Christmas Markets of Germany, Switzerland & Austria

Board your overnight flight to Frankfurt today.

Welcome to Germany! Transfer to the Heidelberg region and settle in to your hotel. Then, meet your Tour Director and fellow travelers at tonight’s welcome dinner.

Immerse yourself in the romantic cityscapes and Baroque architecture of Heidelberg on a guided tour.

• Wander through Heidelberg’s elegant Market Square in the city’s Old Town
• Explore the grounds of Heidelberg University, the oldest university in Germany
• Take a funicular ride to the city’s rose-colored hilltop castle for panoramic views of the Old Bridge and the Rhine River below
• Spend free time exploring the city's festive Christmas markets

On the way to Switzerland, journey to thundering Rhine Falls and through the Black Forest, the setting for many of the Grimm Brothers’ famous fairytales.

This evening, sit down for an included dinner.

Get an up-close look at the lakeside city of Lucerne, Switzerland’s idyllic Alpine town, on a guided sightseeing tour.

• View the Lion Monument, a tribute to the Swiss Guards who sacrificed their lives in Paris during the French Revolution
• Pass hand-painted facades that line the cobbled streets of the Old Town
• Cross the medieval Kapellbrücke, a covered wooden footbridge spanning the Reuss River, and view the Water Tower
• See the Jesuit Church, the first large Baroque building of its kind to be built north of the Alps in Switzerland

Enjoy a free afternoon in the Swiss Alps or add an excursion.

Cross into Liechtenstein, a tiny Alpine principality dating back to the Holy Roman Empire.

• Visit the capital of Vaduz
• Pass the royal family’s hilltop castle, still in use as a royal residence

Continue on to Innsbruck, site of two winter Olympic Games, where you’ll enjoy a guided walking tour.

• See the famed Golden Roof and the City Tower in Innsbruck’s historic Old Town
• Pass the Hofburg, a former Hapsburg Imperial Palace, and walk into its cobblestoned courtyard
• Enter the Baroque Cathedral of St. James
• Enjoy one of the season’s most enduring traditions as you sip mulled wine, browse winter ornaments, and wander among wooden stalls at some of Alpine Europe’s most beautiful Christmas markets

Then, travel to the Austrian Alps and sit down for an included dinner.

On your way to Munich, stop to visit Neuschwanstein Castle and listen to an audio guide as you tour the fairy-tale retreat of “Mad” King Ludwig II.

• Walk or take a ride in a shuttle bus up the hill
• Take time to explore its stalactite grotto, artifacts, and murals

Please note: The pathway up to the castle entrance is a steep hill and winter months are prone to inclement weather.

Then, continue on to Munich and sit down for an included dinner.

Get to know the Bavarian capital on a guided tour.

• Travel past the Englischer Garten and fashionable Schwabing district
• Enter the Nymphenburg Palace, the Baroque home to past Bavarian royalty
• Walk from Odeonsplatz through the Hofgarten to view the Residenz, once home to the Wittelsbach dukes of Bavaria
• Explore Marienplatz, Munich’s medieval heart, and see the famed GlockenspielGet introduced to the city’s Christmas markets, the most festive seasonal tradition
• Explore the stalls in search of treasures to take home

Head to Salzburg, Austria—a city famed for its churches and musical history—where you'll spend the afternoon browsing the stalls of the Christkindlmarkt, or Christmas market. Cap off the festive occasion with a tasting of traditional mulled wine and cookies.

Sit down for an included dinner this evening.

Join a local guide for a walking tour of Salzburg this morning.

• View the University of Salzburg and the churchyard of St. Peter
• See the Kapitelplatz, Residenzplatz, and Alter Markt, in the city’s Old Town
• Enter the 17th-century Salzburg Cathedral, built in the Baroque style
• Pass through scenery from the beloved film The Sound of Music
• Take the funicular to the hilltop Hohensalzburg Fortress, one of Europe’s largest medieval castles

Enjoy free time in Salzburg or add an excursion.

Travel east through the Danube basin en route to Vienna.

• Stop in Melk for a guided tour of the town’s Baroque abbey, which is situated on rock overlooking the Danube River
• Explore its Baroque pavilion, library, and chapel
• Continue on to Vienna and make a photo stop at Schönbrunn Palace, the Rococo Hapsburg home
• Spend free time exploring the city’s Christmas market at Hundertwasserhause

Sit down for an included dinner this evening.

Get transported back to the Age of Empires on a guided tour of Vienna.

• Step inside Belvedere Palace, home to the world's largest collection of paintings by artist Gustav Klimt, and admire the palace's impressive gardens
• Travel down the Ringstrasse, passing the Parliament building, Vienna State Opera, and Kunsthistorisches Museum
• See the grand Hofburg Palace, the Hapsburg’s preferred winter residence

Enjoy a free evening in Vienna or add an excursion.

Enjoy a free day in Vienna or add an excursion.

This evening, enjoy a farewell drink as you celebrate your trip with your fellow group members.

Transfer to the airport for your flight home or continue on to Budapest, Hungary.