Hidden Highlights

Willkommen in Deutschland! Arrive at Munich Airport and meet your Encore Tour Manager. Check into your hotel and enjoy the rest of the day to relax, unpack and explore the beautiful city of Munich. Dinner at a local restaurant is provided each evening of your tour.

The word Gemutlichkleit means coziness, hospitality, warmth, and welcome. Dive right into this Bavarian way of thinking on a guided city sightseeing tour of Munich. Discover the Rococo style Nymphenburg Palace, the famous Glockenspiel in Marienplatz, and stroll through the Viktualienmarkt. food-and-flower market. This afternoon, rehearse for tonight’s debut concert performance!

Today’s full day excursion will take you through the Bavarian Alps! First, visit Neuschwanstein Castle, one of King Ludwig’s lavish palaces built upon an imposing facade. Continue through the mountains to Oberammergau. This small Bavarian gem is most famous for its Passion Play, performed by the villagers every ten years for the past four centuries. Return to Munich this evening for your overnight.

Visit the famous Wartburg Castle with Martin Luther’s Room, where he translated the New Testament into the German language, and the original Sängersaal of Wagner’s Opera Tannhäuser. In the early afternoon visit Johann Sebastian Bach’s Birthplace in Eisenach, then continue to Leipzig, home to many famous musicians such as J.S. Bach, Mendelssohn, and Wagner.

This morning enjoy a guided city tour of Leipzig with a local licensed English speaking guide. You will see St. Nikolai Church and St. Thomas Church, where Johann Sebastian Bach served for 27 years as Choirmaster of the St. Thomas Choir School! In St. Thomas Church, you will also find Bach’s final resting place. You will then visit the Bach Museum next to St. Thomas’s Church. This afternoon, prepare for your performance opportunity in Leipzig.

Visit Halle, the city where George Friedrich Händel was born! Enjoy a tour of Halle with a local licensed English guide that includes the Händel’s birthplace, where you will experience a musically accompanied guided tour. You will see also the Marktkirche, where Händel was taught playing the Organ by his teacher Friedrich Zachow, and the Cathedral, where Händel was organist. Continue to Berlin and check into your next hotel.

This morning’s sightseeing tour with an expert local guide shows you some of Berlin’s most important historical touchstones, including a portion of the Berlin Wall, the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust Memorial, Potsdamer Platz and the infamous Checkpoint Charlie. Then engage with modern German culture as you try something completely different: a street-art workshop where you’ll learn about this edgy modern-art movement! This afternoon, rehearse for your final concert performance!

Visit the city of Dresden this morning, where a guided sightseeing tour includes the Frauenkirche (Church of our Lady), which was reduced to rubble during World War II then rebuilt via donations from people all across Germany. Return to Berlin this afternoon where you will have time to explore this hip city at your own pace before enjoying a special, farewell dinner together.

Return to the U.S.