Who we are: Mike, Liz, Lauren (12) and Haley(7)
The specifics about our travel dates: Left Ohare on May 29th at 6:30p.m. for a non stop flight to Frankfurt. Arrived at 10:00 a.m on the 30th.
Our adventure begins- we were met at baggage claim by a ABD rep. who showed us where the bathrooms were, grabbed our luggage and helped us get through customs. We walked to a bus where there were three other families waiting for us. One of our guides(Jason) met us at the bus, introduced himself to us and off we went. I was so tired I slept on the bus but I think it was about an hour drive.
We arrived at the Crowne Plaza in Heidelberg, met our other Adventure Guide(Steph.). They took care of checking us in and we went to check out our room. We were given a family suite with two queen size beds, two rollaways, a seating area and of course a bathroom. By this time it was about 1:00p.m and we had our welcome reception at 6:00p.m. We decided to explore the city. The guides gave us directions to find good shopping and off we went. We took time just enjoying the sights. We also discovered a bakery and had our first of many pretzels. Our seven year old probably ate 10 during our trip.
At 6:00p.m. we attended the welcome dinner and met all the others in our group. We all seemed to become friends instantly. We had 40 in our group and 10 of those were children. It was a good mix of people. Some had kids others didn't.
During the welcome reception we played a get-to-know each other game that was very non-threatening to those of us that are a little shy. Dinner was served buffet style and there were choices that seemed to please everyone.
When we got back to the room we looked through our guide book to get ready for the next day. They give you a guide book to tell you what time you have to be ready for the different meals and outings. The times were not too early usually.
Day 2- Heidelberg Castle. We met the first of two Disney hired character/ guides that took us through the castle. We spent alot of time at this castle and were given a historical account of the castle with the help of several historical characters along the way. After the castle tour we had time to explore Heidelberg on our own. We walked down 380 stairs to get to the town below the castle. We ate lunch at an outdoor cafe that had many kid friendly choices, did some shopping and made our way back to the Crowne Plaza. We were told by someone in our group that shopping in Rothenburg was the best so we held off and made our big purchases there.
Dinner tonight was at Zum Ritter. We were taught about the formalities of dancing by a court jester. We also were treated to beautiful music by a lute player. This night we also had wine tasting. We had three choices for dinner this night(weiner schnitzel, ravioli,pork, ) The kids menu had chicken legs and ravioli All in all a wonderful day.
Day 3 we were off to Alsfeld. What a beautiful little town. Here we met the Brothers Grimm. They gave us a tour of the town. We also met little red riding hood and heard her story from some townspeople. Very entertaining. Everywhere we looked in this town we saw statues of fairytale characters. We were provided a wonderful picnic lunch in a beautiful courtyard. Lunch was a sandwich, chips, fruit, granola bars and beverage. We were also treated to some local sausage. We were there on a Sunday so none of the stores were open. We really didn't have much time for shopping anyway.
In the afternoon we went to the Trendelburg castle where we were staying for the next two nights. We were greeted by a night and told the story of Rapunzel. Rapunzel was up in her tower. After a tour of the castle we had refreshments outside in the courtyard. The surroundings here are beautiful. This stop provided the whole group the opportunity to really get to know each other. The kids really enjoyed the castle. They had the whole grounds to themselves so they enjoyed chasing and playing hide and seek. Dinner tonight was at the castle. We were given three choices, trout, chicken and ?(can't remember the third). Kids choices were: spaghetti or chicken
Day 4 to come. If I need to add more details let me know
The specifics about our travel dates: Left Ohare on May 29th at 6:30p.m. for a non stop flight to Frankfurt. Arrived at 10:00 a.m on the 30th.
Our adventure begins- we were met at baggage claim by a ABD rep. who showed us where the bathrooms were, grabbed our luggage and helped us get through customs. We walked to a bus where there were three other families waiting for us. One of our guides(Jason) met us at the bus, introduced himself to us and off we went. I was so tired I slept on the bus but I think it was about an hour drive.
We arrived at the Crowne Plaza in Heidelberg, met our other Adventure Guide(Steph.). They took care of checking us in and we went to check out our room. We were given a family suite with two queen size beds, two rollaways, a seating area and of course a bathroom. By this time it was about 1:00p.m and we had our welcome reception at 6:00p.m. We decided to explore the city. The guides gave us directions to find good shopping and off we went. We took time just enjoying the sights. We also discovered a bakery and had our first of many pretzels. Our seven year old probably ate 10 during our trip.
At 6:00p.m. we attended the welcome dinner and met all the others in our group. We all seemed to become friends instantly. We had 40 in our group and 10 of those were children. It was a good mix of people. Some had kids others didn't.
During the welcome reception we played a get-to-know each other game that was very non-threatening to those of us that are a little shy. Dinner was served buffet style and there were choices that seemed to please everyone.
When we got back to the room we looked through our guide book to get ready for the next day. They give you a guide book to tell you what time you have to be ready for the different meals and outings. The times were not too early usually.
Day 2- Heidelberg Castle. We met the first of two Disney hired character/ guides that took us through the castle. We spent alot of time at this castle and were given a historical account of the castle with the help of several historical characters along the way. After the castle tour we had time to explore Heidelberg on our own. We walked down 380 stairs to get to the town below the castle. We ate lunch at an outdoor cafe that had many kid friendly choices, did some shopping and made our way back to the Crowne Plaza. We were told by someone in our group that shopping in Rothenburg was the best so we held off and made our big purchases there.
Dinner tonight was at Zum Ritter. We were taught about the formalities of dancing by a court jester. We also were treated to beautiful music by a lute player. This night we also had wine tasting. We had three choices for dinner this night(weiner schnitzel, ravioli,pork, ) The kids menu had chicken legs and ravioli All in all a wonderful day.
Day 3 we were off to Alsfeld. What a beautiful little town. Here we met the Brothers Grimm. They gave us a tour of the town. We also met little red riding hood and heard her story from some townspeople. Very entertaining. Everywhere we looked in this town we saw statues of fairytale characters. We were provided a wonderful picnic lunch in a beautiful courtyard. Lunch was a sandwich, chips, fruit, granola bars and beverage. We were also treated to some local sausage. We were there on a Sunday so none of the stores were open. We really didn't have much time for shopping anyway.
In the afternoon we went to the Trendelburg castle where we were staying for the next two nights. We were greeted by a night and told the story of Rapunzel. Rapunzel was up in her tower. After a tour of the castle we had refreshments outside in the courtyard. The surroundings here are beautiful. This stop provided the whole group the opportunity to really get to know each other. The kids really enjoyed the castle. They had the whole grounds to themselves so they enjoyed chasing and playing hide and seek. Dinner tonight was at the castle. We were given three choices, trout, chicken and ?(can't remember the third). Kids choices were: spaghetti or chicken
Day 4 to come. If I need to add more details let me know
