Schedule

Guests arrive at Berlin International Airport and will be greeted by Sovereign Concierges who will provide welcome amenities as you wait to be transported via coach to our official hotel. Upon arrival at the hotel, guests are pre-keyed into their appointed rooms and will be given the Land of Luther Study Tour Newsletter that will identify the day's events at the Sovereign guest reception desk. We will then enjoy a full dinner and first night’s lecture with your Ligonier Teaching Fellows.

MEAL: Dinner

After a full breakfast, we travel to Wittenberg where our local guide will take us on a tour of Lutherstadt. It was here in 1517 that Martin Luther nailed his famous 95 Theses and Melanchthon helped forge Reformation Theology. Here Cranach painted now famous portraits of Luther. We will spend time in the Lutherhalle (Luther House) Museum, where Luther lived first as a monk, then later with his wife and children. We'll be able to view some of Luther's very own personal library, rare manuscripts, and early Bibles. The tour will also include Castle Church, Stadtkirche St. Marien (St. Mary's Church) where Luther preached and where his children were baptized, and the Luther Oak where he burned the edict from Rome, condemning him as a "heretic". This evening, we head back to Berlin where you can choose from any of the many eclectic restaurants in this fabulous city.

MEAL: Breakfast

After a full breakfast, we head on the road via luxury motor coach to the Erfurt and Esenach. Once in Erfurt, a local guide will take us on a tour including St. Mary's Cathedral, St. Severin's Church and the famous Merchant's Bridge. We will end at the Augustinian Monastery where Luther was ordained as a monk on July 17, 1505. We will be able to see his monastic quarters, including one cell furnished to look as it would have been many years ago when he lived there.

MEALS: Breakfast, Dinner

After a full breakfast, we will embark our luxury motor coaches to explore Eisenach. In 1521, while fleeing from the wrath of the Pope, Luther took refuge in the Wartburg Castle under the care of Frederick the Wise. We will tour the Wartburg and see where Luther finished translating the New Testament into German in just eleven weeks. Early in his life, Luther spent time in the nearby town of Eisenach as a school boy and sang in the choir of St. George's Church, where the Bach family also worshiped. The afternoon is free to explore the town or tour the Bach Museum and Luther House Museum.

MEAL: Breakfast

Our first destination today is the university city of Marburg for a tour of the Old City with the St. Elizabeth Church and the Castle. Through its 800 year history, Marburg has had many famous residents and visitors, among whom are William Tyndale, Elizabeth of Thuringia, Martin Luther, and the Grimm Brothers. We then head into the city of Mainz for our overnight. Dinner is on your own this evening.

MEAL: Breakfast

Our morning begins in Mainz as we focus on Bible printing history and the contribution of Johann Gutenberg, who developed moveable type. We will view original copies of the Bible in the Gutenberg Museum. We also will view Mainz Cathedral, dating back to AD 975. We have some free time for lunch then drive to Worms. There is no better way to spend an afternoon following the footsteps of Luther. We see the site of the Worms Debates (Diet of Worms), now a park, with a plaque commemorating the Diet of Worms and the Reformation Monument. We will hear the stories of Luther when he was brought before the authorities to answer for his writings to which he responded "Here I stand; I can do no other. God help me." Before returning to Mainz we enjoy dinner at an area winery.

MEALS: Breakfast, Dinner

This morning, we travel on to one of the most charming cities in all the world—Heidelberg, ancient capital of the Palatinate and home of Germany's oldest university. Heidelberg was the site of the Chapter House for Augustinian Monks. In 1518, Luther presented his 28 Theses for the Heidelberg Disputation. Heidelberg continued to serve as a stronghold for German Reformed Protestants beginning in 1560. One of the great confessional statements of the Reformation, the Heidelberg Catechism was produced here in 1563. Heidelberg Castle, an impressive historic landmark of Germany, stands majestically overlooking the Neckar River. The structure, now largely in ruins, preserves numerous examples of Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque German architecture.

MEALS: Breakfast, Dinner

After a full breakfast, your Sovereign Concierge assistants will help you with your journey home. If you choose to stay in Frankfurt for a few more days, Sovereign will have several options for 1-, 2-, and 3-day excursions to make the most of your time in the Rhine region.

MEAL: Breakfast