Luxury rail holiday to the Thuringian Forest in Germany visiting Erfurt, Eisenach and Meiningen
This rail holiday begins by taking the train from London to Erfurt via Brussels. Evidence of Erfurt’s 1,200-year long history can be seen clearly throughout the city, from the Kramerbrucke (Merchants’ Bridge), the longest Mediaeval bridge in Europe to have inhabited houses, to Erfurt Cathedral, built mostly during the 14th and 15th centuries. You have 5 full days here to explore, during which time you can visit the main sights of the city as well as venture out to explore more of the forest. Make sure to visit Zitadelle Petersburg, the largest and best-preserved Baroque city fortress in Central Europe. This was turned into a tourist attraction after Germany’s reunification and offers wonderful vistas of the city. Erfurt allows easy access to the main routes which navigate the Thuringerwald (Thuringian Forest). The Werra Railway, running from the nearby town of Eisenach, is one of the oldest railway lines in the country and ends in Meiningen, considered the cultural, judicial and financial centre of southern Thuringia. The Ritschenhausen-Neudietendorf route is particularly scenic and exceptionally steeply-graded, running through the Thuringian Forest mountains. The newest of the main lines is the Schwarzatalbahn, having opened in 1900. One particular highlight on this route is the opportunity to take the Oberweißbacher funicular railway up to Oberweißbachen hill, where you can take in magnificent views of the forest. At the end of your time here you return to Brussels via Frankfurt and Cologne, where you will take the Eurostar back to London.
Highlights
Erfurt • Werra Railway • Eisenach • Schwarzatalbahn • Meiningen
Day by day
Begin your Thuringian Forest by rail holiday by travelling from London to Brussels by Eurostar on an early morning departure. Upon reaching Brussels, you travel onwards to Erfurt, changing trains again in Cologne and Frankfurt. Check in to your hotel in Erfurt for 5 nights.
Erfurt is filled with beautiful buildings which play testament to its fascinating history. Perhaps start one of your days here by visiting the food market which takes place in the morning from Monday to Saturday in Domplatz, the largest square in the city. Here you can buy traditional German food such as sausages, cheese and honey, as well as some exotic delicacies. Overlooking this square is the Gothic Erfurt Cathedral. The Cathedral itself was built mostly in the 14th and 15th centuries, but there has been a religious building on this site since St Boniface founded a church in 742. The Mediaeval art inside the Cathedral is almost all original, from its tracery windows to the Wolfram candelabra dating from around the 12th century. Right in the centre of the city is the Zitadelle Petersburg, the best-preserved Baroque city fortress in Central Europe. Founded in 1665, this site was turned into a tourist attraction after Germany’s reunification and now offers amazing views of the city from its parapet wall. Other historical buildings of interest include the Augustinerkloster, where Martin Luther became a monk and stayed between 1505 and 1511, and the Old Synagogue, which may be the best-preserved Mediaeval synagogue in Europe. The Angersmuseum, housed in a beautiful Baroque building, features an extensive range of art from the Middle Ages to the present day. We highly recommend using your time in Erfurt to venture out and explore the railway routes of the Thuringian Forest. The Werra Railway runs mostly along the river of the same name between Eisenach and Eisfeld via Meiningen and is one of the oldest railway lines in Germany. Start your journey by taking one of the regular direct trains from Erfurt to Eisenach. This town was the birthplace of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, and is worth a stop in its own right to visit the Wartburg Castle, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Upon leaving Eisenach you will continue alongside the river through the Werra Valley, a landscape of lush rolling fields. The next main stop is Meiningen, where we recommend disembarking to change to another of the main railway lines, the Ritschenhausen-Neudietendorf line. Meiningen is home to an Elizabethan castle and multiple museums, including the Theatre Museum which provides an insight into the history of the Meiningen theatre, a tradition going back almost 250 years. The Ritschenhausen-Neudietendorf line is much more steeply-graded than the Werra Railway, as it climbs into and across the Thuringian Forest mountains. You will also travel through the 1-mile-long Brandleite tunnel which took almost four years to build. This will take you to Arnstadt in the northern foothills of the Thuringian Forest mountains. Perhaps take the time here to explore the working railway museum before returning via the stunning scenery to your base in Erfurt. The final railway line is the Schwarzatalbahn. This line runs for less than 19 miles yet takes in incredible scenery as it passes through the Thuringian Forest and mountain terrain from Rinnetal, through Tal der Schwarza, before reaching its terminus at Katzhütte. Roughly halfway along the route you will reach Obstfelderschmiede, the starting point of the Oberweißbacher funicular railway. This mountain railway climbs at a 45-degree incline and will take you to the top of Oberweißenbach hill, where you can take in the magnificent views of the surrounding area.
