Central Europe: Austria, Germany & Czech Rep. Meets Thread

[PixiePrincess310]

I have just joined the boards after lurking for awhile. My daughters and I have signed up for this trip next year. We will be going on the June 14th. We are so excited. This will be our 3rd ABD. We have done Viva Italia in 2007 and Esprit de France last year. We are trying to decide to add another day in Prague. What do you think?

Definitely do it. There is so much to see in Prague! My DH and I will be there 3 days early.

 

[disneyphx]

Just wondering what everyone else is doing on their pre-days? I am kind of tempted to do the silver mine and bone church in Kutna Hora - or could just wander around prague? We will have been in Europe for 12 days or so, so jet lag recovery is not an issue....but travel exhaustion might be.
We are on July 5 - kind of worried about the 40+ people.....
Oh, and has anyone had Jennae as a guide? she is doing some of the Central Europe trips. She was our guide on a trip last year and she is awesome!

 

[Marthasor]

Just wondering what everyone else is doing on their pre-days? I am kind of tempted to do the silver mine and bone church in Kutna Hora - or could just wander around prague? We will have been in Europe for 12 days or so, so jet lag recovery is not an issue....but travel exhaustion might be.
We are on July 5 - kind of worried about the 40+ people.....
Oh, and has anyone had Jennae as a guide? she is doing some of the Central Europe trips. She was our guide on a trip last year and she is awesome!

We are arriving in Prague on July 10 for our July 12 ABD, so I'm trying to figure this out myself right now! I called ABD to find out what exactly was on the 3-hour walking tour provided by ABD, so I could book a private tour to supplement what they are doing.

Here is the info we got from ABD:

"We visit the sites listed on the website and only go into St. Vitus Cathedral. We are on the grounds of the Castle (can’t go inside), walk down the Golden Lane, across the Charles Bridge, through the city streets. This is a 3 hour walking tour that also includes a short boat cruise down the river."

I have been in contact with Caput Regni Private Tours to put together another half day tour for us to cover the things we won't see with ABD - most likely Lesser Town, possibly the interior of Prague Castle and maybe the old Jewish Quarter. I found them on trip advisor and she adjusts her tours for younger children (we are traveling with our 6-year old). We will then have one "down day" to wander on our own before the ABD starts. Very excited!

 

[Calfan]

Just wondering what everyone else is doing on their pre-days? I am kind of tempted to do the silver mine and bone church in Kutna Hora - or could just wander around prague? We will have been in Europe for 12 days or so, so jet lag recovery is not an issue....but travel exhaustion might be.
We are on July 5 - kind of worried about the 40+ people.....
Oh, and has anyone had Jennae as a guide? she is doing some of the Central Europe trips. She was our guide on a trip last year and she is awesome!

We are arriving in Prague on July 1 for the July 5 departure. We have tickets to tour Karlstjen Castle on July 4. We are also considering the half day trip to Kutna Hora. Other than that, we want to cover the parts of Prague that won't be included in the ABD. The info from the PP was helpful. I am hoping that folks taking earlier trips will also post to let us know exactly what is covered in the ABD walking tour. We want to see the parts of a Prague Castle that we won't see with ABD and the Jewish Cemetery. I have the Lonely Planet pocket guide to Prague that has lots of good info for sightseeing.

 

[aggiemomx3]

Definitely do it. There is so much to see in Prague! My DH and I will be there 3 days early.

My daughters and I are going to spend one pre day in Prague and one post day in Vienna. We are so looking forward to meeting you! The last time we called this trip was full. It should be a lot of fun.

 

[west&east]

The recent posts make me realize I need to start thinking of how to spend our pre days. We are on the July 5th tour. The tour doesn't actually start until dinner that evening correct? We arrive midday on July 3rd so want to do as others have posted and see things that we won't experience with ABD. Jewish Quarter would be important to us. Wondering if we should do a day trip on the 4th or 5th.

I am also a bit worried about a full tour but hope that we will all feel personalized service!

 

[west&east]

Here is the info we got from ABD:

"We visit the sites listed on the website and only go into St. Vitus Cathedral. We are on the grounds of the Castle (can’t go inside), walk down the Golden Lane, across the Charles Bridge, through the city streets. This is a 3 hour walking tour that also includes a short boat cruise down the river."

I have been in contact with Caput Regni Private Tours to put together another half day tour for us to cover the things we won't see with ABD - most likely Lesser Town, possibly the interior of Prague Castle and maybe the old Jewish Quarter. I found them on trip advisor and she adjusts her tours for younger children (we are traveling with our 6-year old). We will then have one "down day" to wander on our own before the ABD starts. Very excited!

