A Luxury Fairy Tale Tour of Germany

What to expect on this itinerary
There is a kingdom where fairy tales exist, and it’s a magical land where Sleeping Beauty slept, and the dwarfs surrounded Snow White. Journey through the world of the Brothers Grimm, where fictional tales are created from the realm of the real. Rapunzel's hair flicked over a castle wall, the tales of the Pied Piper, and surreal medieval villages of knightly stories. The relics of the brothers and fables of their characters blur into reality with this unique 10-day tour that immerses you in the fairytale route of Germany.
Customizable Itinerary
Frankfurt – Poetry and History in a Compelling City
Frankfurt's modern metropolis hides a compelling history, one of the timber-framed houses and poetic echoes. While the skyscrapers are glass-fronted, the old riverbank still remembers the city's more than 2,000 years of history. Touch down in Frankfurt and be greeted by a local guide for transfer to a five-star hotel in the city. Rest and relax before an afternoon tour loops around the historical landmarks; the iconic home of Goethe, filled with his scribbled lines, ancient houses with wood frames found around Römerberg and then the museum riverbank and views of the country's innovation. The German Museum of Architecture connects the centuries, while the Museum of Applied Art has your eyes firmly in the experimental design of the future. But which future? That dreamt up in the 18th-century or that one that leads on from now? The evening is at your leisure, and the guide can make dinner recommendations as Frankfurt is the culinary center of Germany.
What's Included:
Hanau to Gelnhausen to Steinau an der Strasse – The World of the Brothers Grimm
Marburg – Grimm Brothers Fairytale Paintings Beneath a 10th-Century Castle
Alsfeld to Bad Wildungen – Through Little Red Riding Hood Land to the Village of Seven Dwarfs
Baunatal to Kassel – The Heart of the Fairytale
Reinhardswald to Goettingen – The Sleeping Beauty Route Through Germany, With a Little Braid of Rapunzel
Hamelin – The Iconic Pied Piper of Hamelin
Bad Oeynhausen to Buxtehude to Bremen – Local Legends Plus the Hare and the Hedgehog
Bremen – World Heritage Renaissance and Famous Town Musicians
Bremen – Departure
Trip Highlights
- Travel through the kingdom of the Brothers Grimm, an inspiring realm of fables and fairy tales
- Journey to Little Red Riding Hood Land and spend a night in the village of Snow White, where there are more than seven dwarfs
- Spend a day on the Sleeping Beauty route to discover her castle and the village that inspired the story
- Explore the local legends from Germany's past, like the Pied Piper of Hamelin and the village of the hare and the hedgehog
- Honor the most important landmarks from the time of the Brothers Grimm, including much original art and a library that celebrates their work
- Immerse yourself in the fairytale castles of the region, each with their mysterious narrative, like Rapunzel's braid dropping over a fortress wall
- Sleep in some of Germany's most enchanting medieval towns, where cobblestone alleys wind around romantic squares
- Discover the World Heritage renaissance of Bremen, with the farewell fanfare played by the city's famous musicians
Detailed Description
Think of a fairy tale and the Brothers Grimm were probably responsible for its fame. From Little Red Riding Hood to Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel to Sleeping Beauty, these German siblings created a kingdom of make believe. All great fiction is based on fact, adapted from authors' experiences and environment, and that is the mysterious allure of the Fairy Tale Route across Northern Germany. Dotted along the trail, find dozens of very real odes to the Brothers Grimm including original artwork, libraries where they wrote and medieval towns where they worked. You will also discover the fabled history of their tales as bedtime stories from centuries before or towns with the legend of dwarfs. And then there's the blur, the link between fairy tale and the real world, the necklace of castles and attractions that nobody is certain about.
All of this envelops the route with an incredible mystique. Who was the owner of a ten-meter blond braid at Trendelburg Castle? Perhaps ghosts do fly through the Pied Piper town of Hamelin. These destinations fire the imagination, for it's immediately apparent that if anywhere could inspire a fairy tale, it would be the cobblestone and castles that fill this itinerary. Travel from Frankfurt and the Grimm brother's birthplace of Hanau as this unique 10-day vacation takes you along the Fairytale Route and through a kingdom that is as make believe as you want it to be.
