Steam in Eastern Germany, Saxony and the Baltic Coast

Journey through a genuine Winter Wonderland on our ever-popular tour to Eastern Germany. Timber-framed houses, fairy-tale castles and romantic steam trains all add to the enchantment of this seasonal holiday.

• Discover first-hand the charm and culture of Eastern and Northern Germany, staying in such fine cities as Dresden,
  Görlitz, Stralsund and Schwerin.
• Ride on the famed ‘little trains’ that circulate on the renowned narrow-gauge networks of Saxony, the Zittau Mountains and along the Baltic Coast.
• Visit iconic locations such as the Island of Rügen and steam-hauled street-running at Bad Doberan, with excellent chances of steam in the snow in the Saxon Ore Mountains and at Zittau.
• Experience legendary German ‘Plandampf’ on seven different narrow-gauge steam railways, all with their own
  unique character.
• Enjoy private charters on wonderful heritage tramways in the historic cathedral cities of Dresden and Görlitz,
  and a trip on the 1901 ‘dingle-dangle’ mountain monorail in Dresden.
  

Thursday 16th January
London to Dresden
Travel by Eurostar, Thalys and ICE high speed services from London St Pancras via Brussels and Frankfurt to Dresden. On arrival check into your quality, centrally located hotel in the heart of Dresden’s Old Town, where a welcome dinner will be served.(D)

Friday 17th January
Sightseeing by vintage tram, historic funicular and mountain monorail
Today you embark on a sightseeing tour of the city by privately chartered vintage tram, concluding at the ‘Blue Wonder’ Loschwitz Bridge. You then ride the ‘dingle-dangle’ mountain monorail from 1901 before taking the adjacent 1895 funicular to the Weisser Hirsch summit terminus. From there a direct tram line takes you back to the city centre, where you can enjoy time at leisure before rejoining the group for dinner at your hotel. (B D)

Saturday 18th January
Steam to Radeburg with a Saxon VII K locomotive and leisure in Dresden
After breakfast, you visit the local narrow-gauge railway at Radebeul, where a 2-10-2 Saxon VII K tank locomotive takes you down the 16.5 km long line to Radeburg, pausing at Moritzburg Castle. The train returns to Radebeul by midday, where you’ll take a DB service train to Dresden Hbf . You have the rest of the day to explore Dresden, making good use of your complimentary public transport rover ticket to ‘bash’ the extensive tram network. (B)

Sunday 19th January
Steam at the at the Weisseritz Valley Railway to Kurort Kipsdorf
Embrace on a morning excursion to the recently re-opened narrow-gauge Weisseritz Valley Railway. You’ll be steam-hauled through Saxony’s ‘canyon landscape’ from Freital-Hainsberg via Dippoldiswalde to Kurort Kipsdorf, along the river Weisseritz. Enjoy the panoramic views from the open balconies of your vintage carriage. You return to Dresden in the early afternoon. (B)

Monday 20th January
Steam in the Ore Mountains from Cranzahl to Oberwiesenthal
You travel on DB service trains from Dresden to Cranzahl, here you board a steam train and travel over the iconic Fichtelbergbahn to Oberwiesenthal, the ‘St Moritz of Saxony’. After free time and photo opportunities with steam trains passing over the railway viaduct by the station, you return from Oberwiesenthal to Cranzahl by steam train in the afternoon and from there continue to Dresden on DB service trains. (B)

Tuesday 21st January   
Vintage tramways in Görlitz
After a leisurely morning, you take a service train over the scenic line via Bautzen to Görlitz, Germany’s easternmost city, a popular location for major film productions. Görlitz also boasts a pocket-sized tram network and you’ll explore the city on a privately chartered 1920s heritage tram. In the evening, dinner will be served at your hotel near the station. (B D)

Wednesday 22nd January
Narrow gauge railway in Zittau
Today you travel from the German border city of Zittau on the 12.2 km narrow-gauge branch line to the mountainous resort town of Kurort Oybin, an attractive countryside location framed by cragged rocks and idyllic scenery. The train will either be hauled by a 2-10-2 tank engine or a heritage diesel train and include one of the famed East German Mitropa dining cars, where complimentary refreshments and reserved seats will be included. After also travelling on the branch line from the junction Bertsdorf to Johnsdorf, you return to Zittau in the late afternoon and then return by service train to Görlitz, using an interesting secondary railway line that twice crosses into Poland along the way. Dinner is again served at your hotel. (B L D)

Thursday 23rd January
Steam at the Muskau Forest Railway and Pückler Park visit
Today you have an exciting private steam charter on the 600mm gauge Muskau Forest Railway near the Polish frontier. You’ll cover the two different branch lines to Bad Muskau and Kromlau, with run-pasts along the way. At lunch time, there’s time for refreshments in the namesake town of Bad Muskau with its charming local chateau and the famous UNESCO World Heritage Pückler Park. In late afternoon you return from Weisswasser by train to Görlitz (B L D).

Friday 24th January
Via Berlin to Stralsund on the Baltic Coast
This morning you transfer cross-country to north-eastern Germany on secondary railway lines. From Görlitz you take a regional train to Cottbus, changing onto an electric double-decker for the fast run into Berlin. At Berlin’s main station you can use your validated Interrail ticket travel day on the city’s elevated Stadtbahn or Ring Railway on DB S-Bahn services. Alternately you can sightsee the nearby Reichstag and Brandenburg Gate. In mid-afternoon you continue on a DB Regional Express service to Stralsund, arriving by late afternoon. On arrival at your centrally located hotel a buffet dinner will be served. (B D)

Saturday 25th January
Steam on the Island of Rügen and historic Stralsund
German Plandampf is centre stage today as you travel by service train to Putbus where you experience the island’s famous narrow-gauge ‘Racing Roland’ railway. The 24 km long line runs via Binz to the seaside terminus Göhren. After lunch you return to Putbus behind another steam locomotive before taking a service train back to Stralsund. You have the evening to discover the beautiful Hanseatic city with distinctive red-brick architecture and Baltic heritage. (B L D)

Sunday 26th January
Steam at the Molli Railway along the Baltic Coast
Today you visit the 15.4-kilometre-long resort railway ‘Molli’. Famous for its street running section in Bad Doberan, this 900 mm gauge railway boasts lots of rugged German tank engines. You’ll have reserved seats for the northbound journey to Kühlingsborn on the Baltic Coast, before returning to Bad Doberan to film the street running there. In the late afternoon you continue to nearby Schwerin for a final night at a centrally located hotel with dinner included. (B D)

Monday 27th January
Return to London
From the convenient, more westerly location of Schwerin, you travel with a DB Intercity train to Cologne. From there it’s high speed rail onward to London St Pancras via Brussels. (B)