Join author, lecturer and historian Gary Powers Jr. on this exciting 12-day tour of Cold War and espionage related sites in England, Holland and Germany with overnights in London, the Hague, the Rhineland, Leipzig and Berlin from April 22 to May 3, 2025
Day 1: Departure from the USA
Depart Washington Dulles Airport on your overnight flight to London’s Heathrow Airport.
Day 2: Arrival London
Welcome to London! Your CHA Tour Director greets you at the airport and escorts you to your hotel. Later, begin your exploration of England’s historic capital on a walking tour to Trafalgar Square to see Admiral Nelson’s Monument, the Lion Statues and the National Gallery. Later, check into your hotel to relax and unpack from your journey. Tonight, dine with fellow travelers at our Introductory Dinner.
Day 3: London-Richmond-Guildford-London
The morning begins with a spy-themed guided sightseeing tour of London highlighting Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, Whitehall, Downing Street, New Scotland Yard, and the MI5 and MI6 buildings. Included is a visit to the fascinating Churchill War Rooms, the secret underground headquarters of Prime Minister Winston Churchill during World War II. Enjoy an included lunch at St. Ermin's, the Westminster hotel steeped in British espionage history. This afternoon's sightseeing excursion includes visits to the National Archives to see its recently-opened exhibition on MI5, and the Iron Curtain Museum in Guilford to explore its interesting collection of Cold War military vehicles and artifacts. Return to London where you are your own for dinner this evening.
Day 4: London-Duxford-Cambridge-London
The day begins with an excursion to visit the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, Britain’s largest aviation museum, to marvel at its extensive collection of military aircraft. Afterwards, drive to nearby Cambridge where lunch is included. Learn more about this renowned university town’s history of spies including the infamous “Cambridge Five” Spy Ring during a walking tour. Afterwards, return to London where you are on your own for dinner this evening.
Day 5: London-Eurostar Train-Brussels-The Hague
This morning, transfer to London’s St. Pancras Station to board your time-saving Eurostar train that will whisk you from London to Brussels, home to the European Union and NATO headquarters, in just over two hours. Upon arrival, meet your touring motorcoach at the train station and drive to the Parc du Cinquantenaire, built in 1880 to commemmorate the 50th anniversary of Belgian independence, to admire the complex's impressive arch and u-shaped arcade and to visit its excellent aviation and automobile museums. Afterwards, drive to the Hague, the seat of the Dutch government and home to the United Nations’ International Court of Justice. Dinner in the Hague is included tonight.
Day 6: The Hague-Lelystad-The Hague
The morning begins with a visit to the Louwman Museum, which houses one of the most impressive car collections in the world, including the original DB5 assigned to fictional secret agent James Bond in the film, “Goldfinger.” This afternoon, travel to Lelystad Airport to visit the fascinating Aviodrome Aviation Museum to discover the history of Dutch civil aviation where more than 100 unique aircrafts are on display. Return to the Hague where dinner is included this evening.
Day 7: The Hague-Amsterdam-Bonn-Rhineland
The day begins with a drive to Amsterdam, Holland’s picturesque capital, where sightseeing aboard a leisurely canal cruise introduces you to the city’s scenic waterways. You will also stop at Vondelbunker, a Cold War era bunker located under Vondelpark that now functions as a local community space. Enjoy free time for lunch before crossing the Dutch border en route to Germany’s Rhineland. Drive to Bonn, the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990, for an orientation tour and an included dinner before continuing to your Rhineland area hotel.
Day 8: Rhineland-Ahrweiler-Unkel-Rhine River Cruise-Rhineland
The day begins with a drive to Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler in the Ahr Valley to visit the Regierungsbunker (also known as the Government Bunker Documentation Site), the once top-secret underground complex built during the Cold War inside two abandoned railway tunnels to house the German government, parliament and federal personnel in the event of the breakout of war. Afterwards, travel to Unkel to visit the Willy Brandt Museum to learn more about the legacy of former West Berlin mayor and West German Chancellor. Finally, savor the Rhine Valley on a leisurely Rhine River Cruise past fairytale castles, vineyards and the Lorelei before returning to your Rhineland hotel where dinner is included this evening.
Day 9: Rhineland-Geisa-Leipzig
Journey to Geisa to visit Point Alpha Memorial, a Cold War observation post overlooking part of the Fulda Gap, the prime invasion route for Warsaw Pact forces if the Cold War would have erupted into actual combat. The memorial is serves as a moving reminder of the division of Germany and the confrontation between NATO and the Warsaw Pact during the Cold War. Continue to Leipzig to see the Museum in Der Runde Ecke, the city’s former Stasi headquarters, before proceeding to your hotel. Dinner is included this evening.
Day 10: Leipzig-Potsdam-Berlin
Drive through Potsdam to Glienicke Bridge (the “Bridge of Spies”) where Gary Powers Jr. will provide commentary about the exchange of his father, American pilot Francis Gary Powers, and Soviet KGB Colonel William Fisher that took place there on February 10, 1962. Later, stop in Steinstücken Village, a small enclave of Berlin where the U.S. military built a secure post, a wall and helicopter landing pad during the height of the Cold War, sealing it off from the western sector. Continue to Berlin where lunch will be provided today. Later, visit Checkpoint Charlie, the most famous border crossing point along the Berlin Wall that once divided the city from 1961 to 1989. Check into your Berlin hotel in the late afternoon. You are on your own for dinner tonight as lunch was provided today.
Day 11: Berlin
This morning, sightseeing of Germany’s reunified capital city begins with a visit to the DDR Museum where you will get a glimpse of what life was like in the former East Germany by exploring the museum’s hands-on, interactive exhibits filled with authentic memorabilia and artifacts. Afterwards, visit the Stasi Museum located in the former headquarters of the GDR and the East German secret police, where you will see surveillance and observation technology and tour the office of the Minister for State Security, General Erich Mielke. After some free time for lunch, sightseeing continues this afternoon with a visit to the Wall Museum East Side Gallery chronicling the wall’s construction and its impact on the people of Berlin. Sightseeing ends with a visit to the imposing Reichstag, a historic legislative government building and the seat of the German Bundestag topped by an extraordinary glass dome offering incredible views of the Berlin skyline. Tonight, celebrate your final evening in Germany at our Farewell Dinner.
Day 12: Departure for the USA
Transfer to Berlin Brandenburg Airport to board your return flight arrangements.