Is this tour escorted or self-guided?

Self-guided. Travel to Europe provides a day-by-day itinerary and tour information sheets. The only escorted element is a half-day coach tour to the Eagles Nest near Berchtesgaden. Visits to Dachau and Sachsenhausen include optional English-speaking volunteer tours or audio guides available on site.

Which trains are included?

Rail tickets in second class include: Munich Airport to Munich, Munich to Salzburg (Rail-Jet), Salzburg to Nuremberg (ICE), Nuremberg to Berlin (ICE), and Berlin Central to Oranienburg (commuter train). All are covered by the package.

What hotels are included?

Eight nights across four hotels: King's Hotel Center in Munich (two nights), Mozart Hotel in Salzburg (two nights), Hotel Victoria in Nuremberg (two nights), and Hotel Gat Point Charlie in Berlin (two nights). Daily buffet breakfast is included.

What is the base price and what does it include?

From USD 1,739 per person (double occupancy). Includes all rail tickets, eight nights accommodation, daily breakfast, local transit cards in each city, admission to Dachau (free), the Eagles Nest coach tour, and a 2-Day Nuremberg Card and 72-hour Berlin Welcome Card covering museums and public transport.

How much walking is involved?

Expect moderate daily walking. Days include self-guided city tours on foot in Munich and Berlin, and full-day visits to outdoor memorial sites that require standing and navigating through grounds.

What is not included?

Airfare to Munich and from Berlin, all meals other than breakfast, and gratuities. A first-class rail upgrade is available for a small surcharge (amount not specified).

Travel to Europe (To-Europe) · Independent history-themed rail tour

9-Day History Rail Tour: "Fascination and Terror" - rise and fall of the Third Reich (9R05)

Nine-day self-guided history tour through Munich, Salzburg, Nuremberg and Berlin

Travel to Europe's nine-day independent rail tour traces the rise and fall of the Nazi regime across Germany and Austria. Beginning in Munich, where the Nazi movement began, the itinerary moves by train to Salzburg, Nuremberg, and Berlin, ending at Oranienburg. Each city pairs rail travel with visits to historical sites: the NS Documentation Center and KZ Dachau near Munich, the Eagles Nest near Salzburg, the Nazi Rally Grounds and Nuremberg Trials memorial in Nuremberg, and the Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin. The Topography of Terror and Reichstag district walking tour in Berlin offers another key perspective. This is a self-guided journey; Travel to Europe provides daily itineraries and information sheets, along with second-class rail tickets, eight nights of hotel accommodation with breakfast, and local public transit passes in each city. Visitors navigate sites independently, though optional English-language guided tours and audio guides are available at memorial sites. The tour suits history-focused travelers seeking a structured but self-directed approach to a sensitive subject matter.

What to know before you look closer

The single-room supplement (from USD 2,819) is roughly 62 percent above half the double-room price (USD 1,739 / 2), a substantial premium
This is a self-guided tour with no tour manager; you navigate each day independently using provided materials and local transport
Meals other than daily breakfast are not included; lunch and dinner are on your own throughout the nine days

Day by day

Day 1railovernight: Munich
Munich Airport / Munich
Train from Munich Int. Airport to Munich Central Station. Visit the NS Documentation Center at Brienner Strasse 34, site of the former 'Braune Haus' NSDAP headquarters.
Day 2railovernight: Munich
Dachau Memorial Site and Munich
Morning visit to KZ Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp (erected 1933); rail and bus included, admission free. English-speaking volunteer tour or English audio guide available.
Day 3railovernight: Salzburg
Salzburg
Speed rail from Munich to Salzburg (under 90 minutes). Learn about Salzburg's 1938 annexation history including the book burning at the Residenzplatz.
Day 4overnight: Salzburg
Eagles Nest Berchtesgaden/ Salzburg
Half-day escorted coach tour from Salzburg to the Kehlsteinhaus (Eagles Nest), built for Hitler's 50th birthday, near Berchtesgaden. Return to Salzburg around 1:30pm.
Day 5railovernight: Nuremberg
Nuremberg
High-Speed Rail from Salzburg to Nuremberg (about 3 hours). Visit the Kaiserburg (Imperial Castle), covered by the 2-Day Nuremberg Card.
Day 6overnight: Nuremberg
Nazi Rally Grounds / Nuremberg
Visit the Documentation Center at the Nazi Rally Grounds ('Faszination und Gewalt' exhibition), the Zeppelinfield and Congress Hall, plus the Memorium Nuremberg Trials (Courtroom 600).
Day 7railovernight: Berlin
Berlin
Direct High-speed ICE train from Nuremberg to Berlin (about 4.5 hours). Self-guided WWII walking tour from Potsdamer Platz to the Reichstag, Brandenburg Gate, Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and the Topography of Terror Documentation Center.
Day 8railovernight: Berlin
Sachsenhausen Memorial Site / Berlin
Train from Berlin Central Station to Oranienburg (about 30 minutes) to visit the Memorial and Museum Sachsenhausen. Afternoon sightseeing in Berlin using the Berlin Welcome Card, including hop-on hop-off double decker buses 100 and 200.
Day 9
Berlin / Berlin Int. Airport
Additional sightseeing time if flight schedule allows; the Welcome Card covers transportation to Berlin International Airport.

