August 3: Konstanz

Willkommen in Konstanz!

After settling in at the dormitory, we will take a brief tour of Konstanz to get a first impression of this charming, historic city. You will also have an opportunity to take care of some necessities, like food shopping or buying something you forgot to bring. 

We will have an early evening Welcome Dinner and will probably want to go to bed early after a long, tiring day.

August 4: Konstanz

After breakfast we will have an introduction to the Program, followed by a walking tour of Konstanz. 

The afternoon will be open for individual explorations, shopping, or a walk along the lake.

August 5: Meersburg

To reach Meersburg, we take the ferry across Lake Constance. Meersburg, with its half-timbered houses, bubbling fountains and church bells, is considered to be one of the best preserved medieval towns in Germany. The majestic Old Castle, dating from Merovingian times and perhaps the oldest in Germany, overlooks Lake Constance and its setting provides a splendid view of the town and lake below. The walk from the elevated area of the upper town to the harbor below takes you through an active vineyard and you will find it difficult to resist the temptation to pick your own grapes. 

You might want to enjoy dinner in one of the restaurants lining the seaside promenade before returning to Konstanz by boat.

August 6: Konstanz

Open for individual explorations, shopping, a walk along the Lake or a visit to the beach.

August 7: Konstanz

You are encouraged to participate in the Stadtgartenfest (City Park Festival) in the Harbor with lots of local food and drinks.

August 8: Konstanz

Join the Seenachtsfest (City Festival) with a large firework display on the Lake. It is the largest summer event of Konstanz and its sister city, Kreuzlingen, attracting visitors from all over Germany and Switzerland.

August 9: Strasbourg

Located in the French Alsace region, Strasbourg is about a three-hour trip from Konstanz. This ancient city, which has been claimed by both Germany and France throughout history, is now the capital of the European Union. First you will walk through the Petite France quarter and admire its crooked streets, tiny bridges, and clusters of charming restaurants, cafés and shops and dramatic half timbered houses. You might enjoy a meal at the Au Pont St. Martin restaurant, one of the many very good restaurants in Strasbourg. 

From here you will walk to the Cathedral, one of Europe’s most striking examples of gothic architecture. You might also enjoy a covered boat trip on the Ill River and its canals to the European Parliament building.

August 10: Konstanz

Open for individual explorations, shopping, a walk along the Lake or a visit to the beach.

August 11: Mainau

The Flower Island of Mainau in Lake Constance may only cover 110 acres of land, but it is home to an extraordinary diversity of trees, flowers and shrubs. Its other attractions include a 13th century baroque palace, a palm house and the biggest butterfly house in Germany. 

August 12: Konstanz

Open for individual explorations, shopping, a walk along the Lake or a visit to the beach.

August 13: Konstanz

Open for individual explorations, shopping, a walk along the Lake or a visit to the beach.

August 14: Rhine Trip: Schaffhausen and Stein am Rhein

A two-hour boat ride on the winding Rhine River will take us to Stein am Rhein, one of the most-visited tourist spots in Switzerland because many of the town’s medieval buildings remained largely unscathed by the passing years. Here, you may also want to tour the former St. Georgen Abbey with its buildings dating back to the 14th through 16th Century. 

From there we will continue by boat to Schaffhausen. There you will stand at the edge of Europe’s largest waterfall and in the historic city center see the painted houses with their bay windows. 

We will return to Konstanz by train and arrive there in the early evening.

August 15: Reichenau Island - a UNESCO World Heritage Site

On this day you can watch the citizens of Reichenau observe the celebration of the Ascension of Mary (Mariä Himmelfahrt), one of the three most celebrated religious events of the year on the island. The celebration includes a festive procession of the Reichenauers dressed in their colorful traditional costumes. 

August 16: Alpine Trip: Ebenalp Mountain and St. Gall

We will drive through the scenic Appenzell region of eastern Switzerland and take a cable car to the summit of the Ebenalp Mountain. Bundle up for this trip; it may be snowing on top. Already Neanderthal men were here where today the cableway sweeps visitors up and over the rugged rocks of the once populated Ebenalp caves You will take delight in the magnificent views of the Alpstein’s rugged limestone rock and alpine flora (alpine garden by the Ebenalp guesthouse) 

In 612 the Irish monk Gallus established near the present city of St. Gall his hermitage, which became a place of pilgrimage, later a Benedictine abbey, and grew into of the leading centers of learning in central Europe. You will visit the Stiftskirche, a baroque cathedral, and walk on felt slippers through the world-famous Stiftsbibliothek, the monastery library of the former abbey, with 100,000 old books and illuminated manuscripts, some going back to the 10th Century. 

Afterwards you will go shopping in the many small shops that surround the cathedral and enjoy a cup of coffee in one of the numerous outdoor cafés.

August 17: Kaysersberg & Colmar

We will visit the medieval town of Kaysersberg, the birthplace of Albert Schweitzer, and walk the streets of Colmar with its historic buildings and many cafes and restaurants.

August 18: Zurich

Zurich may, or may not be, what you expect. You may see it as one of the great business centers of the world or as a charming Swiss town with its medieval character – it is both. You will view the city from Lindenhof, a park overlooking the city, enter the Grossmünster with its statue of a sitting Charlemagne, and admire the stained glass windows by Chagall and Giacometti in the Fraumünster. No visit to Zurich would be complete without a stroll along the Bahnhofstrasse, the Fifth Avenue of Zurich, with its banks, jewelry, and department stores.

August 19: Munich

Munich, the capital of Bavaria, is known as the “World Metropolis With a Heart” and is everyone’s favorite “village.” Its Gemütlichkeit and beer gardens are renowned, as are its museums, parks, and palaces. And it is a shopper’s paradise. Our daylong visit to Munich will be just enough time to wet your appetite for many returns. 

We will return to Konstanz after a long, tiring day.

August 20: Konstanz

Open for individual explorations, shopping, a walk along the Lake or a visit to the beach.

August 21: Farewell Dinner

In the evening, we will meet for the Farewell Dinner at a fine restaurants along the Lake.

August 22: Konstanz

Open for individual explorations, shopping, a walk along the Lake or a visit to the beach. 

This will be your last opportunity to buy the souvenirs you meant to buy all along and take some last-minutes pictures.

August 23: Konstanz

Departure of the participants.