Oberammergau 2010
Pre-arranged Itineraries

Depart the United States aboard your overnight trans--Atlantic flight to Europe.  The night will pass quickly, and you will soon be landing in Frankfurt.

DAY 2
ARRIVE MUNICH

Welcome to Munich!  After passing through necessary customs formalities, you will be met by your Tour Director.  The oldest name for this town is Munchen, meaning home of the monks.  Munich was, in fact, founded as a Benedictine monastery, but quickly developed into a center of trade in the 12th century.  Today Munich is important in industry, commerce, finance and the arts. Munich froths with good German beer and Bavarian friendliness.  To capture that mood you'll start the day with a morning sightseeing tour -- a drive to Koenigsplatz, a view of the University, Odeons Square, and the Marienplatz with its neo--Gothic City Hall, boasting the famed glockenspiel.  Dinner and overnight at your hotel.
 
DAY 3
MUNICH – OBERAMMERGAU

Breakfast at your hotel.  Today you will continue on to Oberammergau.  It is in the Bavarian Alps, and is known throughout the world for the Passion Play presented here every 10 years.  The advent of Hitler interrupted the performances, but they were resumed in 1950. The natives of the town are skilled wood carvers, and a school is maintained here for instruction in the art.  Upon arrival, time is free for you to take a leisurely stroll about the town. Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

DAY 4
OBERAMMERGAU

Breakfast at your hotel.  Today you will have the exciting opportunity to see the 41st production of the Passion Play.

For the 41st time since 1634, Oberammergau is preparing to keep the solemn promise of their forefathers to reincarnate the life and bitter suffering of Our Lord.  A village in Ammertal is once again being dominated by its great play:  The Passion.  The pious and faithful loyalty to its tradition gives the village the strength to demonstrate once again that the play still has the same validity as 356 years ago and that it has become a unique event in Germany, not only of cultural significance.

In the year 1633 when the Black Plague stopped short of the little mountain village, the inhabitants took an oath that they would stage a performance of the Passion of Christ every ten years.  And the story goes that from that moment on, the village was spared from the black death.

Already in 1634 the inhabitants of Ammergau fulfilled their oath.  They kept their promise and performed the Passion Play every ten years right up to the present.  The Play depicts the story of Christ's Passion beginning with entry into Jerusalem and ending with the resurrection and transfiguration.

The performance will last an entire day.  It begins at 2:30 in the afternoon and will end at 10:30PM.  The evening dinner break lasts three hours from 5:00PM until 8:00PM.

The text for the Passion Play was written between 1850 and 1860 by the parish priest Alois Daisenberger from Oberammergau.  The Daisenberger version is the fourth largest text period in the 356 year history of the play.

The music for the Passion Play was written in 1815 by the Oberammergau school teacher Rochus Dedler.  Employing a large choir and orchestra, his compositions still compass the entire play today.

DAY 5
OBERAMMERGAU – INNSBRUCK - SALZBURG

Breakfast at your hotel.  Leaving Oberammergau behind today, you travel first to Innsbruck for an orientation tour of the city, then continue to Salzburg. An indefinable charm makes Salzburg one of the most beautiful cities of Europe.  A soft light bathes the shapes of its towers and churches in a wonderful setting.  It has the prestige of the Festival which draws lovers of classical music and above all, admirers of Mozart each year.  Its picturesque streets, with their wrought iron signs, its buildings inspired by bishops with a passion for construction, leave memories which linger for years. Dinner and overnight in Salzburg.

DAY 6
SALZBURG

Breakfast at your hotel.  Above the salt mines of Salzburg stand some of Austria's grandest treasures -- this is a city of art, music, folklore and culture.  You'll drive to Mozart's birthplace, then past the Cathedral and the Glockenspiel and finally visit the baroque Castle of Hellbrunn, once the country center for the Prince--Bishops of Salzburg.  The lovely grounds, noted for a stone theater and clever fountains, also contain a zoo.