The moments this trip is built around

Day 2Morning visit to KZ Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp, with admission free and English-speaking volunteer tour or audio guide available
Day 4Half-day escorted coach tour from Salzburg to the Kehlsteinhaus (Eagles Nest) near Berchtesgaden, built for Hitler's 50th birthday
Day 6Full day at Nuremberg's Nazi Rally Grounds, visiting the Documentation Center, Zeppelinfield, Congress Hall, and Memorium Nuremberg Trials courtroom 600
Day 8Train to Oranienburg for a visit to the Memorial and Museum Sachsenhausen, a former concentration camp site north of Berlin

Included

Rail ticket Munich Int. Airport to Munich
Public transportation ticket within Munich, to/from Dachau, and bus from Dachau Station to the Memorial Site (admission to the Memorial Site is free)
Rail ticket (Rail-Jet) Munich to Salzburg
Half-day escorted coach tour to the Eagles Nest (Kehlsteinhaus) near Berchtesgaden
Rail ticket (ICE) Salzburg to Nuremberg
2-Day Nuremberg Card (free public transportation Zone A; free admission to nearly all museums and attractions, including the Imperial Castle, Nazi Rally Grounds Documentation Center and Nuremberg Trials Memorium)
Rail ticket (ICE) Nuremberg to Berlin
72-hour Greater Berlin & Potsdam Welcome Card (free public transportation; discounts on cultural and touristic highlights), covering transport to/from Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg and onward to Berlin Brandenburg Airport
Buffet breakfast daily
8 nights hotel accommodation per itinerary

Not included

Airfare from your origin to Munich International Airport
Airfare from Berlin to your origin
All meals other than breakfast
Gratuities (tips)

Questions travellers ask

Is this tour escorted or self-guided?: Self-guided. Travel to Europe provides a day-by-day itinerary and tour information sheets. The only escorted element is a half-day coach tour to the Eagles Nest near Berchtesgaden. Visits to Dachau and Sachsenhausen include optional English-speaking volunteer tours or audio guides available on site.
Which trains are included?: Rail tickets in second class include: Munich Airport to Munich, Munich to Salzburg (Rail-Jet), Salzburg to Nuremberg (ICE), Nuremberg to Berlin (ICE), and Berlin Central to Oranienburg (commuter train). All are covered by the package.
What hotels are included?: Eight nights across four hotels: King's Hotel Center in Munich (two nights), Mozart Hotel in Salzburg (two nights), Hotel Victoria in Nuremberg (two nights), and Hotel Gat Point Charlie in Berlin (two nights). Daily buffet breakfast is included.
What is the base price and what does it include?: From USD 1,739 per person (double occupancy). Includes all rail tickets, eight nights accommodation, daily breakfast, local transit cards in each city, admission to Dachau (free), the Eagles Nest coach tour, and a 2-Day Nuremberg Card and 72-hour Berlin Welcome Card covering museums and public transport.
How much walking is involved?: Expect moderate daily walking. Days include self-guided city tours on foot in Munich and Berlin, and full-day visits to outdoor memorial sites that require standing and navigating through grounds.
What is not included?: Airfare to Munich and from Berlin, all meals other than breakfast, and gratuities. A first-class rail upgrade is available for a small surcharge (amount not specified).