Come along!

The Tour is now sold out – We will keep you posted should we do another one

Hello friends of the History of the Germans. Great news, the tour is on!

We have set up a website where you can sign up. I have put a link in the show notes, as well as on my website History of the Germans in the Travel, maps and Books section.  

Sign up here: History of the Germans Podcast Tour – BikePlanet

We will be travelling on the passenger ship Iris, a converted classic Rhine barge. Travelling by boat is – unsurprisingly – one of my favourite ways to see the world. We do not have to get in and out of hotels, we have breakfast and dinner in spectacular scenery and can see the sights as most travellers did before the invention of the motorcar. Note that Iris has capacity for only 25 passengers in double cabins, so speed is of the essence…. Should there be more demand than we can fulfil, we will give priority to patrons.

So what are we going to do? Subject to the usual caveats, we are planning to meet in Aschaffenburg near Frankfurt and then travel along the Main and Rhine rivers via Frankfurt, Mainz, Eltville, Braubach, Koblenz, Andernach, Remagen to Cologne with a trip up to Aachen.  The tour will end in Düsseldorf.

En route we will pass some of the most famous of German castles that made the Rhine Valley the dreamscape of Romantic poets. Among them are Rheinfels, the great defensive stronghold; Marksburg, the only Rhine castle never to have been destroyed; and Stolzenfels. Koblenz, with its vast fortifications, and the Remagen Bridge stand as reminders of the dramatic events of the 19th and 20th centuries.

As we reach the Rhineland, we encounter Schloss Brühl, a masterpiece of Baroque and Rococo architecture, before spending time in one of Germany’s most storied—and for a long period its largest—cities: Cologne, with its magnificent cathedral and remarkable Romanesque churches. A day trip to Aachen, home to Charlemagne’s chapel and its extraordinary cathedral treasury, forms one of the highlights of the journey.

Much like the podcast, this tour explores not only politics and history but also art, culture, and, of course, wine and beer. Visits to the Städel Museum in Frankfurt, the Landesmuseum Rheinland-Pfalz in Mainz, and the Römisch-Germanisches Museum in Cologne provide additional perspectives, complemented by wine tastings in Eltville and visits to traditional beer gardens.

This is an action-packed programme, though you are always free to remain on board, take a leisurely walk, or enjoy a drink ashore. You may also choose to explore independently, perhaps by bicycle, as the journey unfolds.

If that is something that you may find exciting, go to History of the Germans Podcast Tour – BikePlanet where you find more detail on the trip, dates, pricing, terms and conditions etc.

I hope to see you on the boat.