Regnitz vallei reis in Duitsland

Check in: 3:30 PM – 4:00 PM. 4:30 PM, Merlijn will set sail for Erlangen where there is an overnight stay. We’ll present you with a welcome drink and introduce the crew. We will also provide information on the tour, the ship, and hold a safety briefing. After we depart from Nürnberg, we’ll soon pass the first lock of many on this trip: each lock will take us one step further down the mountain we’re navigating, just like a stairway! While you enjoy the afternoon cruise from our cosy lounge or one of the terraces Merlijn offers, you’ll get a last glimpse of Nürnberg while sailing through the city. Dinner will be served during the day’s cruise. In the evening there will be an opportunity for an after-dinner stroll.

After breakfast and a bike introduction, your cycle tour will start. Today’s tour will lead you through the fields of the ‘Regnitz valley’, which, from south to north, connects the cities of Nürnberg, Fürth, Erlangen and Forchheim. The roads are well paved as it is an official ‘Radweg’ (cycle route). Enjoy the wonderful natural surroundings of what is generally considered to be Germany’s most beautiful bike route!

We are offering 2 bicycle route options for the day:

• the ‘Canal Route’, length: 45 km, which leads you mostly along the canal and several interesting towns.
• the ‘The Valley Route’ length: 57 km, which will lead you through the valley, and which is not only longer but also steeper! Both routes cross each other several times, especially at the must-see city of Forcheim with its half-timber houses and its old guard house.

Your first cycling day ends in Bamberg, a very charming, historic bishops’ town, and home to Villa Concordia, the historic lock 100, water castle, baroque house on the bridge, and the former fishing settlement of Klein Venedig (Little Venice) - all emphasizing the close connection between town and river. Don’t forget to try a ‘Currywurst mit Brötchen’: a type of fine German pork sausage typically steamed and seasoned with curry ketchup! You’ll be offered an included guided beer-themed city tour, because Bamberg is known as the city of beer after all!

Merlijn will await you outside the city, and after your visit to the town, you will ride your bike to the ship. Dinner will be served on board.

We’ll leave the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal, which has connected the River Rhine to the River Danube since 1992, behind us, and head towards a new region. Merlijn will sail the River Main, which is a natural river, tempered with locks and dams.

After breakfast on board, the guided bike tour will start. You will bike along the ‘Main Radweg’ today. The slogan the Germans use to describe this bike path is ‘cycle, marvel and enjoy’! The route will follow the river, passing by several vineyards, the famous Maria Limbach pilgrimage church, and several little towns filled with half-timber houses. We’ll cycle on to the town of Eltmann and then head for Hassfurt, famous for its late Gothic Ritter chapel and late Gothic church in the market square. Merlijn awaits you at the edge of the city to take you on an afternoon cruise, or you can extend your bike tour and peddle on to Schweinfurt, where Merlijn will dock in the city. Schweinfurt has an old centre full of cosy little areas, as well as a town hall, tower and marketplace, with dozens of artificial ‘Schweine’ (pigs) dotted all around the town.

Breakfast is taken on board, after which we’ll set off for the ‘Main Radweg’ once more. Just before the Main Valley slowly opens up, and less vineyards are visible, we can visit a cultural highlight: the pilgrimage church ‘Maria im Weingarten’, where the famous ‘Madonna im Rosenkranz’ by Tilman Riemenschneider is displayed. The tour will end in Volkach, where Merlijn awaits you. Dinner is served on board, and afterwards there is an included wine-tasting session in town.

Another delicious breakfast is served on board, after which the bike tour will start. You’ll pass villages that wine connoisseurs will be familiar with, such as Nordheim and Sommerach. Further along the bike path, we’ll pass the ancient towns of Dettelbach, where you might like to try some traditional German sweets from the bakery, and Kitzingen, famous for its leaning tower. Today’s destination is the charming village of Marktbreit, where you’ll have the chance to enjoy dinner in the evening at a local restaurant, at your own expense.

Today, the bike tour will lead you further on along the river Main, leaving behind Marktbreit and its historic centre. The next port of call is Würzburg, which is a definite highlight of the trip. Explore this beautiful Baroque city and visit the ‘Würzburg Residence”, which was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Enjoy a guided tour of the Residence, after which you will make your way to the ship. In the evening, a captain’s dinner will be served on board.

After breakfast, it is time to say goodbye and continue your European trip or leave for the airport.