Day Trips In Berlin and Cologne
Mar 2nd, 2001, 09:03 AM
#1
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Day Trips In Berlin and Cologne
I will be traveling to Germany this summer: specifically Berlin and surrounding areas as well as Cologne and surrounding areas. Does anyone have any suggestions on day tours that are offered? I want to be able to schedule a tour of the city or surrounding area and then from there discover the city on my own. Can anyone help me?
Mar 2nd, 2001, 01:37 PM
#2
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In Berlin, I'd definitely suggest one of the hop-on, hop-off bus tours. There are several companies and they all seem to be pretty much the same. You get a great overview of the city and you can stay on for the full trip, then start a second time around getting off and on wherever you want to see things, or if you are a little more organized, get on and off the first time around. I'd also do a full day to Potsdam to see any of the castles clustered in the one huge park and you might also want to then do a late afternoon boat trip around Potsdam, very pretty. That day is best done on your own, not with an organized tour in my opinion. <BR>
Mar 2nd, 2001, 04:29 PM
#3
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Berlin is incredible--besides Potsdam, two places I would recommend are Dresden/Meissen (2 hours south by train) or rent a car and drive west to Hamelin (stopping along the way at the villages in between). For Cologne, take a boat down/up the Rhine. I can't remember how close Koblenz is, but it is a great place to drink good wine.
Mar 3rd, 2001, 03:28 AM
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From Cologne catch an early train (the central rail station is immediately behind the cathedral) southbound (2nd class) and get off at Koblenz. Take a cab from the train station to the boat dock where you board a steamer southbound for Rudesheim through the Rhine Gorge, past the Lorelei, etc. At Rudesheim, after exploring the town, catch the seilbahn (a kind of gondola-like ski lift) to the top of the bluff and walk through the woods to the big monument, the Niederwald Denkmal, and continue on downhill to tiny, riverside Assmannshausen where you can catch a boat back to Rudesheim. The path is clearly marked. Board a train then northbound to Cologne. This will take all day and provide you with memories to last a lifetime.
