Hi everyone.<BR>l am very shocked and worried to learn that in Germany, The Easter holidays this yr actually start at 7Th April -19th April for Hesse(which towns exactly?) and Bavaria from 14th april to 26th April.<BR>l thought the official National Easter Holidays is only from 18 to 21St April.That's why l plan my trip from 1st to 17th April.l don't think l can change my dates becuse l've already booked my filght!How would this affect my trip,1)like travelling on Trains/buses.Will they still run from 7th to 26Th april?<BR>2)opening hrs of Tourist attractions like museums,castles,palaces etc?,<BR>3)supermarkets,local shops,shopping centres etc?Would most shops closed during this period?<BR><BR>l check the DB websites and most trains still run as usual except <BR>on 18,21 April.Which websites give the official holidays for each states?<BR>How would this long Easter holidays stretch (7th to 26Th April ??)affect my trip on the whole?<BR>l hope someone can double -confirm this and give me some good advice.<BR>Thank you very much.<BR>Have a nice day!<BR>

Don't worry, Cozzaar. As you already knew, all services will be reduced on the actual Easter weekend, but the rest of the times you mentioned are more school holidays than anything. Yes, there will be some workers who are off during those times, but not so much the service workers as the factory/office employees. If anything, the trains, museums and hotels will be busier than usual at this time of year because Europeans will be vacationing.

You can check about national holidays on this site:<BR>www.national-holidays.com<BR><BR>Except for the Easter weekend, I wouldn't worry too much about your plans, especially, if you have hotel confirmations for all places you will vist. Some major tourist attractions and trains might be a little more crowded that particular weekend. <BR>Other than that, I don't see major problems.<BR>Best is probably, once you arrive in a town, to check with the local tourist office about museum hours, etc.<BR>Most shops and supermarkts are usually closed Good Friday (April 18), Easter Monday (April 21) and Easter Sunday, of course.<BR>Usually, you will find some shops open at the larger train stations.<BR><BR>In a lot of European countries, there are two weeks holidays over Easter. In Switzerland, they start already on April 17 and will last until May 4, as Thursday, May 1 is again a holiday. <BR>Lucky school boys and girls.

Cozzaar,<BR><BR>For the school holidays in the different German Bundesl&auml;nder, you can do a simple search with Google.<BR>Type in 'Schulferien Deutschland' and you will find a couple of lists.<BR>Obviously, they are in German, but that shouldn't be a problem. Dates are dates. Just look for 'Fr&uuml;hlingsferien'.<BR>

Hi guyz,just wandering when's the Easter School holidays for Lower Saxony(Hameln,Hildesheim,Gosalr)?<BR>Thanx, that info was reassuring?<BR>Does Alsfeld(Little Red Riding Hood Town) in Hesse has a DJH Hostel or cheap lodging about 15 euro?<BR>Thanx!