On the final day of your holiday depart from Erfurt at about quarter past 8 in the morning for Brussels, changing trains in Frankfurt and Cologne. Check in for your Eurostar in Brussels which will take you back to London. You arrive into St Pancras in the evening.
My daughter and I had a fabulous time on our holiday. The hotels were all spectacular in their different ways, the train journeys were exciting and gorgeous scenery and the organisation from the various rail networks was spot on.Mrs B, June 2022
Holiday price guide From £1,520 per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room and including second class rail travel. First class and standard premier on Eurostar supplement of £320 per person.
Holiday Code EEBR15
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury rail holiday to the Thuringian Forest in Germany visiting Erfurt, Eisenach and Meiningen
Begin your Thuringian Forest by rail holiday by travelling from London to Brussels by Eurostar on an early morning departure. Upon reaching Brussels, you travel onwards to Erfurt, changing trains again in Cologne and Frankfurt. Check in to your hotel in Erfurt for 5 nights.
Erfurt is filled with beautiful buildings which play testament to its fascinating history. Perhaps start one of your days here by visiting the food market which takes place in the morning from Monday to Saturday in Domplatz, the largest square in the city. Here you can buy traditional German food such as sausages, cheese and honey, as well as some exotic delicacies. Overlooking this square is the Gothic Erfurt Cathedral. The Cathedral itself was built mostly in the 14th and 15th centuries, but there has been a religious building on this site since St Boniface founded a church in 742. The Mediaeval art inside the Cathedral is almost all original, from its tracery windows to the Wolfram candelabra dating from around the 12th century. Right in the centre of the city is the Zitadelle Petersburg, the best-preserved Baroque city fortress in Central Europe. Founded in 1665, this site was turned into a tourist attraction after Germany’s reunification and now offers amazing views of the city from its parapet wall. Other historical buildings of interest include the Augustinerkloster, where Martin Luther became a monk and stayed between 1505 and 1511, and the Old Synagogue, which may be the best-preserved Mediaeval synagogue in Europe. The Angersmuseum, housed in a beautiful Baroque building, features an extensive range of art from the Middle Ages to the present day. We highly recommend using your time in Erfurt to venture out and explore the railway routes of the Thuringian Forest. The Werra Railway runs mostly along the river of the same name between Eisenach and Eisfeld via Meiningen and is one of the oldest railway lines in Germany. Start your journey by taking one of the regular direct trains from Erfurt to Eisenach. This town was the birthplace of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, and is worth a stop in its own right to visit the Wartburg Castle, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Upon leaving Eisenach you will continue alongside the river through the Werra Valley, a landscape of lush rolling fields. The next main stop is Meiningen, where we recommend disembarking to change to another of the main railway lines, the Ritschenhausen-Neudietendorf line. Meiningen is home to an Elizabethan castle and multiple museums, including the Theatre Museum which provides an insight into the history of the Meiningen theatre, a tradition going back almost 250 years. The Ritschenhausen-Neudietendorf line is much more steeply-graded than the Werra Railway, as it climbs into and across the Thuringian Forest mountains. You will also travel through the 1-mile-long Brandleite tunnel which took almost four years to build. This will take you to Arnstadt in the northern foothills of the Thuringian Forest mountains. Perhaps take the time here to explore the working railway museum before returning via the stunning scenery to your base in Erfurt. The final railway line is the Schwarzatalbahn. This line runs for less than 19 miles yet takes in incredible scenery as it passes through the Thuringian Forest and mountain terrain from Rinnetal, through Tal der Schwarza, before reaching its terminus at Katzhütte. Roughly halfway along the route you will reach Obstfelderschmiede, the starting point of the Oberweißbacher funicular railway. This mountain railway climbs at a 45-degree incline and will take you to the top of Oberweißenbach hill, where you can take in the magnificent views of the surrounding area.
On the final day of your holiday depart from Erfurt at about quarter past 8 in the morning for Brussels, changing trains in Frankfurt and Cologne. Check in for your Eurostar in Brussels which will take you back to London. You arrive into St Pancras in the evening.
My daughter and I had a fabulous time on our holiday. The hotels were all spectacular in their different ways, the train journeys were exciting and gorgeous scenery and the organisation from the various rail networks was spot on.Mrs B, June 2022
Holiday price guide From £1,520 per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room and including second class rail travel. First class and standard premier on Eurostar supplement of £320 per person.
