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14 Day Ultimate Switzerland and Germany w/Oberammergau

  

Ultimate Switzerland and Germany w/Oberammergau
14 Day Tour • June 28, 2010 Sold Out
w/ Dr. S. Michael Wilcox

Special Guest Educator
(In 2010 Michael will be retired. We are excited to announce that he will be joining us on many of our tours.)












  Important information:
• 
Airfare: Airfare will become available approximately 10 months before departure date. We will negotiate the lowest group contracts possible. Airfare is not a profit center for us, and you can always make your own airfare arrangements. Our best estimate on Salt Lake City airfare is somewhere between 799 and 999 plus taxes and fuel surcharges for airfare. We will also offer discounted airfare out of New York. Be assured we are good negotiators and expect our prices to be less than everyone else!
   
• 
Quality of Hotels: We are confident you will like the hotels we have scheduled for our tours. We have listed them on each itinerary. You will find that most of our hotels are Deluxe (4 star), with a few First Class hotels. Hotel ratings are as follows: Tourist Class hotels are 2 star, First Class Hotels are 3 star, Deluxe hotels are 4 star and Luxury Hotels are 5 star. Other companies in Utah offering Passion Play Tours state their hotels will be “Tourist Class (2 star) and First class (3 star).” We have all our hotels under contract and do not expect any hotel changes, but they are subject to change if we find a hotel that will be better for our group.
   
• 
European Expert: Ari
•   Will be touring with all of our groups.
•   Fluent in six languages.
•   Expert on European history, art, architecture, and music.
•   Tour director for over 20 years, and has assisted many dignitaries and VIPs throughout Europe.
•   Close friend to Fun for Less Tours. He made our Oberammeragau 2010 tours his top priority.
   
•  2010 Passion Play offers a lot of advantages:
•   The euro is down almost 20% over last year and is expected to stay down for the foreseeable future.
•   We have locked in a low exchange rate. This allows us to ensure the price will stay down.
•   The next Passion Play date isn’t until 2020, over 11 years from now. If predictions are correct, our huge US debt will cause our dollar to fall, making the euro very expensive. Costs could easily increase by over 150% to see the play.

We have compared our prices with another company in Utah that has Passion Play tours. Not only are they more expensive with not as nice hotels, but they require that their tours must be paid in full by May 1st this year with 100% non-refundable! With us, your payments are scheduled over 9 easy payments and it does not become non-refundable until 4 to 5 months before departure. We offer the better price because we are not working through a consolidator! We have our own contracts with the hotels, buses and Oberammergau.

“We are the best for less”
   • We have the best hotels
   • We have the best pricing
   • We have the best educators
   • We have our European expert - Ari
   • We have the best payment schedule
   • We have the best tour itineraries


Hotel Ratings: **2 star = Tourist Class Hotel / ***3 star = First Class Hotel / ****4 star = Deluxe Hotel and *****5 star = Luxury Hotel. When you see a � added to a star rating, it means the hotel is in between two ratings. For example: 3 � star rating would mean it is in better than a First Class, but not quite a Deluxe. The first rating by each hotel is what the hotel rates itself. The second rating is what we believe the hotel rating should be. Where other tours are staying in Tourist Class and First Class hotels - with your tour you have no 2 star Tourist Class hotels, only a few 3 star First Class hotels, a lot of 4 star Deluxe hotels and even one 5 star Luxury hotel.


DAY BY DAY ITINERARY: Partial list - subject to change as needed to improve tour!

Day 1: June 28: (Monday) Fly from the US to Zurich, Switzerland.

