Monday & Tuesday, July 7 & 8

The tour departs from Liberty International Airport, Newark, New Jersey, on an overnight flight to Frankfurt, Germany, where we will arrive early in the morning and connect on to Amsterdam in The Netherlands. There we will be met by our coach driver. Our first stop will be Zaanse Schans, an unspoiled village with typical Zaan Region houses, where we will see a working windmill and a craftsman making wooden shoes. If there is time before going to our hotel, we will make a stop at Volendam to see this quaint Dutch town.

Wednesday & Thursday, July 9 & 10

This morning we will visit the Aalsmeer Flower Auction. Flowers are shipped all over the world the same day they are sold. In Amsterdam, we will visit the Rijksmuseum, and take a canal boat ride on Amsterdam’s canal system. Then we will cross the 22-mile Afluitsdijk that has linked North Holland and Friesland since 1932. We will visit Pingjum and Witmarsum to learn about the Menno Simons’ story in Friesland. Tonight we will be hosted by families in their homes in Berlikum. Thursday we will travel to Münster where we will take a walking tour to learn about a darker side of the Anabaptist story. Then it’s on to Köln on the Rhine River to visit its famous cathedral and see Roman ruins.

Friday & Saturday, July 11 & 12

Today we will travel to Koblentz to the Deutsches Eck to view the confluence of the Mosel and Rhine rivers. In the afternoon, we will take a cruise on the Rhine River. The mountain stretch along which we will travel is overlaid with legend. Castles and ruins of castles are perched on rugged mountain tops with vineyards sunning themselves on both sides of the river. We will disembark in Bacharach, a medieval walled town, only meters from the river’s banks. We will make a stop in Bad Kreuznach on the way to our hotel. Saturday is the day to explore the Palatinate area of Germany. We will visit the Weierhof, a semi-communal Mennonite village before going to Worms to see the Reformers’ Monument and hear the Martin Luther story. On our way to Offenburg, you will enjoy the drive through the Black Forest.

Sunday & Monday, July 13 & 14

Today we will go to Strasbourg, France, and see its magnificent cathedral and learn about the Anabaptists who lived here. Then we will go to the quaint town of Riquewihr, an old French farming town, and travel through other picturesque villages as we drive through France’s wine region to Colmar. Here we will visit the museum to see the Issenheimer Altarpiece by Grünewald. Then it’s on to Bern for three nights. On Monday, our coach driver needs a break so we will stay in Bern for the day. In the morning, we will have an Anabaptist walking tour and you will have a free afternoon to explore, visit a museum, shop, rest, etc.

Tuesday & Wednesday, July 15 & 16

In the Emmental (Emme Valley), we will visit Langnau to see the oldest continuous Mennonite church and other important sites related to Anabaptist history. We will go to an Anabaptist cave where we will have a worship service and then visit Erlenbach. On Wednesday, we will have a mountain-top experience! If the weather cooperates, you will enjoy a beautiful ride up the Brienzer-Rothorn on a cog rail train. After lunch in Meringen, we will walk through the scenic Aareschult gorge for another kind of scenic beauty. We will stay at a hotel along the picturesque Vierwaldstättersee for two nights.

Thursday & Friday, July 17 & 18

Today is your chance to see the beautiful city of Lucerne that you see on postcards and in travel magazines. You will want to take time to walk through the well-known chapel bridge. In the afternoon, we will take a walking tour in Zürich to see sites of importance in our Anabaptist history. On Friday, we will visit Appenzell and St. Gallen, two more beautiful Swiss towns before we travel to Oberammergau in Germany for the night.

Saturday & Sunday, July 19 & 20

Our morning excursion is to Dachau, one of Hitler’s notorious concentration camps. The memorials, film and visual displays will remind us of what happened in these camps. Then we will go to the Kraichgau area on the east side of the Rhine River to learn of Mennonite presence here. You may want to climb the Steinsberg Tower to look over the Kraichgau region. This evening we will enjoy a farewell dinner. Then, it will be Sunday morning and time to take a morning flight from Frankfurt to Newark and to our homes. You will return with many memories and new friendships.


Your Tour Leaders

John Ruth, from Harleysville, Pennsylvania, is a minister, author and filmmaker who enjoys sharing Mennonite history through storytelling.  You will enjoy his stories and the information he provides. 

Audrey Voth Petkau is from Waterloo, Ontario, and works in the TourMagination office as a tour consultant.  She will look after the administrative details while on tour and will make sure that your needs are met.  This is the fifth tour that she and John will be leading together.

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