Immerse yourself in two enchanting classics of the holiday season: German Christmas markets and steam trains. Embark on a weeklong yuletide journey that will include rides behind five different steam locomotives and time to shop and enjoy at eight Christmas markets, while also experiencing some of the world’s newest rail lines and most modern passenger trains. This odyssey will create magical memories to last a lifetime.

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Friday, November 30 (Day 1)

Arrive in Munich (München), Germany. Guided tour of the city hosted by MVG on board vintage Class M.45 trams built in the 1950s and decorated for the season (see video). First group dinner in the Ratskeller (included in trip price), located directly under the Glockenspiel of the Neues Rathaus (New City Hall). Afterwards, we will have time to explore and enjoy the Christmas Market at Marienplatz. First night in Munich.

 

Saturday, December 1 (Day 2)
Breakfast included at hotel. We take our first steam train ride behind Class 01 no. 066 between München Ost and Salzburg, Austria, covering the scenic Alpine Munich-Rosenheim and Rosenheim-Salzburg railways. During the layover in Salzburg, you will be free to explore Mozart’s hometown, and/or to tour the Hohensalzburg Fortress and take in the Christmas Market near the Dom (Salzburg Cathedral). Lunch will be on your own; we recommend that you visit St. Peter’s Keller, which has hosted multiple US Presidents in its history. Return to Munich on the steam train. Dinner on your own. Second night in Munich.

 

Sunday, December 2 (Day 3)
Breakfast included at hotel. Today we will take a modern high-speed InterCity Express (ICE) train from Munich to Stuttgart, Germany, where we transfer to a local commuter train over the Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt-Aalen Railway so we can take our second steam train ride. Today we will travel behind a Class 52 Decapod on a rural branch line in the state of Baden Würtemburg, the Wieslauf Valley Railway. After our short three-hour steam train ride, we will stop for lunch (on your own) in Stuttgart and continue on by Deutsche Bahn trains to Heidelberg, where we will spend one night. In Heidelberg, we will take a guided walking tour from our hotel near the train station around the Old Town to the Christmas Market. Dinner on your own.

 

Monday, December 3 (Day 4)
Breakfast included at hotel. Today we will take a EuroCity train from Heidelberg to Kassel via Frankfurt, where we will pause for lunch in the old town (included) and for a tour of the castle and a short tour of the Christmas Market. Afterwards, we will take a regional train to Wernigerode in the Harz Mountains. Stay two relaxing nights in Wernigerode. Dinner on your own.

 

Tuesday, December 4 (Day 5)
Awaken in picturesque Wernigerode, have included breakfast at the hotel, and walk over to the train station for another steam journey, this time on the narrow-gauge Harzer Schmallspurbahn’s Brockenbahn. We will ride behind either a narrow-gauge Decapod or or a Mallet on our round-trip journey to the former Soviet listening station at the summit of the Brocken. The steam train will take us back down to Wernigerode for a late lunch (on your own), then we will take a standard-gauge commuter train to explore the nearby city of Quedlinburg for the evening (with dinner on your own) before returning to Wernigerode for our second night.

 

Wednesday, December 5 (Day 6)
After a final hotel breakfast in Wernigerode, we will take a train along the north side of the Harz Mountains to Halle, where we transfer to an ICE high-speed train on one of the newest railroads in the world, to Erfurt. In Erfurt, we will take a walking tour of this beautiful city. You will be free to check out the Christmas Market on our relaxing day in this beautiful city. Lunch and dinner on your own. Spend one night in Erfurt.

 

Thursday, December 6 (Day 7)
Breakfast included at hotel. Today we are taking the Mikado 41 1114-9 from Erfurt’s main station to Gera along the main line. Upon arrival in Gera, where lunch is on your own, we will transfer to a commuter train for the beautiful city of Leipzig, which boasts the largest train station by area in the world. Upon arrival, we will take a walking tour of the Peaceful Revolution of 1989 sites that helped bring down the Soviet dictatorship. Afterwards, we will check out the Christmas Market in the center of the old city. Dinner on your own. One night at in Leipzig.

 

Friday, December 7 (Day 8)
Breakfast included at hotel. Today we travel on a regional train to Berlin. The rest of the day will be on your own to experience some of the many historical, cultural, architectural and transit delights that Berlin has to offer. Check into a Berlin hotel for two nights.

 

Saturday, December 8 (Day 9)
Breakfast included at hotel. Today we will take a beautiful four-hour each-way ride from Berlin to Görlitz behind Class 52 No. 8177-9, a mighty 2-10-0 Decapod. We depart Berlin Schöeneweide station at 7:30 AM, arriving in Görlitz at 11:30 AM. We will have five hours to explore and enjoy Görlitz before departing at 4:30 PM, returning to Berlin at 8:30 PM. Second night in Berlin.

 

Sunday, December 9 (Day 10)
Breakfast included at hotel. Today we will experience a unique and off-the-beaten-path narrow-gauge steam operation, the Berlin Park Railway. We will take a half-hour round-trip departing from Volkspark Wuhlheide at 11:00 AM. The park is easily accessible by tram or S-Bahn (overground urban/regional rail). After this trip, you will have the rest of the day free to take in a museum, historic site, performance, stroll through a neighborhood, or one of many fun activities in Berlin. Those who prefer to fly home or otherwise travel onward from Berlin will leave us here. We will reconvene at Berlin Hauptbahnhof (Central Station) at 7:00 PM and board an ICE train to Hannover, where we will make a half-hour connection to an overnight sleeping car train (Nightjet 40491), arriving back in Munich at 7:30 AM.

Passengers will be accommodated on the Nightjet the same way as at the hotels: if you’re sharing a hotel room with another tour guest, you will share a double bedroom on the Nightjet with the same guest. If you have a hotel room to yourself, you will have a room to yourself on the Nightjet. Please only carry a small overnight bag with you on the train -- you can leave your larger luggage on the motorcoaches, which will follow us to Munich.

 

Monday, December 10:
Arrive at München Hauptbahnhof (Munich Central Station) at 7:30 AM. This is where our tour ends. Our luggage vans will be parked near the station so you can retrieve your luggage upon arrival. Guests may make arrangements to fly home from Munich that day (we suggest no earlier than a 12:00 noon departure if flying to North America) or travel onward to other destinations.

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Please note that this itinerary is subject to change without notice