In seven days, discover impressive castles, magnificent palaces, and fascinating landscapes in Germany, Alsace, and Switzerland. From the romantic Middle Rhine Valley to Eltz Castle, Hohkönigsburg, and the Habsburgs, this journey combines living history, exciting legends, and sweeping views.
Arrival by plane in Frankfurt am Main (FRA).
Transfer to the hotel in Koblenz.
Dinner at the hotel is included.
Hotel: Koblenz
Across from Koblenz’s Old Town lies Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, which you can reach via a scenic cable car ride across the Rhine. It has been expanded and fortified since the 16th century. It was once one of the most important military fortresses on the Rhine and remained in use, at least in part, until World War II.
Lunch at your own expense.
Continue by tour bus to Eltz Castle on the Moselle, about 45 minutes from Koblenz. Perched high above the Moselle, Eltz Castle was originally built in the 12th century and has been owned by the same family for 800 years.
Dinner at the hotel is included.
Hotel: Koblenz
In the morning, take a boat tour from Koblenz to Rüdesheim on an excursion boat through the Middle Rhine Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with the highest concentration of castles in the world. The tour guide’s commentary will be in Spanish.
Lunch on board the ship.
Transfer from Rüdesheim to Mainz.
Afternoon at your leisure.
Hotel: Mainz
Tour of Hambach Castle:
Hambach Castle is a medieval fortress nestled in the hills of the Palatinate Forest, overlooking the Rhine Valley. It was later transformed into a hybrid of a fortress and a castle. It is considered a symbol of the German democracy movement, as the Hambach Festival—a German national-democratic celebration—took place here in 1832.
Stop for lunch along the way.
Transfer from Hambach Castle to Rastatt.
Tour of Rastatt Palace:
Rastatt Palace is a Baroque palace. The palace and gardens were built between 1700 and 1707 by the Italian architect Domenico Egidio Rossi for Margrave Ludwig Wilhelm of Baden-Baden. Visitors can tour the richly decorated rooms of the palace as well as the gardens.
Hotel: Rastatt
Tour of Hohkönigsburg Castle:
The castle is located in the Vosges Mountains, just west of Sélestat, on a strategically situated rocky outcrop overlooking the Upper Rhine Plain. From the Middle Ages through the Thirty Years’ War, it was used by various rulers and then abandoned. From 1900 to 1908, it was rebuilt at the behest of German Emperor Wilhelm II.
Stop along the Wine Route for lunch at your own expense.
Tour of the Hohlandsberg Castle Ruins:
Construction of the castle dates back to 1279. When Alsace became part of France at the end of the Thirty Years’ War, French troops blew up the castle in 1637 to prevent it from falling into the hands of an Austrian army. Since 1840, it has been classified as a historic monument (Monument historique) by the French Ministry of Culture.
Transfer from Hohlandsberg to Freiburg.
Hotel: Freiburg
Tour of Habsburg Castle:
Habsburg Castle is a medieval Swiss fortress in the canton of Aargau that was built in the 11th century. It is the ancestral seat of the House of Habsburg, which became one of Europe’s leading imperial and royal dynasties.
Lunch at the castle restaurant is included.
Tour of Rötteln Castle in Lörrach:
Rötteln Castle is located in the far southwest of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The fortress was one of the most imposing in the southwest and is now the third-largest castle ruin in Baden.
Transfer from Lörrach to Freiburg.
Hotel: Freiburg
After breakfast, you will be transferred from Freiburg to Zurich International Airport (ZRH).
Afterward, everyone will make their own way home.
Prices: Upon request