Holiday Code EEBR15
Our prices include
● Rail travel from London throughout, back to London
● Second-class travel on all trains (first class and standard premier on Eurostar can be booked at a supplement)
● 5 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Premium double room at Hotel Domizil, Erfurt
● Rail travel from London throughout, back to London
● Concierge service and Expressions Holidays regional helpful hints
Our prices do not include
● Early check-in or late check-out at any hotels (although we can arrange this on request at additional cost)
● Any other services not mentioned above, such as transfers and meals except breakfast at hotels
● Personal holiday insurance. This is essential and cover should be in place from when you book the holiday.
● Local tourist tax, usually between Euros 1 and 3 per person per night, and payable locally to the hotel
● Transfers in any cities
Additional information This holiday can be arranged throughout the year. Timings can vary depending on the month and day of the week
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury rail holiday to the Thuringian Forest in Germany visiting Erfurt, Eisenach and Meiningen
My daughter and I had a fabulous time on our holiday. The hotels were all spectacular in their different ways, the train journeys were exciting and gorgeous scenery and the organisation from the various rail networks was spot on.Mrs B, June 2022
Holiday price guide From £1,520 per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room and including second class rail travel. First class and standard premier on Eurostar supplement of £320 per person.
Holiday Code EEBR15
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury rail holiday to the Thuringian Forest in Germany visiting Erfurt, Eisenach and Meiningen
About Germany
An Expressions tailor-made holiday to Germany enables travellers to experience a fascinating and richly varied country. Germany is replete with regional quirks and personalities - a strong feature of German life and a hangover from the days, not too long ago, when the country was once a patchwork of independent states. Today, to travel from the ancient ports of the north, across the open fields of the German plain, and down through the Ruhr and onto the forests, mountains and cosmopolitan cities of Germany’s Bavarian south, you’ll experience an intriguing variety as great – and appealing – as you’d find anywhere else in Europe. Several of Germany’s cities have the air of national capitals. Cologne, though enmeshed in one of Europe’s most intensively industrialised regions, is rich in monuments. Bavaria’s capital, Munich, is another star attraction, with great museums and galleries. Berlin, the nucleus of the turmoil of reunification, is now one of the most sophisticated, artistic and exciting cities on the planet, while Nuremberg is thrillingly ancient, with the most charming of winter markets in the 11th century square, and summer festivals when the cobbled streets come alive with street artists and musicians. Scattered between these city big-hitters, quieter, utterly charming cities and large towns abound, with medieval old towns straight out of fairy-tale picture books. Heidelberg, the oldest university town in Germany, is an absolute gem, nestling between wooded hills on the banks of the Neckar river, a setting that has seduced visitors ever since the days of the Grand Tour. But from Trier to Bamberg, Marburg to Meissen, Regensburg to Rothenburg, enchanting old towns abound. Beyond Germany’s beautiful cities and towns, the Bavarian Alps, right on Munich’s doorstep, are a spectacular playground for hikers and bikers, horse-riders and skiers. The Rhine and Mosel are both littered with castles and vineyards, offering an enchanting backdrop for the cruise boats that drift serenely along their waters. And stretching more than 100 miles north to south, and 45 miles from east to west, the Black Forest is awash with pretty spa towns and exquisite health resorts, crisscrossed with walking trails. The Black Forest also boasts some of the most spectacular rail journals on the planet. A beautiful, intriguing country vastly at odds with its stiff stereotype, Germany is a wonderful holiday destination for active outdoorsy types and city-breakers alike.
Highlights of Germany
Berlin’s world-class museums, bustling bars, galleries and monuments; Rugen Island, with its rugged chalk cliffs, windswept beaches, Romantic-era spa architecture and tree-lined country roads; Dresden, with its baroque beauty on the banks of the majestic Elbe; Cologne’s magnificent cathedral; the UNESCO World Heritage city of Bamberg; the sandy dunes of Sylt, a North Sea island with fabulous beaches and surf; the beer halls of Munich, ideally in September during the Oktoberfest; Lubeck, a Hanseatic gem; Muritz National Park, where you can go paddling and camping in a paradise teeming with birds; Bremen, a metropolis in miniature, with lovely red-brick and Art Nouveau architecture; the Alpine resorts of Bavaria, including Berchtesgaden, with dramatic peaks, dreamy lakes and superb walking trails; drive or cruise along the Rhine or Mosel, visiting castles, medieval villages and superb vineyards along the way; the walled medieval towns of Rothenburg and Trier, both with wonderful Christmas markets; the Christmas market at Nuremberg, oldest – and still most picturesque – in the world.
Facts in brief
Capital BerlinAirport Several airports are served from the UK, including Berlin, Bremen, Cologne-Bonn, Dortmund, Dresden, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hannover, Stuttgart and Munich.
Size 137,000 sq. miles
Population 82 million