Travel through Little Red Riding Hood Land to a village of dwarfs, where Snow White existed three centuries before the Brothers Grimm. Admire drawings made by the authors and original manuscripts that have been translated into 160 languages. Explore quaint cobbled towns surrounded by ancient forest, places that radiate tradition and imagination. Find castles hidden away, indulgent spas amid the trees, and local legends that became a worldwide phenomenon. With a specialist guide, journey north to Bremen and enjoy dozens of evocative stops on the route.
This vacation can be fully customized dependent on your interests, particularly for romance or for families with young children. It can also be tailored towards specific fairy tales.
Starting Price
$4,900 per person (excluding international flights)
Your Zicasso trip is fully customizable, and this sample itinerary is a starting place for your travel plans. Actual costs are dynamic, and your selection of accommodations and activities, your season of travel, and other such variables will bring this budget guideline up or down. Throughout your planning experience with your Zicasso specialist, your itinerary is designed around your budget. You can book your trip when you are satisfied with every detail. Planning your trip with a Zicasso travel specialist is a free service.
What's Included
- Accommodations
- In-country transportation
- Some or all activities and tours
- Expert trip planning
- 24x7 support during your trip
Your final trip cost will vary based on your selected accommodations, activities, meals, and other trip elements that you opt to include.
Verified Traveler Reviews
Based on 122 reviews
Our heartfelt thanks to Zicasso’s travel designer and her team at Zicasso’s tour operator for planning our recent trip to Germany. It’s been a lifelong dream to see the places that my father so lovingly described during his years stationed in the army in Stuttgart. She took the time to listen to our reasons for planning the trip and understood the selected towns. The planning and preparation in the months leading up to the trip did not disappoint. She helped us map out the trip and maximize our time in Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich, and Garmisch.
In terms of bookings, she selected excellent hotels that were centrally located, elegant, and had all the comforts of home. In each of the cities, she linked us to guides who were knowledgeable, insightful, and fun. Transportation arrangements were smooth and easy, either on the ICE train, boat ride, or car service.
Our guide to the Cannstatter festival in Stuttgart was fantastic. He grew up in Stuttgart and was able to tell us the history of it, teach us a proper German toast, and offered us great places to dine afterwards.
Our guide and driver from Munich to Garmisch took us to Neuschwanstein Castle and then surprised us with additional stops along the way in a small village to learn of the local culture and churches. Our last stop of the day was at a monastery. We enjoyed a fabulous piece of Black Forest cake. During this time, he asked us how we were able to book through this travel company. We explained about Zicasso and he expressed his delight that we were able to book a small, authentic company versus the big-box tour. He was right.
Our travel designer customized the trip to us and no cookie cutter. She was very flexible when there was a last-minute change to the itinerary due to a winery closing unexpectedly early. She made the arrangements happen quickly and it enabled us to meet with the wine maker at a winery in Stuttgart and spend a morning on the patio wine tasting with him.
Our last leg of the trip was Garmisch. I am not sure if she was the one to order the spectacular weather (I wouldn’t put it past her abilities), but the clouds cleared and the trip up the Zugspitze was breathtaking. Such a delight and change from the bigger cities.
At the end segment of the trip, my husband was more and more impressed with the quality of the trip: tours and hotels that I was able to book with our travel designer's guidance. I could not be more pleased with the experience of the trip and the work she put in to make this dream trip a reality. Thank you for helping me connect to my father’s time in Germany. My heartfelt recommendations and appreciation.
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Zicasso's travel specialist crafted an unforgettable journey through Germany for us in September 2025. He truly listened to our interests and designed a phenomenal itinerary that showcased the very best the country has to offer—from small, charming medieval villages and breathtaking Rhine wine country to magnificent castles, dynamic modern cities, and the majestic Bavarian Alps. We also appreciated the thoughtful inclusion of sites tied to WWII and Cold War history, providing a meaningful and reflective perspective on Germany’s past.