What castle do we go to the grounds of? The Prague Castle? I don't see this on the ABD itinerary? Is there something on the grounds of the castle that we can/ should book independently that we won't be doing with ABD? Is it even possible to go to the interior of the Prague Castle? Will we enter the Old Royal Palace?

Guess I need to get a Prague guidebook!

 

[wdwtheplacetobe]

Excited to hear about all the trips...

 

[sayhello]

Excited to hear about all the trips...

Me, too!!!

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

So I've signed up for the Adults Only Central Europe trip Sep 4 - 12, 2015!!!

I think it sounds like a fabulous itinerary. Looking forward to hearing what you guys thought!

Sayhello

 

[west&east]

Got a call from ABD today. They said they are over capacity at Bertschegaden and asked if we would be willing to all share a room (since we are a family of 4 we are booked as 2 reservations, 2 rooms). We were told we would have a king and 2 rollaways in a larger room that is 30 meters larger than standard and a full mountain view. Of course I accepted it as it is better than risking not having connecting rooms but I hope that it is comfortable for the 4 of us as I know European rooms tend to be small. I also hate to say it but I wonder if I should have requested a financial compensation. Thoughts?

 

[sayhello]

Got a call from ABD today. They said they are over capacity at Bertschegaden and asked if we would be willing to all share a room (since we are a family of 4 we are booked as 2 reservations, 2 rooms). We were told we would have a king and 2 rollaways in a larger room that is 30 meters larger than standard and a full mountain view. Of course I accepted it as it is better than risking not having connecting rooms but I hope that it is comfortable for the 4 of us as I know European rooms tend to be small. I also hate to say it but I wonder if I should have requested a financial compensation. Thoughts?

The only thing I would say is, if it *isn't* acceptable, make sure your Adventure Guides know. They'll do whatever they can to make things right. If the hotel is full, they may not be able to do anything about it, but they should know.

If 4 people in a room is cheaper than 2 reservations with 2 rooms, it couldn't hurt to ask them to pro-rate the difference. After all, that's more than 1/3 of the trip.

Sayhello

 

[west&east]

The only thing I would say is, if it *isn't* acceptable, make sure your Adventure Guides know. They'll do whatever they can to make things right. If the hotel is full, they may not be able to do anything about it, but they should know.

If 4 people in a room is cheaper than 2 reservations with 2 rooms, it couldn't hurt to ask them to pro-rate the difference. After all, that's more than 1/3 of the trip.

Sayhello

Thanks. Apparently price is same for the quad so I think we will enjoy the daily togetherness in Germany and the two rooms in Prague and Vienna.

BTW, they changed the hotel in Vienna for 2015 to the Palais Hansen Kempinski Vienna. I wonder why and hope its not out of any issue with the Ritz.

 

[sayhello]

Thanks. Apparently price is same for the quad so I think we will enjoy the daily togetherness in Germany and the two rooms in Prague and Vienna.

BTW, they changed the hotel in Vienna for 2015 to the Palais Hansen Kempinski Vienna. I wonder why and hope its not out of any issue with the Ritz.

Hmmm, I hadn't noticed that. The itinerary says the Ritz-Carlton *or* the Kempinski. I wonder if that's because they still have 2014 trips to go, or because they had capacity issues at the Ritz-Carlton for some departures. Maybe I'll call ABD and ask. At least find out which my departure will be going to.

Sayhello

 

[west&east]

Hmmm, I hadn't noticed that. The itinerary says the Ritz-Carlton *or* the Kempinski. I wonder if that's because they still have 2014 trips to go, or because they had capacity issues at the Ritz-Carlton for some departures. Maybe I'll call ABD and ask. At least find out which my departure will be going to.

Sayhello

I'm going off what it said on the Dreams Unlimited site when I did a dummy quote. Maybe they have it wrong. I was only going to that website because it has info about how they accommodate doubles vs. quads but you have to get to the booking page to see it.

Let us know what you find out.

 

[kristilew]

So happy for all of you doing this trip! I spent a lovely week in Prague a couple of summer ago, happily exploring on my own. A few things I did that I wanted to suggest:

For those wondering about seeing the Jewish quarter, yes definitely do it. Very moving. You buy tickets at the first sight and then follow a map to several others, with an audio tour you can take with you from place to place.