This afternoon you will have a tour which revitalizes the famous movie Sound of Music showing the story of the Von Trapp family who immigrated to the United States in 1938.  It is a combined city and lake district tour and includes the Frohnburg Castle, the Leopoldskron Castle, Schloss Fuschl on lovely Fuschl Lake, noted for its castle, the former hunting lodge of the Bishops of Salzburg, and now a hotel.  And finally, you will visit St. Gilgen, situated on the Wolfgangsee, the best known of the Salzkammergut lakes. Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

DAY 7
SALZBURG – PRAGUE

Following breakfast you will board your motorcoach for the drive to Prague.  Former capital of the Holy Roman Empire, Prague encompasses 10 centuries of history in a single sprawling city divided by the Vltava River.  Just as 13 bridges join its separate parts, the city is a glittering composite of every European architectural style.  A Slavonic trade center as early as A.D. 1000, portside Prague has appealed to merchants of every nationality, who have left Gothic, Romanesque and baroque evidences of their prosperity.  Dinner and overnight in Prague.

DAY 8
PRAGUE

After a leisurely breakfast this morning, you are off on a tour of Prague that will introduce you to its most interesting sights, including the Charles Bridge, Prague University, St. Nicholas Cathedral and Hradnacy Castle, Prague's most venerated landmark.  This great complex originated as a simple Slav fortress in the 9th century.  From it grew a 12th century Romanesque castle, which gave way to a Gothic palace in the 14th century.

In your free time this afternoon you may continue exploring into the history of this city or maybe do some shopping.  Best buys here are the intricate Bohemian cut glass and lead crystal, gems (especially garnets), porcelain, toys and handcrafts. Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

DAY 9
PRAGUE – BUDAPEST

Breakfast at your hotel, then depart for Budapest.  Until the second half of the 19th century, Budapest existed as three towns, Buda and Obuda, on the western bank of the Danube, and Pest on the eastern bank.  Although officially joined in 1873 as the Hungarian capital and literally linked by eight picturesque bridges, the cities have retained their own distinctive characteristics.  Nevertheless, the panorama of Budapest reveals a picture of the old harmoniously merged with the new into one of Europe's most beautiful cities.  Free time upon arrival with dinner and overnight in Prague.

DAY 10
BUDAPEST

Following breakfast you are off on a sightseeing tour of Budapest that will include the grand castle district, driving by Buda Castle, the Fishermen's Bastion and St. Mattias Church.  From Gellert Hill you enjoy a panoramic view of the town.  Last stop will be on Margaret Island, in the middle of the Danube between Buda and Pest.

Your afternoon is free in this lovely city of gypsy cafes and delicious goulash.  You may wish to explore the museums or take a boat ride on the Danube; shoppers' bargains include hand embroidered items. Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

DAY 11
BUDAPEST – VIENNA

Breakfast at your hotel.  Your journey today takes you to Vienna.  As capital of the small but prosperous and forward--looking Austrian Republic, its people and its ways have been changed but Vienna still retains its imperial monuments.  Vienna's charm consists of many elements.  This metropolis on the Danube has lovely green parks, fine shops, hotels and restaurants.  It also has some of the most incredibly beautiful Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo buildings in the world.  Upon arrival you are free to start enjoying this city of the waltz.  Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

DAY 12
VIENNA

Breakfast at your hotel.  On your sightseeing tour today you will stop to view St. Stephen's Cathedral, an impressive Gothic structure, consecrated in 1147, it has a 448 foot spire and contains many art treasures.  You will also see the Ringstrasse and Town Hall and the elaborate Summer Palace of Schonbrunn.  This 1441 room palace in the suburbs of Vienna has little changed since the time of Maria Theresa.  The furnishings of the 40 rooms on view, the fountains, parks, and formal terraces make up a picture of unsurpassed elegance.

The afternoon is yours, and in your exploring you will find that Vienna offers excellent museums, such as the Kunsthistorisches, and the Museum of Natural History.  For the shopper, be sure to visit Karntnerstrasse as well as Graben, Kohlmarkt, and Mariahilferstrasse, all leading shopping streets. For something out of the usual, try the three--hour tour by horse drawn buggy which takes you from your hotel through charming streets and parks, along the Danube, across the River, to the famous Prater Amusement Park, and then back along the Ringstrasse to your hotel.  Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

DAY 13
VIENNA – U.S.A.

Breakfast at your hotel.  It is time to bid farewell to Vienna and be transferred to the Vienna Airport for your return flight home.

DON'T WAIT ANOTHER 10 YEARS!