Day 2: June 29: Zurich
This morning early you will arrive in Zurich. We will spend a relaxing day touring. We will drive through “Heidiland” to Rapperswil, a lovely medieval town where you will enjoy a short stroll. We will finish with a tour of Zurich’s Old Town.
Overnight: Hotel Novotel Zurich Airport Messe
Hotel’s rating: **** 4 star Deluxe / Our rating ***½ 3½ star First Class Plus

Day 3: June 30: Zurich – Luzern – Alps - Interlaken
We will depart early taking the panoramic route to Lake Luzern. After our tour of Luzern we board a paddle boat and ride to the other end of the lake where our bus will be waiting. This will be a highlight day as you head into the majestic mountains of the Jungfrau group, including the famous and haunted North Face of the Eiger. You will see incredible rock formations and fabulous waterfalls as we travel to Interlaken where we will spend the next two nights.
Overnight: Swiss Dreams Hotel du Nord
Hotel’s rating: **** 4 star Deluxe / Our rating **** 4 star Deluxe

Day 4: July 1: Interlaken – Grindelwald - Interlaken
This morning we will drive deep into the Alps to Grindelwald. You will have time to enjoy and explore this high mountain village. We will also visit the Trummelbachfalle, impressive waterfalls “inside” the mountain, one of the natural wonders of the world. At the end of the day we will return to Interlaken to overnight.
Overnight: Swiss Dreams Hotel du Nord

Day 5: July 2: Interlaken – Zermatt (Matterhorn)
This morning early we will drive through the Alps and mountain villages on our way to Zermatt and the Matterhorn. We will have a stop at the Castle Chillon and then take the cog-wheel mountain train to Zermatt. This will be one of the top highlights of the tour. We will finish the day with a stroll through the old village with it’s cozy wooden houses and visit the mountain climber’s cemetery.
Overnight: Hotel La Couronne
Hotel’s rating: ***½ 3½ star First Class Plus / Our rating ***½ 3½ star First Class Plus

Day 6: July 3: Zermatt – Lugarno
Today is a panorama-day with several stops at charming villages. You drive over two very impressive passes, the Furka, where you stop at the Rhone Glacier and the Gotthard, to see the Devil’s Bridge and the Suvarov Memorial. We will then travel into the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland to places with a truly Mediterranean atmosphere on our way to Lugarno.Our tour in Lugarno will include the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli and then climb with the funicular to Monte Bre to enjoy a spectacular view.
Overnight: Hotel Centro Cadro Panoramica Lugano
Hotel’s rating: **** 4 star Deluxe / Our rating: **** 4 star Deluxe

Day 7: July 4: Lugarno – St. Moritz
This morning we will drive along the lovely Subalpine Lakes of Lugarno and Como. These landscapes inspire numbers of poets who lived along these shores. Passionate love stories have been written using these lakes as their setting. Another great and exciting highlight of your tour will be the slowest train in the world, the Bernina Express, but what a spectacular ride it is! Later in the day you will reach St. Moritz. The Winter Olympics have been held here twice.
Overnight: Steffani Hotel
Hotel’s rating: **** 4 star Deluxe / Our rating: ***½ 3½ star First Class Plus

Day 8: July 5: St. Moritz - Oberammergau
We will have a short tour of Innsbruck on our way into the German Alps with a stop at Neuschwanstein Castle, possibly the most beautiful Castle in the world from the outside. We will visit a spot above the castle for a breathtaking view. The best of Mad Ludwig’s Castles, and his favorite, is Linderhof, which we will visit inside tomorrow. Overnight: Oberammergau area, where we will experience staying in local homes or apartments. Note: The Passion Play tickets and accommodations are controlled by Oberammergau. We do not know yet what homes or local apartments we will be staying in. We will spend two nights in the Oberammergau area. There is no way to put a rating on our accommodations!

Day 9: July 6: Linderhof – Passion Play
This morning, before the play starts we will visit King Ludwig’s favorite castle, Linderhof, located near Oberammergau. We will then return to Oberammergau to experience the Passion Play.
Overnight: Oberammergau area.