On the grounds of Prague Castle, do not miss the Lobkowicz Palace. It's easy to miss, because the entrance is just tucked in along a wall, but WOW! Ahead of time, you can download Rick Steve's podcast "An American Nobleman in Prague" to get the history of the family and palace and hear from the current prince, William Lobcowicz, who reclaimed the family inheritance after the fall of Communism. This same man narrates the superb audio tour onsite, in which he not only describes the rooms and artwork, but the process of reclaiming and restoring all of it. Truly a fascinating story and I felt like I much better understood the history of the area after doing this.

Other neat things to do include climbing to the top of the bell tower of St. Nicholas church, where it is still set up for Iron Curtain era spying on the citizens below, and a walk around the Loreto, a small pilgrimage church. Anyone doing this trip with teenage daughters may want to plan an hour or so in the Museum of Decorative Arts, with its floors of prewar fashion.

This is such a beautiful, walkable, enjoyable city. You're going to love it!

 

[sayhello]

So happy for all of you doing this trip! I spent a lovely week in Prague a couple of summer ago, happily exploring on my own. A few things I did that I wanted to suggest:

For those wondering about seeing the Jewish quarter, yes definitely do it. Very moving. You buy tickets at the first sight and then follow a map to several others, with an audio tour you can take with you from place to place.

On the grounds of Prague Castle, do not miss the Lobkowicz Palace. It's easy to miss, because the entrance is just tucked in along a wall, but WOW! Ahead of time, you can download Rick Steve's podcast "An American Nobleman in Prague" to get the history of the family and palace and hear from the current prince, William Lobcowicz, who reclaimed the family inheritance after the fall of Communism. This same man narrates the superb audio tour onsite, in which he not only describes the rooms and artwork, but the process of reclaiming and restoring all of it. Truly a fascinating story and I felt like I much better understood the history of the area after doing this.

Other neat things to do include climbing to the top of the bell tower of St. Nicholas church, where it is still set up for Iron Curtain era spying on the citizens below, and a walk around the Loreto, a small pilgrimage church. Anyone doing this trip with teenage daughters may want to plan an hour or so in the Museum of Decorative Arts, with its floors of prewar fashion.

This is such a beautiful, walkable, enjoyable city. You're going to love it!

Ooo, thanks, kristilew! This all sounds great! I love a pretty, walkable city! Definitely noting this all down!

Sayhello

 

[carpenta]

One book we felt that was very helpful in Prague was "Prague" printed by DK Eyewitness Travel. Great pictures and history with maps included. We LOVED Prague and plan to return. Three days is not enough IMO.

 

[tufbuf]

So happy for all of you doing this trip! I spent a lovely week in Prague a couple of summer ago, happily exploring on my own. A few things I did that I wanted to suggest: For those wondering about seeing the Jewish quarter, yes definitely do it. Very moving. You buy tickets at the first sight and then follow a map to several others, with an audio tour you can take with you from place to place. On the grounds of Prague Castle, do not miss the Lobkowicz Palace. It's easy to miss, because the entrance is just tucked in along a wall, but WOW! Ahead of time, you can download Rick Steve's podcast "An American Nobleman in Prague" to get the history of the family and palace and hear from the current prince, William Lobcowicz, who reclaimed the family inheritance after the fall of Communism. This same man narrates the superb audio tour onsite, in which he not only describes the rooms and artwork, but the process of reclaiming and restoring all of it. Truly a fascinating story and I felt like I much better understood the history of the area after doing this. Other neat things to do include climbing to the top of the bell tower of St. Nicholas church, where it is still set up for Iron Curtain era spying on the citizens below, and a walk around the Loreto, a small pilgrimage church. Anyone doing this trip with teenage daughters may want to plan an hour or so in the Museum of Decorative Arts, with its floors of prewar fashion. This is such a beautiful, walkable, enjoyable city. You're going to love it!

These are great suggestions! We are planning to do Prague on our own next spring break. We are doing a river cruise on the Danube this summer and I feel like we missed out not visiting Prague. No time to do a side trip and I know it's a fabulous city and one of the cities I want to visit!

 

[WDWMaggie]

Hello everyone! I'm looking at the September 4th 2015 adults only trip for my Mom and I. This will be my 4th ABD and my Mom's 3rd.

I think we're going to finalize details this week. I think we'll do one pre-night before the trip and two nights before that in Paris since my Mom has never been. I'm going to surprise her with the Paris part…not tell her until we get to the airport. Everyone MUST see the Eiffel Tower!