Escorted Tour
Waltzing in Cologne
Including a spectacular André Rieu concert
Please call for latest availability
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Selected meals included
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Included Excursions
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Tour Manager
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VIP door-to-door travel service
André Rieu picked up a violin at the age of five and started his journey to becoming a music star. Hailed as the ‘King of Waltz’, he leads his world-class Johann Strauss Orchestra in concerts full of beautiful ballads and rousing waltzes with baton in hand or the bow of his exquisite 400-year-old Stradivarius violin. Come and waltz with us in the aisles, as Rieu entertains us with colourful surprises and pieces selected from over 50 albums, and spend time discovering Germany’s Rhineland. Explore the beautiful city of Cologne, birthplace of Beethoven and visit lovely castles of classic Rococo and fairytale dreams.
Including...
- 4 nights in hotel (accommodation as specified or similar)
- 5 meals: 4 breakfasts (days 2-5) 1 dinner (day 1)
Included excursions and visits: 4
- Guided city tour of Cologne and Cologne Cathedral
- Visit to Augustusburg and Falkenlust Castles
- Ticket to André Rieu Concert, Cologne (Category 2)
- Full-day excursion to Drachenburg Castle with guided tour, including return boat cruise Bonn to Königswinter and return Drachenfels Railway journey
Plus all these benefits:
- Titan’s VIP door-to-door travel service
- Free connecting flights to London
- Check-in service by Titan staff
- Services of an experienced Titan tour manager
- Scheduled British Airways direct flights
- Best available coaches with experienced drivers
- Hotel porterage (one bag per person)
- Airport taxes, security charges and fuel surcharges
- UK Air Passenger Duty (APD)
Day 1 London - Dusseldorf - Cologne
Titan’s VIP door-to-door travel service collects you from home, for your journey to London Heathrow Airport for a direct, scheduled British Airways flight to Dusseldorf Airport. Upon arrival, we transfer to the Maritim Hotel Cologne (4T), where we are greeted with a welcome drink. The rest of the day free to settle in, before our included dinner this evening.
Day 2 Cologne
Join a local guide for a sightseeing walking tour of Cologne, a lively city rich in heritage and arts. Highlighting a history that goes back to Roman occupation (with many remnants still in existence), our guide will share information on the creation of the city famous for its great Romanesque churches. We conclude at the city’s Gothic centrepiece, Cologne Cathedral, which took 600 years to construct and the massive twin steeples soar above the rooftops. Our guided tour of this masterpiece relays its importance. Behind the high altar is the shrine of the Three Magi, where the relics of the Three Wise Men rest, making the cathedral one of the most important places of pilgrimage in Europe. This afternoon is free for you to explore the delightful city. You may like to consider a cruise on the Rhine, for leisurely views. The Ludwig Museum will interest the art admirer, displaying pieces from the Middle Ages to Russian Avantgarde paintings, important collections of impressionism (with several hundred works by Pablo Picasso) and contemporary acquisitions. Alternatively, you can visit Beethoven’s birthplace, now a museum exhibiting his original manuscripts and first editions of his work.
Day 3 Brühl - Cologne
Today we take a coach to Brühl, home of the two UNESCO-listed castles that changed the face of Europe’s princely courts. Augustusburg and Falkenlust Castles were created in the 18th century in the vision of several artists, who developed new ideas of ornate, graceful elegance that became known as Rococo. For more than a century, this style inspired grand residences across Europe. We take time to explore both the main residence, Augustusburg, and the smaller Falkenlust, used mainly as a hunting lodge, set two kilometres apart on the estate’s expansive grounds. We return to our hotel for time to relax and prepare for an evening at the Lanxess Arena, where an unforgettable night of waltz with André Rieu awaits. Soak up the wonderful sounds as he conducts his 50-piece orchestra and picks up his own Stradivarius violin to perform a surprising and varied repertoire that will make you want to dance in the aisle.
Day 4 Bonn
We travel to Bonn to board a boat and enjoy views of the Rhineland on our cruise to Königswinter, before boarding the Drachenfels Railway to Drachenburg Castle. It is the epitome of a medieval fairytale castle with neo-Gothic turrets, but it was built in the 1880s. On our guided tour, we learn of its inhabitants - it has had several purposes during its life - a home, a boys’ boarding school and as The Adolf-Hitler-Schule, an elite Nazi school which, combined with bombardments, saw the loss of architectural and landscape features. The restoration project was extensive and Drachenburg is beautiful once more, displaying opulent ceilings and beautiful artwork.
Day 5 Cologne - Dusseldorf - London
We transfer to Dusseldorf Airport for a direct scheduled, British Airways flight to London Heathrow Airport. On arrival you will be met and guided to your Titan vehicle, for the journey home.
