Germany & Switzerland

Price Per person Based on Double Occupancy and a minimum of 20 passengers

Date	Price	Single Supplement
March 29 – April 8, 2027	$4,619*	$800
*Airfare not included. Roundtrip airfare from Los Angeles will be available to add on by mid-May 2026. Reservation Due: December 9, 2026 Final Payment Due: January 18, 2027

Included

9 nights lodging at 4-star hotels (or similar) including city taxes, Breakfast and dinner daily, Full time English-speaking Tour Escort, local guides as needed, All transportation and entrances as per itinerary, Services of long-distance deluxe motor coach as appearing on itinerary, Baggage handling at hotels where available (one piece per person), Whisper/Listening devices, Tips to tour escort, guides, drivers and hotel staff, 1 group arrival transfer and 1 group departure transfer, Pilgrim Payment Processing for check, Visa, MasterCard or Discover

Not Included

Airfare, All lunches and drinks with meals except as noted in itinerary, Optional Travel Insurance – 7.95% or 10.85% of tour cost (rates current as of quote date)

Drew Ross serves as pastor at Christ Lutheran Church in Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach. He is married to Sarah, currently a first-grade teacher, and they have been blessed with three children: Espen, Isly, and Esti. Together, they have led and participated in multiple church trips, including journeys to the Holy Land, Egypt, and most recently “Walking in Paul’s Footsteps” through Greece.

Tour Membership Instructions: To join the tour, please complete the online reservation and deposit. The group leader(s) will then reach out to you via email or phone to touch base briefly to share a few details about the group so you can both ensure you will be comfortable traveling together. Upon approval from the group leader(s), you will be officially added to the tour. Should you for any reason not be added to the tour at that time, you will receive a full refund of your deposit. Once added to the tour, the regular cancellation policy applies.

Day 1 – Monday, March 29: Depart USA

Enjoy your overnight flight to Berlin with dinner en route.

Day 2 – Tuesday, March 30: Berlin

Upon arrival this morning, we will be met and taken on a brief tour of Berlin. View the remains of the Wall, drive by Brandenburg Gate and other sights before continuing on to our lodging for the night in Berlin. Any remaining time is free to do some exploring on your own, shop, and catch up on some needed rest.

Day 3 – Wednesday, March 31: Wittenberg, Eisleben

Today we begin the Reformation Trail to Wittenberg where Martin Luther lived and taught for 36 years. You will see the Castle Church door where Luther posted his 95 Theses, giving birth to the Reformation. This beautiful church is also the burial site of Luther. We see the university where Luther taught and the Luther House which is the greatest museum of Reformation History in the world. This afternoon we visit Eisleben which is noted among the most significant in Luther's history; he was born here in 1483 and died here in 1546 and old manuscripts indicate that he felt a special affinity to Eisleben. We will see the house of his birth and death, St. Andrews Church where he preached his last sermon, the Luther Monument, and St. Anne's Church with the famous Biblical scenes hewn in stone and many other sites. Overnight in nearby Halle. (NOTE: Luther’s House is currently closed for renovations, due to open Spring 2027 – exact date not yet known. If not yet open in March 2027, an outside view will still be included with a visit to the next door Augusteum which currently houses a Luther museum exhibit.)

Day 4 – Thursday, April 1: Erfurt, Eisenach, Coburg

Departing Halle early this morning, we continue to Erfurt, where Luther attended the university. We will visit the Augustinian Monastery where he spent his early years as a monk. Our next stop is Eisenach, birthplace of Johann Sebastian Bach. It was here at the formidable Wartburg Castle that Luther, under "house arrest", translated the New Testament into the German language in 1523. We then tour on through scenic Thuringer Wald to view the fortress of Coburg know as Veste, the place of Luther's imprisonment in 1530. Our day will end at a restful hotel near Wurzburg, where a well-deserved supper and lodging for the night awaits.

Day 5 – Friday, April 2: Heidelburg, Worms

This morning we travel to one of the most charming cities in all of the world - Heidelberg, ancient capital of the Palatinate and home of Germany's oldest university. But most importantly, it was a stronghold of 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, a most 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. Our next stop today is in Worms. It was here, during the Imperial Diet in 1521, that Martin Luther challenged the entire Roman Catholic establishment by his refusal to recant the great doctrines of Protestantism. It was also here that William Tyndale completed the printing of his English version of the New Testament in 1525 which he had begun in Cologne. After seeing St. Peter's Church and the symbolic Luther memorial near the town square we make our way to Mainz for dinner and lodging for the next two evenings.

Day 6 – Saturday, April 3: Mainz, Rhine River Cruise

Today we take a guided tour of the Gutenberg Museum and Monument dedicated the German printing of the Bible and a visit to the Stephanskirche. Following this, we enjoy a delightful and picturesque Rhine River cruise from St. Goarshausen, past magnificent castles and the famous Loreley Rock to charming Rudesheim; lunch options will be available to purchase on board. We will then take a cable car over vineyards to the Germania Monument with a gorgeous Rhein view, followed by a tour at St. Hildegard Abbey. Here, we'll enjoy a relaxed group meal and learn about life in the abbey. Return to Mainz for overnight.

Day 7 – Sunday, April 4: Strasbourg

We will drive to Strasbourg, France this morning. Strasbourg is also referred to as the “City of Hope” or “Refuge of the Righteous” by the Anabaptists. Martin Bucer was a Reformation leader here and warmly welcomed John Calvin, who spent several years pastoring the French church and writing his famous books on systematic theology. Our tour will include the Cathedral of Strasbourg with its amazing Astronomical Clock, St. Thomas's Church, the Statue of the Reformers in the University. Dinner tonight at a local restaurant. Overnight in Strasbourg.

Day 8 – Monday, April 5: Constance, Zurich

Traveling westward brings us to a resort town on the border of Germany and Switzerland, Constance. Some historians suggest that it is here that the Reformation actually got its start in 1415, with the execution of Bohemian reformer John Huss. You will see the house in which he faced his accusers and the place just outside the main town where he was burned at the stake. On the way to Switzerland, you will stop near Schaffhausen to view the Rhine Falls, the most powerful waterfalls in Germany. Overnight in Zurich.

Day 9 – Tuesday, April 6: Zwingli's Zurich

Zurich is definitely a combination of the old and the new. It is divided (as are many European cities) into the modern cosmopolitan district and the Auld Stadt (old city). Most of the morning will be spent seeing the sights connected with Ulrich Zwingli. It was in Zurich where the Reformed branch of the Reformation got its start under his leadership beginning in 1520. Today you will see his monument, the church where he was pastor (the Grossmunster), and the Guild Hall and Museum in which you will find artifacts and works of art associated with the Reformation. Zurich is also the origin of the Swiss Brethren Anabaptist Movement. It had its start in the home of Felix Manz in 1525. Its location is a few blocks from Zwingli's church.

Day 10 – Wednesday, April 7: Grindelwald

We will leave Zurich early and head high up to Grindelwald, nestled in the Swiss Alps. This is our fun Alps play day! The roundtrip mountain train ride from Grindelwald to Junfraujoch is included in our tour cost. All activities are optional today; possibilities would be a cruise on the lake, visit the mountain adventure hub, or just stroll around the village. Return to the hotel in Zurich.

Day 11 – Thursday, April 8: Return Home

We transfer to the airport for our homeward journey.

Itinerary subject to change while touring for the best interest of the group.