Courtesy: Punctuality, courteousness, and patience will be required of all tour participants.
Arrival Day: The tour will begin with check-in at a hotel at/near the Munich International Airport (MUC) at 15:00 (or after) on Saturday, 18 May 2024 (Tour A) or Saturday, 27 July 2024 (Tour B). There are no planned tour activities on May 18 or July 24, but we will communicate to you what your tour guides are planning to do for dinner that evening.
Arrival day can be exhausting. The best way to adjust to the time change is to adapt your behavior to the local time of day. After a full night’s sleep, everyone should feel well rested and ready to begin exploring our ancestral homeland.
Please meet in the hotel lobby (with your luggage) at 08:00 on Sunday. Please be checked out so that we can load the bus and depart promptly at 08:30.
Packing Suggestions: Pack light! Participants will be responsible for loading their luggage on and off buses and into hotels.
1) Please use suitcases with 4 independent wheels.
2) Pack comfortable shoes and a small umbrella or raincoat, and bring sun screen.
3) Leave valuable jewelry at home.
4) Keep all prescription medication in its original container. Customs officials may want to verify that a container’s contents match its label.
5) If you use prescription medication, bring a copy of the prescription for safekeeping.
6) Travelers who wear contact lenses or glasses should bring a back-up pair and a copy of their prescription.
7) Electrical current in Germany is 230V with 50Hz power outlets. Sockets are standard European-size for double round-pin plugs. Bring a converter if you’re bringing any electrical equipment or appliance.
Example of an electrical outlet in Germany.
Example of adapters for two prong and three prong appliances typically found in North America.
Restrooms & Convenience Stores: We will be traveling to very small towns that may not have public restrooms or convenience stores. However, there will be a bathroom on the motorcoach. You may find it useful to bring a small carry-on (like a backpack) for the daily bus trips and fill it each day with necessities like medications, toilet paper, hand sanitizer, sun screen, and bottled water.
Tipping: There is no hard and fast rule about the acceptable amount to tip in Germany. The general custom is a nominal tip, as indicated by the German word for tip (Trinkgeld, or money for a drink). Many people simply round off the bill to the next euro or add a couple more, which is perfectly acceptable.
Currency and Spending Money: The currency in Germany is the Euro. Most restaurants and shops will accept Visa and Mastercard. However, you must contact your credit card company prior to departure and inform them of your travel plans so that your card will work in Germany. Debit cards will work in most bank ATM machines as well, but you must also inform your bank about the dates you will be out of the U.S. ATMs are plentiful and will dispense local currency (Euros). Travelers’ Cheques are not recommended.
Cell phones: If you want your cell phone to work in Germany, you will need to make arrangements for this with your provider before you leave your home country. Cell coverage should be good throughout our trip, but is not guaranteed.
Time Zones: We will be 6 hours ahead of Eastern Time (New York); 7 hours ahead of Central Time (Chicago); 8 hours ahead of Mountain Time (Denver), and 9 hours ahead of Pacific Time (Seattle).
More travel tips will be sent before the departure.
Volga German Tours to Germany in 2024 