Germany, or the Federal Republic of Germany, to give it its full name is a country of some 83 million souls and it's as diverse a country as you'll find in Europe. To visit Germany today is to see a country that has survived some of the most momentous events of the 20th century and rebuilt itself into something quite unique.
Germany is a remarkably scenic, tolerant and culturally profound country. It's huge in European terms, bordering Denmark in the north, Switzerland to the south, France, the Netherlands, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east and west. It's this size that delivers such scenic diversity, such intensely beautiful river valleys, grandly forested alpine regions and a population base that has created the likes of Berlin!
Your tour might start in Berlin, where you'll get absolutely no sleep and it might end on the far side of the country in Munich where you'll discover new meaning to the word 'beer'. And maybe, some time to sleep. But in between are country villages, rivers, soaring cliffs with Disney castles atop and friendly, welcoming people who are proud of their country, their food and culture.
This is the birthplace of Einstein and Gutenberg, von Zeppelin, Daimler and Benz. This is the home of Nietzsche, the Brothers Grimm, Beethoven and Kraftwerk. German film technique from the earliest part of the 20th century is still studied today and German philosophy is a major part of every university student's life.
But, hey, what you're really here is for is the travel experience, right? The must does are Berlin, Bavaria and its alps, beer (in Munich), Disney-inspiring castles, the Black Forest (where, yes, you can buy a cuckoo clock) and Hamburg (if only to walk the same streets as the Beatles and see what's left of the Indra Club and the Kaiserkeller). Hamburg is a must because not only did the Beatles play there, but as Germany's second-largest city it has a wide variety of theatre, museums and music venues, plus spectacular architecture that somehow survived WWII.
Germany is special: a place reinventing itself, an amazing contrast of the old and the new, the free and the conservative, and a country with scenery so spectacular it has inspired a thousand biscuit tins!