was considered the “media center” with more than 20 printing houses. In 1532 the religious Peace of Nuremberg was signed here, which ended the proscription of Protestants in the Empire. When exploring the beauty of Nuremberg’s medieval Old Town you may want to start right at the Koenigstor (“Kingsgate”) which is the gate right across from Nuremberg Central Station. From where the timber-framed buildings, the Gothic Church of St. Lawrence and the Church of St. Sebaldus can be easily reached by foot. The two large churches of St. Lawrence and St. Sebaldus in Nuremberg were among the first Protestant churches in Germany. Right next to the Koenigstor is the Handwerkerhof (craft center), here you will feel like you are back in the medieval times, there are craft workshops like they used to have a long time ago as well as a gingerbread bakery. Make sure to enjoy a Nuremberg Bratwurst along with a beer or a glass of “Frankenwein” (franconian wine).

The High-Speed train (ICE) will take you from Nuremberg to Augsburg. Augsburg is the city most famous for the Augsburg Confession, the Religious Peace Treaty and the celebration thereof. It was the Augsburg Imperial Diet at which Luther refused to revoke his 95 theses – a major turning points in history. The theological-historical museum “Lutherstiege” of St. Anna’s Church displays valuable early Luther writings, documents books, and paintings.

But there is more to see in Augsburg: founded in the year 15 B.C. by the Roman Emperor Augustus, the city became a “medieval metropolis” due to its ideal location at the crossing of the most important continental merchandise routes. The families of the “Fugger” and the “Welser” elevated Augsburg to one of Europe’s most important commercial towns. Augsburg’s Town Hall is the most important Renaissance structure north of the Alps, together with the Perlach Tower it is the town’s landmark. Visit the “Fuggerei“, also known as “The Town within a Town”, founded in 1516 by Jakob Fugger, it was the first settlement for hardworking but impoverished Catholic citizens. The city’s Cathedral has records reaching back to the year 823 AD, the oldest section probably being the crypt beneath the west choir. Here one can marvel at Romanesque and Gothic frescoes and four-panel paintings by Holbein the Elder. There are very few German cities which combine bygone prosperity and contemporary life the way Augsburg does.

For one day you will leave Martin Luther’s footsteps behind when you visit Munich, which is too close to Augsburg for you to drive by. In the morning take the train to the capital of Bavaria. By Regional rail this only takes about 45 minutes, and the price of your tour already includes the public transportation system, also valid within Munich. Along with your tour package, you will also receive walking suggestions for a self-guided walking tour through Munich City Center. Along this walking tour you will visit the Marienplatz with the New Town Hall (with the “Glockenspiel”), the Konigsplatz (King´s Square), cultural center in the 19th century and later, during the “Third Reich”, site of Nazi Party mass rallies and location of the Nazi Party headquarters in Germany, the English Garden as well as the the State Opera House. You will be able to visit famous churches like Munich Frauenkirche, “Dom zu Unserer Lieben Frau (Cathedral of Our Dear Lady), with a height of 325 ft. a Munich landmark, St. Peters Church, built in the 14th century and the Asam Church, which was built as a private chapel and integrated into an apartment building. The tour will pass by the most famous Munich shopping streets (Kaufinger street and Neuhauser street) as well as by the “Viktualienmarkt”, a traditional farmers market (open every day except on Sundays). The tour will take you by the famous “Alois Dallmayr” luxury delicatessen and coffee store as well as to the Hofbrauhaus of course, probably the world’s most popular beer hall. This may be a great place to enjoy a hearty dinner and a fresh Mass of beer (one mug holds 33.8 US fl oz)! At your convenience take the train back to Augsburg where your hotel is located.

With a three-hour train ride by speed rail, from Munich to Heidelberg Central Station, you will continue your Luther Rail tour. Since the station is a little bit outside of the Old Town, where your hotel is located, your tour already includes a taxi transfer from Heidelberg Central Station to your hotel. Heidelberg, the Royal Residence of the German Princes was for many centuries in the focus of German history. Martin Luther visited Heidelberg in 1518. As he did in Wittenberg, he let his 95 Theses be known in Heidelberg as well. Influenced by the Pope in Rome, he was invited to a disputation (the so-called Heidelberg Disputation) by the Augustinian order. He used this occasion to deliver his theological cruces instead, a reformed version of Christian theology. The “Luthertafel”, a plaque on the university grounds, can be seen where once the Augustinian Monastery once was located.

Heidelberg is a beautiful historic town located along the banks of the Neckar River and the most significant sight is certainly the ruin of Heidelberg Castle, which is towering above the city. Since your hotel is located right inside of the Old Town of Heidelberg it is easy to explore historic Heidelberg by foot. Your tour package will include walking tour suggestions for the Old Town. Along the walking tour you will see the Old Bridge from where you have a nice view of the Old Town and the Castle ruins above. You will also pass by the “Marktplatz” (market place) which is the main square of Heidelberg, the “Peterskirche” (St. Peter´s Church) and the historic University of Heidelberg. Heidelberg´s University was founded 1386 and it is the oldest University in Germany and with more than 30.000 students it is still one of the most important universities in Germany today. If you want to enjoy a view over Heidelberg and the Neckar River you may want to walk up to the grounds of the castle ruins or – for a small fee, take the historic funicular up and down Heidelberg Castle.

At your convenience, take the taxi transfer (voucher included) to Heidelberg Station and the Speed-train to Frankfurt Intl. Airport (FRA) where your Luther Vacation Package ends.