Day 10: July 7: Oberammergau – Rothenburg ob der Tauber
This morning we drive the Romantic Road with stops in Nordlingen and Dinkelsbuhl. We then enter into the heart of this region the medieval walled city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber is located. Here we will spend the next two nights.
Overnight: Eisenhut Hotel
Hotel’s rating: **** 4 star Deluxe hotel / Our rating **** 4 star Deluxe

Day 11: July 8: Rothenburg ob der Tauber
After a tour of the ancient walled town and it’s city gate, you will be free to enjoy the day, relax, shop and soak in the atmosphere of one of the best preserved walled cities in the world.
Overnight: Eisenhut Hotel

Day 12: July 9: Rothenburg - Heidelberg
We will visit two imperial cities on our way to Heidelberg. In the city Speyer we will see the impressive Romanesque Dom with the tombs of eight emperors. In the city Worms, at the Imperial Diet in 1521, Martin Luther appeared in front of Emperor Charles V and made his world changing statement, “Here I stand.” We will also visit Heidelberg and if time permits we will do a tour of the Heidelberg Castle ruins.
Overnight: Crowne Plaza
Hotel’s rating: **** 4 star Deluxe / our rating: **** 4 star Deluxe

Day 13: July 10: Heidelberg – Rhine River Cruise - Heidelberg
This morning we will head to the Rhine River with a stop at the impressive Niederwald Memorial. We then board our boat for a leisurely cruise on the best part of the Rhine. You will see many, many castles on this beautiful part of the Rhine River. We will then have a stop in Koblenz before returning to the Crowne Plaza in Heidelberg.
Overnight: Crowne Plaza

Day 14: July 11: (Sunday) This morning we will fly home to the US from Frankfurt.


Pricing & Payment details

Price: $4,695
Pricing Information:
•   Price is per person sharing double room
•   The $4,695 is the cash discount price:
•   A Credit card can be used to pay an initial deposit of 500 to hold your space. The rest of the payments would need to be paid by cash or check.
•   Regular price is 4,895 (for those using a credit cards for deposit and payments)

Price Includes:
•   Deluxe hotels, buses, guides, entrance fees, tours
•   All Transfers
•   Passion Play tickets and accommodations around Oberammergau
•   Educator
•   Fun For Less Tour Escorts
•   Price does not include airfare or airfare taxes and fees

Payment Schedule:
$4,695 Tour Price per person
$49 Booking fee
   
$4,744 Total Price per person – to be paid as follows
   
1,500 Initial Deposit per person, paid as follows:
 
•   Those taking advantage of the cash discount price:
•   $500 paid by credit card (which will hold your space)
•   $1,000 paid by check - due within 10 days of initial deposit
•   For those paying regular price – all 1,500 would be taken by CC
   
1,500 $500 per person, to be paid each month for the next three months. Payments would be due the 20th of each month starting the first month after your initial deposit
   
1,744 Remaining balance to be paid in 4 monthly payments of $436 per month.
Note: $4,744 must be paid in full on or before March 1, 2010

Airfare:  Group airfare will not become available until 10 months before your tour.  You can purchase your own airfare or you can purchase group airfare from us.  Our group airfare becomes non refundable after these tickets are purchased. 

Cancellation policy for Oberammergau Passion Play tours:

•   Many of our hotels and Passion Play tickets require payment in full and are non-refundable. We have had to adjust our cancellation policy for this reason.
•   30 days from your initial deposit: $1,500 becomes non refundable
120 days from you initial deposit: $3,000 becomes non refundable
March 1: 100% of Land Tour becomes non refundable.
Airfare: Becomes non refundable when ticketed
We recommend the purchase of Travel Insurance!
•  
If for any reason a person needs to cancel and if we are able to fill their space (from a wait list, that we will create after the tour is sold out), we will refund all but $250 per person (the refund on airfare is subject to the airline approving the name changes and the new passengers needing the same airfare). Even though there is a good chance we can find a replacement, we cannot guarantee that we can fill your spot.


 


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