BERLIN AND BEYOND BERLIN, DRESDEN & LEIPZIG MAY 21 – JUNE 3, 2018 TOUR LEADER: THOMAS ABBOTT BERLIN AND BEYOND Overview BERLIN, DRESDEN & LEIPZIG Berlin is one of the most interesting and diverse of all the great capitals of Europe, and is currently enjoying a major cultural renaissance. First Tour dates: May 21 – June 3, 2018 documented in the 13th century, the city has been the capital of the Prussian Empire, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic and the Third Tour leader: Thomas Abbott Reich. Since 1989 the city has relished its role as the capital of a unified and re-energised Germany. Tour Price: $7,250 per person, twin share Berlin is home to some internationally renowned cultural institutions – Single Supplement: $1,750 for sole use of such as museums of antiquities and fine arts – and has ongoing double room significance as a centre of contemporary art and design. Berlin is also famous for its musical heritage, with outstanding ensembles such as the Booking deposit: $500 per person Berlin Philharmonic and three major opera houses adding great lustre to the city’s cultural landscape. Recommended airline: Etihad Airways This 14-day tour allows you to take an in-depth look at Berlin, and the Maximum places: 20 nearby cities of Potsdam, Leipzig and Dresden. Daily walking tours, background talks and guided visits trace the history and development of Itinerary: East Berlin (5 nights), Leipzig (2 Berlin from its earliest days through the glory days of the Prussian and nights), Dresden (2 nights), West Berlin (4 German Empires to the darker days of the early 20th century and its rebirth nights) after 1989. Date published: September 13, 2017 This tour offers the unique experience of staying in both East and West Berlin. Accommodation starts in East Berlin at the centrally located five- star Radisson Blu Palace. Our five-star hotels in Dresden and Leipzig are each beautifully renovated historic buildings, well located in the old city centres. We end our tour in West Berlin staying at the elegant five-star Steigenberger Grand Hotel Berlin. Your tour leader Thomas Abbott was born in the US but has lived in Germany since 1988. He holds a degree in art history and has led many cultural tours throughout Germany, specialising in the architecture of Berlin, the art of 18th-century Germany and the Bauhaus. He has led a number of tours for Academy Travel, all highly successful, and works for leading cultural travel companies in the UK and Europe. His knowledge, experience and enthusiasm contribute in equal measure to his popularity as a tour leader. Enquiries and “Our tour leader Thomas was excellent in all ways – his attention bookings to detail and his superb understanding of the art, history and culture on tour. He is a gem and a wealth of knowledge.” For further information and to secure a place on this tour “Tom is the best tour leader I have travelled with. He has please contact Jemma York at incredible knowledge and looks after everyone individually.” Academy Travel on Feedback from tour participants on Thomas Abbott’s most recent tour with 9235 0023 or 1800 639 699 Academy Travel – Berlin and Beyond, May 2015 (outside Sydney) or email [email protected] Tour Highlights ART IN BERLIN Berlin has a reputation for being the ‘New York of Europe’, offering a wide range of museums and galleries that hold treasures both ancient and contemporary. Some of the highlights include masterpieces by Botticelli, Raphael, Caravaggio, Titian, Rubens, Rembrandt and Vermeer at the Gemäldegalerie. We spend two days leisurely admiring the remarkable and vast collections at Museum Island. EAST AND WEST BERLIN In the quarter-century-plus since the Wall came down, Berlin has re-established itself as Germany’s capital and gone through an urban and social transformation that has made it, once again, one of the most exciting cities in Europe. We explore this fascinating city with walks through the historic neighbourhoods of both East and West Berlin, including the Brandenburg Gate, where east met west during the Cold War. POTSDAM Spend a full day in Potsdam, known for its 18th-century baroque architecture, especially Frederick the Great’s Sanssouci Park, the former residence of the Prussian royals. The town centre offers historical landmarks, charming boutiques, and café-lined cobblestone streets. Although it was severely damaged by bombing during World War II, much of the city has been restored to its former glory. LEIPZIG AND DRESDEN Travel through the scenic countryside to the charming old town of Renaissance Leipzig, which Göethe describes in Faust, as “a little Paris”. We spend time too in the elegantly restored city of Dresden, that has risen from the ashes, after devastating World War II bombing, regaining its reputation as “the Florence on the Elbe”. Each city offers impressive art collections