This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
BERLIN, DRESDEN, MEI S SEN & COLDITZ


• Return flights


• Four nights' four-star superior accommodation with breakfast


• Guided tour of Berlin, probably the 20th century’s most tumultuous city, now home to Norman Foster’s Reichstag, ‘Check Point Charlie’, the DDR (former East Germany) Museum, some of the world’s finest archaeological and fine art museums plus an eclectic ambience


• Walking tour of Dresden, ‘Florence of the Elbe’, home to one of the world’s greatest art collections, the astonishingly decorated Frauenkirche, majestic Semper Opera House, – a justifiable capital for the Kings of Saxony immortalised so often by Canaletto


• Visit and tour of Europe’s oldest porcelain studio at Meissen


• Visit to Colditz Castle of Second World War prisoner of war fame


• Escorted by our experienced Tour Manager


Both having endured violent interludes to a glittering cultural history, now returned to their former glory, continuing an incredibly thought-provoking journey


DAY 1 - ARRIVAL IN BERLIN Fly to Berlin, staying two nights at either the four-star superior Hotel Maritim Berlin, superbly located near the famous Potsdamer Platz and convenient for the sights or the four-star superior Maritim Pro Arte, near Unter den Linden.


DAY 2 - BERLIN Dating from the 14th century, until recently Berlin was at the crossroads of both the Eastern Bloc and the Western Democracies with their respective political systems. This morning we have a guided tour seeing amongst the many sites, the iconic Checkpoint Charlie; the Brandenburg Gate; the Reichstag; Unter den Linden, the city’s most famous boulevard and of course what now remains of the ‘Wall’. The afternoon is free to explore.


DAY 3 - COLDITZ & MEISSEN Today we drive through gentle, rolling woodland and fields into Saxony, crossing the mighty River Elbe, en


route to the seemingly impregnable Colditz, the prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. The massive walled castle was so secure it was selected to confine serial escapees, but in fact “boasted” one of the war’s highest rates of successful ‘home runs’. Our tour and the exhibition offer a fascinating insight into the lives of both inmates and guards. We then visit nearby Meissen, famous for its exquisite porcelain, in 1708 the first to be made outside China. Often referred to as Dresden porcelain, this is the only factory in Europe in which all the processes are completed by hand. We see the complete cycle from clay to finished article, after which there is a stunning museum displaying pieces from throughout the company’s existence. We soon arrive in Dresden for two nights at either the four-star superior Hotel Steigenberger or Maritim Hotel.


DAY 4 - DRESDEN Dresden is stunningly beautiful, sitting majestically astride the stately River Elbe, the majority of its buildings – though destroyed by the allied bombings of 1945 – have undergone probably the world’s most remarkable ever restoration project, returning Dresden to its stunning former glory. We have a walking tour around this array of revitalised architectural gems. We see the grandiose Frauenkirche, next the renaissance Stallhof with its amazing Fuerstenzug – a 100m long Meissen tile mural, the Residenzschloss, the Semper Opera, and the incredible Zwinger Palace, amazingly home to the world’s twelfth largest art collection with works by Rubens, Canaletto, Van Dyke, Rembrandt, El Greco and many others, plus one of the world’s finest porcelain collections, a superb display of modern art and a collection of medieval armour and weapons. This afternoon you are free to explore as you wish.


DAYS


FROM ONLY £539


5


DAY 5 - RETURN FLIGHT A coach will return you to Berlin airport at the appropriate time for your return flight.


48


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148