Secret Waterways of Germany: Amsterdam to Hamburg

Day 1 UK to Amsterdam to Lemmer

Fly to Amsterdam where you'll embark MS Johannes Brahms.

Enjoy a welcome drink and dinner on board tonight as you cruise across IJsselmeer, an artificial lake created by closing off the Zuiderzee (South Sea) from the Wadden Sea.

Arrive in Lemmer late tonight, where the ship will remain moored.

Day 2 Lemmer to Groningen

Set sail early this morning and enjoy breakfast and a leisurely lunch on board as you sail along the Princess Margriet canal, through extensive polders (reclaimed land).

MS Johannes Brahms will arrive in the lively university city of Groningen this afternoon where you'll moor overnight.

Day 3 Groningen

Today look forward to an included walking tour.

Often referred to as the 'Metropolis of the North', Groningen, as with many other Dutch cities, has a number of canals running through its historic centre. In the Grote Markt square you’ll see the Gothic Martini Tower next to the Martini Church. Contrast this with the quirky, ultra modern Groninger Museum of Art. The rest of the day and evening are at leisure.

Moor here overnight.

Day 4 Groningen to Oldenburg

Leave Groningen before breakfast and cruise along the Canal van Starkenborgh and the Eems Canal across the border to Herbrum, so passengers can disembark to join an optional excursion to the Meyer Werft shipyard, located in Papenburg on the River Ems. 

Your cruise continues to Dörpen where excursion participants rejoin the ship.

Sail to Oldenburg for the night.

Day 5 Oldenburg to Bremen 🎧

Depart Oldenburg early this morning and sail to Bremen, arriving this afternoon.

After lunch, explore this Hanseatic city on an included tour. Attractions include St Peter's Cathedral whose history spans 1,200 years and the 15th-century UNESCO-listed town hall, both in the market square. Close to the town hall is the statue of the Bremen Town Musicians, the characters in a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. The Schnoor quarter is a maze of streets of tiny 15th and 16th-century houses while the bohemian area offers quirky shops, galleries and museums.

Day 6 Bremen to Nienburg

Depart Bremen before breakfast. Cruise through a meadow landscape to the picturesque city of Nienburg, on the banks of the River Weser. Arrive late this afternoon and moor overnight. The historic city has an array of half-timbered buildings, a pretty statue of the city symbol – the Little Nienburg Girl – created to mark the city’s 950th anniversary in 1979 and even an Asparagus Museum!

Day 7 Nienburg to Hanover

Depart early and sail through the morning.

Perhaps take an optional tour of the city of Minden this afternoon. Later, MS Johannes Brahms negotiates the Schachtscleuse lock from the River Weser to the Midland Canal, continuing along the canal – Germany's longest artificial waterway – to Sachsenhagen, then on to Hanover.

Arrive late tonight and moor. 

Day 8 Hanover to Wolfsburg

Enjoy an included full-day excursion to the Harz Mountains, northern Germany's highest range.

You'll visit the historic UNESCO-listed towns of Goslar, whose streets are lined with half-timbered houses, and Wernigerode, a beautiful, medieval city dominated by a hilltop castle.

After rejoining your ship in Wolfsburg, continue your cruise overnight.

Day 9 Scharnebeck to Geesthact

After breakfast moor in Scharnebeck from where you can join an optional trip to the romantic city of Lüneburg, a picturesque Hanseatic town, once a trade hub thanks to its lucrative salt mines. Cruise through the afternoon to reach Geesthacht where you will moor overnight. 

Day 10 Geesthact to Hamburg 🎧

Cruise through the morning to arrive in Hamburg at lunchtime.

The modern and dynamic city has a rich maritime heritage stemming from its bustling sea port. Germany’s second-largest city – with a history dating back to Charlemagne – is a vibrant home to art and culture, extensive shopping facilities, baroque buildings and waterfront vistas. This is a city with something for everyone and you can see the highlights on an optional tour this afternoon. British visitors who remember the Swinging Sixties may like to visit the streets around Grosse Freiheit, where an unknown pop group called The Beatles gave their first public performances in various local clubs before achieving worldwide fame. There's also a vast network of canals – crossed by more bridges than any other city in the world.

Day 11 Hamburg to UK

After breakfast, disembark MS Johannes Brahms and travel to the airport for your return flight to the UK.