Bavaria: Grandeur in Southern Germany

October 7 and 17

Gathering in the Bavarian capital, we meet at Munich’s elegant Charles Hotel, adjacent to the Old Botanical Gardens that inspire the charming decor and dining inside. We begin with an orientation walking tour of Munich’s delightful Altstadt (Old Town), including the Marienplatz that has served as the heartbeat of the city since 1158. Our tour includes the late Gothic Frauenkirche, whose domed towers are unmistakable Munich landmarks, and the flamboyant Baroque interior of the 1730s Asamkirche. We marvel at the Neue Rathaus Glockenspiel, Germany’s largest mechanical clock, to catch the life-size figures performing one of the twice-daily dances. No tour of Munich is complete without a stop at the world’s most famous beer hall, the Hofbrauhaus. Returning to the hotel, we delight in the conviviality of welcome drinks, an introductory lecture, and dinner.

Included: L, R, D
Overnight: MUNICH

October 8 and 18

Munich’s grand Residenz served as the seat of government to Bavarian dukes, electors, and kings from 1508 to 1918. Our tour highlights the palace’s “Rich Rooms,” a sumptuous courtly Rococo suite by architect François Cuvilliés. We then tour the Cuvilliés Theatre, a Bavarian Rococo Gesamtkunstwerk with few equals in Europe, and admire the superb collection of jewels, gold, enamel, crystal, and ivory in the Schatzkammer (Treasury). After experiencing the lavish Renaissance Antiquarium, we travel west to one of Europe’s premiere royal palaces, the Schloss Nymphenburg. Following lunch, we walk through Nymphenburg Park to see the Amalienburg hunting lodge, the Badenburg bathing pavilion, and the Pagodenburg, a little gaming palace with exotic decor. We toast our day with drinks at a private apartment, followed by dinner at the refined Boettner’s Restaurant, a family-owned Bavarian tradition since 1901.

Included: B, L, R, D
Overnight: MUNICH

October 9 and 19 

We begin our day with a walk to the Alte Pinakothek, one of the oldest art galleries in the world, housing a significant collection of Old Master paintings. Next, the Bavarian National Museum, one of Europe’s finest, showcases masterpieces of fine art, craft, tapestries, and furniture, ranging from late antiquity to the turn-of-the-20th-century Jugendstil. Following lunch at the museum, we travel south into the Bavarian Alps to the Linderhof Palace, a “Royal Villa” built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria. The surrounding gardens are craft masterpieces of the 19th century. On the return trip to Munich, we stop at the beautifully preserved Rococo pilgrimage church, Wieskirche, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Participants may elect to dedicate this independent evening to a performance at Munich’s heralded opera house.

Included: B, L
Overnight: MUNICH

October 10 and 20

On our last day in Munich, a visit to the exquisite Schloss Schleissheim reflects the ambitions of Elector Max Emanuel, who reigned 1680 to 1726. His Baroque palace showcases magnificent furniture, stucco, frescoed ceilings, and carved paneling. The gardens and canals by Dominique Girard are of the very few extant Baroque landscapes. The complex’s Lustheim Palace houses the Ernst Schneider Collection of early Meissen porcelain, including masterworks by Johann Joachim Kaendler. The 2,000-piece display fulfills the dream of a “porcelain palace” never realized by Augustus the Strong, founder of Meissen. We share lunch at Ella, housed within a Tuscan-style 1887 artist’s villa at the Lenbachhaus. With our energy restored, we proceed to Villa Stuck, where the Jugendstil interiors are gems of early Modernism. After passing the rest of the afternoon at leisure, we gather at the iconic Dallmayr’s for dinner.

Included: B, L, D
Overnight: MUNICH

October 11 and 21

Following well-trod trade routes, our journey takes us to Augsburg, a city founded in 15 BC by the Romans. At this strategic location, the wealthy Fugger and Welser families built an early trading empire and founded the Fuggerei, the world’s oldest social housing complex. The city’s 15th- and 16th-century riches encouraged the sciences and arts, and Augsburg emerged as the undisputed center of gold- and silver-smithing in central Europe. We see masterful Augsburg metalwork at the Maximilian Museum. A visit to the newly-opened Fugger & Welser Museum offers an immersive examination of these two dynasties from perspectives of trade, business, and social relationships. We savor lunch at an early-18th-century private castle before continuing on to Regensburg, where we check in to the historic Hotel Bischofshof am Dom situated along the Danube River.

Included: B, L, D 
Overnight: REGENSBURG 

October 12 and 22

Regensburg boasts a remarkably intact city center with ancient Roman, Romanesque, and Gothic buildings. The 11th- to 13th-century architecture—including a market, town hall, and cathedral—show the city’s importance to Medieval trade. We tour one of the largest privately-owned European castles, Schloss St. Emmeran, which brilliantly mixes contemporary art within marvelous Rococo state rooms. On the outskirts of Regensburg, the owners of a moated private schloss have arranged a tour and lunch. Next, we journey to charming Landshut, admired for its cobblestone streets, picturesque river frontage, and hillside views. At the Burg Trausnitz castle, we appreciate the rare Renaissance Wunderkammer, a “Cabinet of Curiosities” that showcases the themes of artificiala, naturalia, exotica, and scientifica.

Included: B, L
Overnight: REGENSBURG

October 13 and 23

We spend the morning in Nuremberg, beginning with the superb decorative art collections at the Germanisches National Museum. Next, the Tucher Mansion, built between 1533 and 1544, vividly recreates the domestic world of Nuremberg’s 16th-century merchant families. Virtuoso wood carvings by 16th-century German sculptor Veit Stoss are on view at the St. Lorenz medieval church. After lunch, we continue on to the Schloss Weissenstein in Pommersfelden, a palatial masterwork of Baroque architecture. In the evening, we make our way to Bamberg to rest at the stately Bamberer Hof, situated on the town’s Schönleinsplatz near the picturesque banks of the river Regnitz.

Included: B, L, D
Overnight: BAMBERG

October 14 and 24

We trek by foot into the quintessential medieval town plan of Bamberg, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. At the Bamberg Cathedral, we appreciate sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider’s marble masterwork, the tomb of Emperor Heinrich and Empress Kunigunde, carved between 1499 and 1513. The adjacent Neue Residenz showcases Baroque splendor in the Imperial Hall, and the Court Garden’s 4,500 rose bushes frame magnificent views of the old town. We depart for Bayreuth, where we enjoy lunch before standing in awe of the Margravial Opera House, built for the lavish 1748 marriage of Princess Elisabeth Friederike Sophie. The 18th-century Rococo palace Neues Schloss and the Ermitage park complete an extraordinary afternoon. On our return to Bamberg, we stop at the Schloss Fantaisie, an 18th-century palace with a museum dedicated to German garden design. Our spectacular exploration of Bavaria concludes with a celebratory dinner at a privately owned schloss.

Included: B, L, D
Overnight: BAMBERG

October 15 and 25

Depart for Munich airport to return stateside, or continue on extension.

Included: B