After landing, we will drive straight to Dusseldorf for a city tour, taking in the riot of colors on Graffiti Stree (Kiefernstraße) and exploring the city center and the quaint Old Town – including Heinrich Heine House, the tree-lined King’s Boulevard (Königsallee), and City Hall. After a lunch break at the lively Food Market (Flinger Straße), where you can sample the local beers and delicious street food, we’ll embark on our cruise ship and settle in our cabins before we gather at the lounge for a welcome dinner with the captain and crew. We will start our journey by nightfall as the ship sails towards Boppard.

This morning, we will anchor in Boppard, and after a hearty breakfast aboard the ship, we will tour this beautiful and ancient town lying in the Rhine Gorge, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Built by Julius Caesar as a military outpost to protect the left bank of the Rhine River, it became a flourishing town and is now a winegrowing center. We’ll visit the Carmelite Church (Karmeliterkirche) and the Old Castle and check out the Thonet Fountain in the Marktplatz – the weird-looking fountain is named after a local carpenter and inventor of the bentwood process. After lunch, we’ll drive through some spectacular scenery towards Cochem on the Mosel, a charming town built on a bend of the Mosel River, surrounded by gorgeous views of steep mountainsides covered in vineyards. Above the town rises the well preserved Reichsburg Castle, offering a panoramic view of the whole area. We’ll walk from the Castle to the Old Town and visit the local Evangelist Church (Evangelische Kirchengemeinde Cochem) before heading back to the ship for an overnight.

In the morning, we’ll cruise through the most beautiful section of the Rhine, among steep banks covered in castles, vineyards, and villages, until we reach the worldfamous Lorelei Cliff, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, a source of inspiration for dozens of legends and poems. In the afternoon, we’ll anchor in Mainz and take a tour of the ancient city, one of the ShUM Cities boasting a rich Jewish past. This city is also the birthplace of Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the printing press, so needless to say, we’ll visit the Gutenberg Museum, as well as the local Cathedral, as well as the Collegiate Church of St Stephen, decked with stained-glass windows by Mark Chagall.

Today, we’ll visit the picturesque town of Heidelberg, home to Germany’s oldest and most famous university. We’ll go up to the majestic Old Castle, enjoy some wine tasting, and take in the views of the whole area. Going back down to the town center, we’ll visit University Square and take a peek at the highly impressive Old Bridge before heading to the Protestant Church of the Holy Spirit. In the afternoon, we’ll drive back to Speyer for a walking tour of the Old Town, another one of the ShUm Cities boasting a glorious Jewish past. Speyer is one of Germany’s oldest cities, famous for its Romanesque cathedral. After visiting this imposing church covered in bluish copper, we’ll also check out the local Technik Museum, one of the largest and most impressive Technological Museums.

It’s time to visit the Alsace Wine Region in France. We’ll anchor in Strasbourg and take a short drive to the picturesque 13th-century town of Obernai, surrounded by vineyards, corn fields, and apple orchards. We’ll take in the sights on a walking tour of the walled Old Town and enjoy wine tasting at this center of wine production and part of the Alsace historic Wine Route. The afternoon will be dedicated to Strasbourg, the capital of the Alsace region and the official seat of the European Parliament, as well as other EU institutions. After a short bus tour of the European District, we’ll walk in the beautiful Old City and visit the area nicknamed Little France. We’ll continue to the Protestant Museum and the local Cathedral with its gorgeous Astronomical Clock before we go on a canal cruise of the Old Town Center.

This morning, we’ll enjoy a leisurely cruise on the river amid spectacular views of the Rhine River. After lunch, our next port of call is Rüdesheim, a charming town nestled among Riesling vineyards and especially famous for its wines. Our walking tour will take us to the fascinating Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Cabinet Museum. Later, we’ll take a mini-train ride of local vineyards and the cable car going up to the Germania or Niederwald Monument, offering fabulous panoramic views. We’ll taste local Asbach brandy or the special spiked Rudesheimer Coffee to cap off the day.

Today, the ship will anchor in Koblenz, at the confluence of the Moselle River and the Rhine. We will go on a walking tour of this historic town, sitting at the meeting point of the mighty rivers, dubbed the German corner, with its impressive Monument to Kaiser Wilhelm I. Our tour will take us to some of the city’s most famous squares, the Basilica of St Castor, with its distinctive twin towers, and the Berlin Wall Memorial. We’ll have some time to enjoy a local Beer Garden, then take the cable car to the Castle for a birds-eye river view.

Come morning, we’ll disembark in Dusseldorf and take a bus ride to the airport for our flight back home.