Members of our group have personal family connections to Nazi forced labor and concentration camps, as well as life behind the Iron Curtain in post-war East Germany. Our incredible guides handled these sensitive topics with knowledge and compassion, helping us dive deeper and even find answers to lingering questions.
Every guide we met along the way was exceptional—knowledgeable, personable, and fluent in English—which brought each experience to life and deepened our appreciation for the places we visited. The trip was full and fast-paced, yet perfectly balanced for what we were looking for.
The variety of experiences—from somber memorials to the grand pageantry of palaces and the pure joy of Oktoberfest—made the trip incredibly rich and memorable. Throughout it all, our travel specialist kept close communication and ensured everything ran smoothly, giving us complete peace of mind.
We could not be more thrilled with our experience and highly recommend our travel specialist and this agency to anyone looking for a perfectly curated, seamless, and extraordinary adventure!
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Zicasso’s tour company did an excellent job, from start to finish, planning our trip to Germany! The itinerary they planned was just wonderful and because of them, we truly enjoyed our trip! Everything was taken care of, from the time we arrived in Frankfurt until we left from Munich.
They gave us a printed itinerary of our entire trip, which included hotel vouchers, train tickets, tour tickets, and everything else we needed. This is the first time that has ever happened in any of our trips. They gave us a daily update on our drivers and guides. They made sure we were informed of any changes. We also had access to them via WhatsApp and they were always available whenever we had questions or concerns.
This was the most stress-free vacation we've ever had! They took care of everything for us! We got to meet the staff at Oktoberfest and they were just wonderful! We highly recommend this tour company to anyone planning a trip to Germany or anywhere else! We would use them the next time we go to Europe!
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We just returned from one of the most fabulous trips we have ever taken. I lived in Germany back in the 80s and wanted to share some of the most beautiful areas with my husband.
We were most fortunate to come in contact with Zicasso's travel expert. After our initial phone call with her, we knew this would be a great trip.
We had several phone calls and emails with her and her colleagues to talk about the trip in general. With each phone call and with their recommendations, we would get more and more excited about our trip.
When we arrived in Germany, waiting in our hotel room was a beautiful book of our itinerary. All we had to do was go page by page each day. Each page included details of what we would be doing for that day, along with tickets (if needed) for events, brochures, and all details for that day. Also included was a phone for us to use while in Germany. They had pre-programmed contact numbers of anyone from the agency we might need to contact, phone numbers of our tour guides, GPS, a digital copy of our itinerary, hotel contacts, etc. They were available to us 24/7 for any needs or concerns. The agency also checked with us throughout the trip to make sure things were going well. Their tour guides in the various cities were very knowledgeable, personable, and very thorough with their tours. We really enjoyed them all.
This was a very memorable and wonderful trip for us. We give all the credit to our travel company for listening to us and making it happen in ways we would not have expected. This was a trip of a lifetime for us! Many thanks to all for your hard work! We would highly recommend them to anyone!
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Our trip to Austria and Germany was initiated with a desire to see the Christmas markets. And yes, these were magical, but Zicasso’s travel company also included guided trips at each location to fully enjoy our trip. The private ride through Bavaria to Neuschwanstein Castle was Christmas-card picturesque. Walking through Vienna on a guided tour was as if we were visiting Franz Joseph and Sisi. The travel company created an itinerary that balanced the needs of a group with different ages, interests, and budgets, and everyone had a magnificent time.
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This is the second trip that I have booked through Zicasso. This trip included everything that I asked for.
Our time at Oktoberfest was definitely a highlight and an unforgettable experience! We were paired with guides for Neuschwanstein Castle and Dachau, who were knowledgeable and helped us better understand the German culture, as well as historical context. I loved just walking the streets in Salzburg; it is a gorgeous city!
The tour operator, overall, was responsive to my questions and requests; I was very happy with them. I would recommend this tour operator to anyone planning to travel to Germany and plan to use Zicasso for my next family vacation.
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