Even in a nation as culturally rich as Germany, certain achievements stand out. These are the priceless "treasures of the past," so special that they have been selected by the World Heritage Center of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to be included in the World Heritage List, thereby ensuring their survival for future generations.

Join us as we visit some of Germany’s most celebrated artistic, horticultural and architectural triumphs from two millennia of civilization, many of them resonant with far-reaching historical significance. Begin in Hamburg with its beautiful, bustling harbor, once the starting point of a "Salt Canal" that ultimately helped to transform trading practices within the Baltic cities of the Hanseatic League of merchants. Explore three of these ancient trading cities, which wielded great power and influence during late-medieval and early Renaissance times: Lübeck, queen city of the "Hansa," overflowing with superb examples of distinctive high-gabled Renaissance architecture in its patrician homes and lovely old salt lofts; Wismar, pivotal in the development of brick Gothic construction techniques and regional urban planning; and Goslar with its 1100-year-old silver and copper mines, home to an astonishing 1,500 picturesque half-timbered houses from five centuries of construction. Take in Hamburg’s bounty of cultural contributions, and Berlin’s incomparable Museuminsel, tribute to over a century of innovations in modern museum design. Here, tour the world-famous Pergamon Museum, home to millennia-old Greek and Roman artistic masterpieces that exemplify the forms that Western art would return to again and again throughout the ages. Wander through the incredible bounty of Potsdam’s parks and architectural masterworks from the eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, quintessential examples of the very best that Europe had yet aspired to. In Hildesheim, view structures that brought the Ottonian Romanesque style to its earliest perfection at magnificent St. Michael's Church and St. Mary’s Cathedral.

These sites reflect the heights Western civilization has reached at various points in its history. Many of them have influenced the directions it would take in the future. Today, they rank high among Germany’s—and the world’s—most outstanding cultural wonders. Come experience them with us.