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| Day 1 |
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DEPART U.S.
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Depart the U.S. on your overnight flight to Paris.
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| Day 2 |
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ARRIVE PARIS • METZ CATHEDRAL • BOARD THE SAILING HOME
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Arrive at Charles de Gaulle Airport, where you will be met and accompanied into Paris for a welcome lunch with your traveling companions. In the afternoon, travel east to Metz, a city on the Mosel River in Lorraine. Metz is a center of trade, learning and regional government with several millennia of history, numerous Gothic churches and some lovely parks. There you’ll board the 24-guest river cruise ship Sailing Home, where you can settle into your cabin before the welcome reception and dinner. In the evening take a walk together in the Old Town near the Mosel, stopping to see one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals in France, the Cathedral S. Étienne (St. Stephen’s). L/D
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| Day 3 |
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METZ TO KONIGSMACHER
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Enjoy breakfast while cruising through the French countryside. Then disembark and set off with your two cycling guides toward Fort Hackenberg in Veckring, the largest fortification of the Maginot Line. This line of fortifications, underground tunnels and other defenses was built in the 1930s in an attempt to protect France against German advances. The historically contested terrain through which we are cycling has belonged over the years to both France and Germany; hence the German names of cities, and towns that now are part of France. Today, and on all our biking days, a bag lunch will be provided; if you prefer, you may purchase lunch en route. (If you choose to take a day off and view the Mosel Valley from the deck of the Sailing Home, lunch on board will be available for purchase.) We’ll bike a total of 31 miles before rejoining the ship in Konigsmacher for dinner and the night. B/D
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| Day 4 |
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CASTLE OF SIERCK-LES-BAINS • REMICH, LUXEMBOURG
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Today’s bike tour leads us through the Mosel valley across the border into Luxembourg, covering about the same distance as yesterday’s. First we’ll visit the Castle of Sierck-les-Bains in its beautiful setting on the banks of the river. On top of the hill you’ll see another Medieval castle which was at stake in a famed 12th-century battle between the Duke of Lorraine and the Archbishop of Trier. Then we cycle across the border into the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and rejoin the ship in Remich, where we’ll spend the night. We may visit the nearby village of Nenning so you can see an old Roman mansion with an extensive and beautiful floor of mosaics. B/D
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| Day 5 |
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REMICH TO SAARBURG, GERMANY
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Today we follow the valley of the Mosel into Germany, where the well-built Radweg, paved in brick or asphalt, winds many miles along the river. At the confluence with the Saar, we’ll follow that tributary upstream to visit charming Saarburg. On the way we’ll stop at a wine cellar to taste some of the region’s famed Rieslings. The riverbanks here are densely forested, providing a striking setting for the 10th-century Saarburg Castle. The town features well-preserved 17th- and 18th-century houses and a dramatic 65-foot waterfall in the Saar river, which provides power for the old mill. The ship will meet us in Saarburg after our 28-mile ride. B/D
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| Day 6 |
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SARBURG TO TRIER
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Today we’ll continue with a 22-mile bike ride past hills of vineyards to Trier, the oldest city in Germany. According to Roman historians, Trier was founded in about 15 B.C. by the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus, under the name of Augusta Trevorum. It flourished during the later years of the Roman Empire as a trading town and administrative center. We’ll meet the Sailing Home in Trier and have dinner aboard; then we’ll take a city walk to see some of the other monuments which include a Roman amphitheater and baths, the Constantine Basilica that served as the throne hall of the Emperor Constantine, the Roman-era Trier Cathedral, and the Gothic Liebfrauenkirche, or Church of Our Lady. B/L/D
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| Day 7 |
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TRIER TO BERNKASTEL-KUES
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By barge and bike we’ll follow the Mosel downstream, through a region where lovely vineyards abound. The slate soil of the region and the moderating effects of the river combine to produce the renowned Riesling wines that are both delicate and richly fragrant, light-bodied and lively, with a pleasant, fruity acidity. Some of the most elegant of these wines are grown in this mid-Mosel region between Trier and Koblenz, where the Mosel flows into the Rhine. We’ll pass Trittenheim, a scenic town that likes in a sharp hairpin turn in the Mosel, surrounded by mountains covered with vineyards. In the middle of the vines sits the Laurantiuskapelle with its renowned Gothic choir. We also pass through Piesport, a town that produces a number of excellent wines including the famed “Piesporter Goldtröpfchen” (Golden Drops of Piesport). Our destination today, after about 30 miles of cycling, is Bernkastel-Kues, two old and picturesque towns that straddle the Mosel near some of the best wine areas of this region. We’ll visit some of the cellars to sample their vintages, and tour the town’s narrow streets and old market square, surrounded with timber-framed houses. B/D
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| Day 8 |
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BERNKASTEL-KUES TO COCHEM
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Your final day of cycling by the Mosel takes you 28 miles downstream past Traben-Trarbach, a town surrounded by both woods and extensive vineyards which is a major center of wine trade in the region. We’ll also ride through Zell, beautifully situated by the meandering river. According to local legend, Noah sent a pair of black cats from his ark to Zell, instructing them to “increase and multiply.” The “Schwarze Katz” that adorns Zell’s houses, signposts and cars is the label on the town’s outstanding wine, made from vineyards that stretch for miles along the valley, even on the steepest hillsides. Among the mountains we pass are the Hoherott and the Corrayer Berg, where grapes for some of the region’s best-known wines are grown. Our destination is the town of Cochem, where steep vineyard-covered mountains and wooded hills frame a picturesque center with beautiful timber-framed houses and a Medieval fortress. Meet the Sailing Home for your farewell dinner and one more night aboard. B/D
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| Day 9 |
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DISEMBARK • DEPART FRANKFURT
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After breakfast, disembark and transfer by coach to Frankfurt for your return flight to the U.S. B
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