Romantic Germany

lovesgolf1 · July 2014

We are arriving for the Romantic Germany tour a day early and leaving a day after the tour ends. Any restaurant suggestions in Frankfurt and/or Berlin for our free nights? Any other suggestions (aside from restaurants) for this tour? There is not much written about this tour.

cheri j · July 2014

If you have time and the tour does not go to Sans Souci palace it is worth the train ride from Berlin to see.

BillJ · August 2014

lovesgolf, what is start date of your tour? We will be on Sep 6 start date.

lovesgolf1 · August 2014

BillJ, I just now saw your message. We just returned from our Romantic Germany tour.

joycesw · August 2014

We will be on the tour beginning on September 27. What did you think of it? Any suggestions for must see places, restaurants, etc. ??

lovesgolf1 · August 2014

Joycesw, it was a trip with a lot of history. Germany is a very interesting country. One hotel we did not care for and everyone wrote that on their comment card. On some of our free time we wanted to see some Jewish sites. There are many museums to visit in Frankfurt and Berlin as well as Dresdin. Depends on what you are interested in. Walk over to the Opera House in Frankfurt. We were not able to get in but the building is gorgeous. Also walk over to the City Hall Square. There is a plaque in the square marking the book burning. We ate in a lovely restaurant built in front of a museum in Frankfurt but I do not remember the name of it. The concierge recommended it. In Berlin there are a lot of museums and sites to visit but again it depends on your interest. There is a beautiful must see department store near your hotel...KaWeDe. It rivals Harrods. We also visited the Berlin Zoo one afternoon since the weather was gorgeous and we wanted to be outdoors. We spent 2 hours there and only saw half the zoo. All of our group that stayed an extra night in Berlin ate at the Greek restaurant across the street from the hotel that extra night. We also went to an Italian restaurant recommended by the concierge that was just a few blocks from the hotel on another night. We were so tired of German food by then. BTW, the group dinner at the Intercontinental in Berlin was wonderful! In Rothenburg most of the group ate at the Italian restaurant across from the hotel. They had great pizza! The hotel in Dresdin is located just steps from a square so most people ate in one of the outdoor cafés. Lots of choices. We ate in an upscale fish restaurant at the end of the square that was wonderful. It was a little pricey but well worth it. We also toured The Opera House in Dresdin as well as the art museum. We did not have a lot of free time in any of the other cities. They really need to add another day to Munich. Lovely city but we had limited time.

joycesw · August 2014

What great information! Thank you so much for your prompt reply, I doubt Tauck will change hotels mid-season, but maybe they will sweeten the pot, and our attitudes, with a perk or two (one of those infamous "Tauck Surprises") .

lovesgolf1 · August 2014

Tauck has that hotel listed for next year as well. Fortunately, you do not spend a lot of time there. You get in just in time for dinner and leave after breakfast in the morning. If you have any other questions, I will be happy to answer them. In Rothenburg, there was a Christmas shop near the hotel that everyone raved about. Many people bought Christmas ornaments at that shop. There is a lot of bus time on this tour but that is because you cover a great distance. I believe we were told it was 1750 miles. Most of the long drives were within the first half of the trip. Once we got to Munich, the driving time from city to city was not as long.

joycesw · August 2014

I really do love Tauck and think they do a great job. We wouldn't be going on our 13th trip if we didn't like them. With that said, every once in a while they really get it wrong by not changing hotels. For example, we did the Black Sea to Prague riverboat trip (probably our least favorite) and the hotel in Bucharest is a Marriott. It is a lovely hotel, but, frankly, in the middle of nowhere. Granted it is across from the Parliament and some very busy roads, but that too is in the middle of nowhere. The walk to the hub of the city, with interesting restaurants and shops, is over a mile and a half (probably less if you could cut through the Parliament grounds, but we sure couldn't figure it out) and the taxi ride there cost us about $25, and that was from a taxi at the hotel! On the return trip, the doorman at the Hilton (guess Tauck used to stay there, according to him, but pulled out when Viking also used it and crowded up the breakfast buffet) got us a cab back and that one only cost $5! I'd rather battle a line at the buffet than a long, pricey taxi ride! I just reread the Tauck blurb and they tout the Marriott as being in the middle of all the action. Maybe things have changed in four years, but they certainly did not take out comments to heart.
Then there was the out of the way Sheraton hotel in Porto, Portugal...again, very nice but so far out that a taxi ride was necessary. There is a new Intercontinental in the heart of the city, but it does not seem that Tauck has selected that hotel.
One of the reasons we travel with Tauck is the accessible locations of their chosen hotels. I am not happy when there seems to be a ringer every once in a while,either in service, location or appearance, in spite of the comments from previous guests.

