A lovely place to visit - the generally short travel time to venues and excursions each day really helped to make the visit more pleasant. Somerset Music Service, Rhine, July 2016
Hello, I’m Delphine, Head of Music Tours here at Halsbury. I recently visited the Rhine, one of our most popular destinations for school music tours to Germany.
I travelled with my colleagues Lorna and Miriam, and together we discovered why this is such a great destination for your next tour!
Exciting performance opportunities
The great thing about the Rhine is that your ensemble will be able to perform to a mixture of locals and tourists. And you’ll receive a warm welcome wherever you go. You know, while we were in Boppard, we stumbled across a German brass band performing at the bandstand in the little park by our hotel. It’s only a small park, but they had a healthy crowd of around 50 watching them. People were even halting their bike rides to stop and listen. Our groups can play here too, for free!
We also visited Rüdesheim, which is a lovely, vibrant village. We definitely noticed that it was busier and more lively than some of the other villages along the Rhine but, having said that, I would still say it had a very ‘safe’ feel and is somewhere I’m confident school groups will love (as they have in the past). Here, you can perform in the market square, which is surrounded by cafes and shops, and really is the focal point of the whole village. Again, audiences will be a mix of locals and tourists, which normally means a very relaxed, warm, appreciative audience for your ensemble.
And there are plenty of other musical experiences to be had in the area. Perform at one of the many wine festivals or in nearby Cologne’s magnificent cathedral. And while you’re in the area, I really do recommend a visit to Siegfied’s Mechanical Museum, where you’ll have the opportunity to discover many old instruments that have been lovingly restored by Siegfried himself, and his son.
Spectacular surroundings
During our visit to the Rhine, I really was struck by just how pretty and charming the area is.
I really felt like this was ‘traditional’ Germany and I’m sure your students will fall in love with it as much as I did.
Throughout the trip we had plenty of opportunity to appreciate our surroundings – from a trip on the cable car up to the Ehrenbreitstein fortress, which looks out over Koblenz, to the scenic train ride on the Winzer Express, which carries you up through the area’s famous vineyards.
I lost count of the number of riverside cafes and restaurants we stopped in, where we enjoyed traditional foods such as bratwurst and schnitzel.
Great accommodation options
We visited a number of our hotels and hostels in the area, during our trip. And I have to say that I was pretty impressed with the standard.
Generally, the accommodation was basic but clean and safe – perfect for students. There are some great options in the area, so whether you'd prefer to stay in a traditional, family-run hotel, or a more modern youth hostel, there’ll be something to suit you.
Want to know more? Contact us for any information or advice you need!