at the Grassi Museum and the Zwinger Palace. REICHSTAG The symbol of Berlin’s mash-up of old and new, the Reichstag building anchors central Berlin with a Sir Noman Foster designed glass dome atop of the 116-year old structure. Our tour ends with a farewell meal at the Reichstag at Restaurant Kafer. Afterwards, walk the gently rising ramp inside the glass dome, taking in the views of Berlin and the parliamentary chamber below. Detailed itinerary Included meals are shown with the letters B, L and D. Monday may 21 Arrival Meet tour leader Thomas Abbott at the hotel for our welcome dinner. Overnight Berlin (D) Tuesday May 22 Medieval to Prussian Today we investigate Berlin’s early history with a walking tour of the Nikolaiviertel, the historic medieval heart of Berlin bordering the Spree River. Though the area was levelled during WWII many of the buildings, including the Nikolaikirche, were faithfully reconstructed for Berlin’s 750th anniversary. We travel by ferry along the Spree to the Palace of Charlottenburg, where we enjoy lunch before taking a guided tour of the richly decorated interior of the palace, constructed between 1695 and 1713 as a summer home for Sophie Charlotte, wife of Elector Friedrich III of Prussia. We also visit the nearby Berggruen Museum with its exceptional collection of modern art including Above: the gardens and palace at Charlottenburg, commissioned in works by Matisse, Klee and Giacometti. Overnight Berlin (B, L) the 17th century by Sophie Charlotte, wife of Friedrich III Wednesday may 23 Below: the famous bust of Nefertiti, now found in the Neues Museum The Prussian City – the new home of the Egyptian Museum This morning we begin with a visit to the German History Museum, a magnificent baroque structure extensively refurbished by I.M. Pei. Our next stop is the Brandenburg Gate, completed in 1795. In the afternoon we visit the stunning Gemäldegalerie. Assembled in the early 19th century, the gallery’s collection represents all the major schools of European painting and includes masterpieces by Botticelli, Raphael, Caravaggio, Breughel, Vermeer and Rembrandt. This evening we enjoy dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight Berlin (B, D) Thursday may 24 Frederick the Great’s city Today we spend the day in Potsdam, just a short distance from Berlin. The city is closely associated with Frederick the Great (ruled 1740-1786) the monarch of the newly created Kingdom of Prussia. Most of the day is spent exploring Park Sanssouci a complex of palaces, gardens and pavilions covering 287 hectares. We will also visit Cecilienhof Palace, the last Hohenzollern Palace and the site of the 1945 Potsdam Conference. After an early dinner in Potsdam we return to Berlin. Overnight Berlin (B, D) Friday may 25 Museum Island On the site of one of Berlin's two original settlements, this unique complex of five state museums is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a must-visit in Berlin. Today we visit the Altes Museum, which houses an impressive collection of Greek and Roman antiquities, and the Neues Museum, the new home of the Egyptian Museum to see the famous bust of Nefertiti. The afternoon is at leisure. Overnight Berlin (B) Saturday may 26 Museum Island II Returning to Museum Island today we visit what is perhaps Berlin’s most renowned institution, the Pergamon Museum. The museum houses Near Eastern antiquities and Islamic art, much of which was collected by the German Kaisers from their close contact with countries such as Turkey, Iraq and Iran in the early 20th century. Rather than fragments, the Kaisers collected and transported entire structures, such as the Market Gate from Miletus (c.120AD), the ‘Lion Gate’ from Babylon (6th century BC) and the vast altar from the Temple of Zeus at Pergamon (170BC) a masterpiece of Hellenistic Art. After a break for lunch we take a walking tour of the Hackesche Höfe, a series of interconnected courtyards bustling with restaurants, boutiques and galleries. In the late afternoon we travel to Leipzig. Dinner in a local restaurant and overnight Leipzig (B, D) Sunday may 27 Leipzig Above: Kirchner’s Potsdamer Platz (1914) hangs in the Neue This morning we take a guided walking tour of Leipzig, followed Nationalgalerie, Berlin by a visit to the Museum of Fine Arts. The original museum building was destroyed in an air raid in 1943, though many of the paintings had been saved. A new home for the collection, a Below: the Frauenkirche in Dresden stands as a great symbol of contemporary building, opened in 2004, 61 years to the day resurrection for the city after the original museum was destroyed. The afternoon is free, but we recommend you stop in at the Grassi Museum, an excellent decorative arts museum, founded in the late 19th century and with an impressive collection charting over 2,500 years of the decorative arts.