AlanS · August 2014

I think Tauck is getting more responsive to hotel issues. They have changed hotels in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy on the Alps & Dolomites tour a number of times. Our hotel was OK, but it had issues, too- low hot water pressure, etc. We only spent one night there, but from what I could see, it is a no win situation- all the hotels look to be about the same vintage, condition, and style. It is a town for skiers not Tauck travelers, but it is in the right (only) place to stop on this leg, besides the absolutely fantastic views along the Alpine High Road on the drive from the Grossglocker to Cortina, the view from our balcony, and the views during our drive from Cortina to Balzano on the "yellow roads" were not to be missed!

Even though I liked it and thought it was off-beat and kinda neat, Tauck dropped Portmeirion in Wales for another hotel on the England, Scotland, Wales trip. In London they are now staying at the Savoy instead of the Royal Horseguards which I think is in a better location. Of course, sometimes changes may be due to booking conflicts or because the hotel is being renovated.

The bottom line is they do listen and will change hotels from year to year if not more frequently when travelers complain.

I'm just a Tauck rookie, but I think memory consolidation is affecting my expectations. I think my mind takes the best from each tour and unconsciously turns it into an ideal tour against which all others are judged. That is something no individual tour can live up to. Anyone else suspect this might be happening?

Often photographed church in the small Austrian village of Heiligenblut am Großglockneron on the way to Cortina. That is the Grossglocker summit in the background:

Hotel Ancora balcony shot:

On the way to Balzano. The fantastic vista almost looks like a painted backdrop!

joycesw · August 2014

Wow! Spectacular photos, Alan! Interesting about the Royal Horseguards/Savoy. They used to stay at the Langham, and we stayed there on our own because it was a Tauck hotel. If we are traveling on our own, we always check to see where Tauck stays in a particular location. We don't always choose it, but it usually gives us a good idea about location ( except, apparently in Bucharest and Porto)!

lovesgolf1 · August 2014

This was our 9th Tauck tour so I do know that every once in awhile there is a hotel that is not up to Tauck standards. We stayed in a hotel in Krakow years ago that was not good and everyone commented on that and it was switched the following year. I believe that the hotel I did not care for on this trip is new to this trip. Aside from the hotel not being good, we had to drive 90 minutes extra to get there one day and then backtrack the 90 minutes the next day to tour the castle. The Intercontinental in Berlin is also new to this tour and not centrally located. They used to use The Westin which has a better location. However, The Intercontinental is a very nice hotel. Sometimes Tauck loses or ends a contract with a certain hotel and picks the next best choice. We also check to see where Tauck stays when we travel on our own.

Vord1959 · August 2014

Sans Souci palace!

lovesgolf1 · August 2014

I just thought of another thing to mention about this tour. Although it begins in Frankfurt, Tauck does not show you any of the sites of Frankfurt. You must see this on your own. Most people come in a day early so there is enough time to see what interests them.

TravelGuy · March 2015

What is the name of the hotel that received a "thumbs down" from the group? I am considering this tour and would like to determine if it has been replaced by another hotel.

jackki james · May 2015

I have visited the Germany but no idea bout romantic Germany tours. Here I would like to say there are many spots that give enchanted views and famous as a honeymoon destination. Hamburg's Lake Alster is one of those destinations and I personally visit this attractive place. I must say it is a nice place and the sunset view is breathtaking.