Germany, Switzerland and Italy

Meet your tour director and check into your hotel.

Surrounded by mountains, forests, and the Neckar River, Heidelberg showcases a quintessential German landscape. Join your Tour Director as you drive through this granddaddy of all college towns, with its scores of bars, cafés, and shops. Get a beautiful view Germany’s oldest university —founded in 1386—from the Marktplatz, Heidelberg’s main square. Head up to Heidelberg Castle, which is still a little wobbly from its partial destruction during the Thirty Years’ War, a 17th-century attack by the French, and a major lightening hit in 1764. The castle’s courtyard is home to the largest wine barrel in world, the Great Vat, which holds about 50,000 gallons of wine (possibly another contributing factor to the castle’s romantically off-balance appearance).

Head up to Heidelberg Castle, which is still a little wobbly from its partial destruction during the Thirty Years’ War, a 17th-century attack by the French, and a major lightening hit in 1764. The castle is considered to be one of the most important Renaissance structures north of the Alps, and the castle’s courtyard is home to the largest wine barrel in world!

Visit the town's historical Marktplatz, the Market Square.

Cruise along the most beautiful stretch of the Rhine River, surrounded by rocky cliffs topped with picturesquely crumbling castles and covered by the country’s most famous vineyards.

Travel to Rothenburg and enjoy a tour director-led sightseeing tour of Rothenburg. Christmas reigns all year round in Rothenburg, a jewel of a town on Germany’s picturesque Romantic Road. Beyond the year-round Christmas markets, the town boasts one of the most intact medieval city walls in Europe and a fairly unique clock. During the Thirty Years’ War, a former Rothenburg mayor was offered the chance to save the city by chugging close to a gallon of wine; he succeeded (and then slept for three days straight), and his accomplishment is reenacted seven times daily by mechanical figures on the clock in the Marktplatz -- adding a new twist to the concept of “cuckoo clock.” The enormous Gothic St. Jacob’s Church watches over the exploits from across the square.

There is no surprise here. The Romantic Road is exactly what it says it is -- a drive down the middle of Western Bavaria’s heartland and a path through the center of your own heart with its romantic picturesque scenery. Between Würzburg and Füssen, the route is strewn with quaint villages, colorful castles, farmhouses, elaborate churches and dense forest.

Enjoy a guided sightseeing tour of Frauenkirche, Glockenspeil and the Olympic site of 1972. Then visit Dachau with an audioguide.

LEAP Activity | Bask in Bavarian Arts

Discover the links between traditional dance and Bavarian history. Listen to and learn Bavarian music while participating in ancient folklore storytelling. You’ll also learn (and demonstrate) a variety of traditional dance steps as taught by local experts.

Visit Hohenschwangau Castle then take a scenic hike to see Neuschwanstein Castle (no visit) and St. Mary's Bridge for a photo stop!

LEAP Activity | Debate the Great

Meet six influential figures from Germany’s history. Join a debate and argue their accomplishments to decide who the greatest German is.

Before a backdrop of snow-capped Alpine mountains and green, cow-filled pastures, join your Tour Director on a trip to Lucerne’s famous sights. Weave your way through a maze of narrow, winding streets until you reach the River Reuss and the Medieval Kapellbrücke Bridge. Stop to marvel at the bridge walls, decorated with murals that recreate the 14th-century originals destroyed in a fire. Journey down the cobblestone streets in the Old Town to see the Löwendenkmal (Lion Monument), the somber sandstone wild cat gazing down into a reflecting pool, and ponder this artfully chiseled statue created to honor the Swiss Guards who died defending the Tuileries in 1792.

One of the city's famous landmarks is Chapel Bridge, or Kapellbrücke, a wooden bridge first built in the 14th century. It has also been voted as the 5th most popular tourism destination in the world.

View the Lion Monument, or Löwendenkmal, created in 1820 in honor of the Swiss Guards who lost their lives in 1792 during the French Revolution.

View the impressive Jesuitenkirche which was the first large baroque church built in Switzerland. The ostentatious baroque style architecture is meant to represent the power and glory of the Catholic tradition.

Stroll through the picturesque medieval Weinmarkt Square and the Kornmarkt Square in the historical heart of Lucerne.

Visit Zurich, an optional excursion, known as "Downtown Switzerland". The city acts as headquarters for five world banks and countless underground gold bullions. Later, explore the old town (altdstadt) and get a sense of why this city was named number one for best quality of life; stroll through parks and quays, relax by Lake Zurich or shop for products unique to Switzerland.

LEAP Activity | Swiss Life and Legends

Legends of William Tell, the Lion Monument, Swiss independence, and more come to life as you reenact episodes in the history of Switzerland.

Travel to Venice via Verona. In fair Verona shall we lay our scene. The setting for Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” still glows with romance. See Juliet’s balcony, tenderly draped with climbing ivy and overlooking a golden-hued statue of the young mistress herself. As you gaze out and contemplate the power of love, don’t get too swept away -- remember that while Shakespeare based his characters on Verona’s real-life feuding families, both Romeo and Juliet were, in fact, fictional. While in Verona you will also have visit the Roman Arena and Casa di Giulietta.

Enjoy a guided sightseeing tour of the Bridge of Sighs, Doge's Palace, Grand Canal, and St. Mark's Cathedral.

LEAP Activity | Behind the Carnival Mask

Create a Venetian mask inspired by the Italian Carnival, the Commedia dell’Arte—or by your imagination! Learn the meaning of the mask and its historical significance, then decorate yours using professional techniques.