BAYREUTH FESTIVAL

Der Ring des Nibelungen, plus Tannhäuser, Parsifal, Der fliegende Holländer and Tristan und Isolde. Day trips to Bamberg and Nürnberg. Hotel Arvena Kongress.

There are many Rings, but only one Bayreuth. It is the ultimate Wagner experience, to hear the Maestro’s music, in his city, in his opera house.

The Bayreuth Festival has it all: pomp and pageantry, fanfare and feuding, musical epiphanies, production-related outrages, political clashes, foot-stamping approval and the occasional chorus of boos. It is evocative, exhilarating, all-consuming and unlike any other musical experience anywhere. You have likely heard tell of the bottom breaking seats, of the lack of air-conditioning or surtitles, of the hour-long intervals that make for seven-hour marathons at the Festspielhaus… but unless you have experienced it, you have not heard this music played live with such sublime perfection.

2024 is once again a “Ring Year” in Bayreuth, and the production will be staged by Austrian director Valentin Schwarz and conducted by Pietari Inkinen from Finland. Schwarz won the Ring Award in 2017, an international stage directors’ competition. He has staged Mozart’s Così fan tutte at the Theater an der Wien and Maurizio Kagel’s Mare Nostrum at the Cologne Opera. Inkinen was the principal conductor of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the Prague Symphony, the Orchestra of the Ludwigsburg Castle Concerts and the German Radio Philharmonic of Saarbrücken and Kaiserslautern.

Our seats will be excellent, all in the orchestra stalls, and accommodation will be at the simple but spacious (and air-conditioned!) Arvena Kongress. We will take only 18 participants.

CASTS

Das Rheingold  Wotan Tomasz Konieczny

Donner Nicholas Brownlee

Froh Mirko Roschkowski

Fricka Christa Mayer

Freia Christina Nilsson

Erda Okka von der Damerau

Alberich Olafur Sigurdarson

Mime Arnold Bezuyen

Fasolt Jens-Erik Aasbø

Fafner Tobias Kehrer

Woglinde Evelin Novak

Die Walküre 

Siegmund Michael Spyres

Hunding Georg Zeppenfeld

Wotan Tomasz Konieczny

Brünnhilde Catherine Foster

Fricka Christa Mayer

Ortlinde Brit-Tone Müllertz

Schwertleite Christa Mayer

Grimgerde Marie Henriette Reinhold

Siegfried  Siegfried Klaus Florian Vogt

Mime Arnold Bezuyen

Der Wanderer Tomasz Konieczny

Alberich Olafur Sigurdarson

Fafner Tobias Kehrer

Erda Okka von der Damerau

Brünnhilde Catherine Foster

Götterdämmerung  Siegfried Klaus Florian Vogt

Gunther Michael Kupfer-Radecky

Alberich Olafur Sigurdarson

Hagen N.N.

Brünnhilde Catherine Foster

Gutrune Gabriela Scherer

Waltraute Christa Mayer

Woglinde Evelin Novak

Tristan und Isolde

Tristan Andreas Schager

Marke Günther Groissböck

Isolde Camilla Nylund

Kurwenal Olafur Sigurdarson

Melot Birger Radde

Brangäne Ekaterina Gubanova

Tannhäuser

Landgraf Hermann Günther Groissböck

Tannhäuser Klaus Florian Vogt

Wolfram Markus Eiche

Biterolf Olafur Sigurdarson

Reinmar Jens-Erik Aasbø

Elisabeth Elisabeth Teige

Parsifal

Amfortas Derek Welton

Titurel Tobias Kehrer

Gurnemanz Georg Zeppenfeld

Parsifal Andreas Schager

Klingsor Jordan Shanahan

Kundry Ekaterina Gubanova

Der fliegende Holländer

Daland Georg Zeppenfeld

Senta Elisabeth Teige

Erik Eric Cutler

Mary Nadine Weissmann

Der Steuermann Matthew Newlin

Der Holländer Michael Volle

ITINERARY

WEDNESDAY, JULY 24

Independent overnight flights to Germany (Frankfurt, Munich or Nuremberg).

THURSDAY, JULY 25

Upon arrival in Frankfurt, Munich or Nürnberg, you are met by a driver and transferred to Bayreuth and the centrally-located Hotel Arvena Kongress.

19.00 This evening we gather for introductions in the lobby before departing for our Welcome Dinner at Oskar.

FRIDAY, JULY 26

Breakfast and lunch are included each day at our hotel.

10.00 This morning we take a guided walking tour of Bayreuth, featuring Haus Wahnfried, Wagner’s grave site, the tranquil formal gardens of the New Palace and more.

15.00 We gather in the lobby and transfer to the Festspielhaus for a late afternoon curtain (16.00) for Tannhäuser. Dinner is included during the interval at the Green Hill Kitchen.

SATURDAY, JULY 27

10.00 This morning we tour the spectacular Margraves Opera House.

15.00 We gather in the lobby and transfer to the Festspielhaus for Parsifal. 16.00 curtain. Runs 6 h 20 m. Dinner is included during the interval at the Green Hill Kitchen.

SUNDAY, JULY 28

10.00 This morning we depart for a full-day excursion (with lunch) to Bamberg. We meet our guide, Dr. Elisabeth Skantze, and tour the Cathedral, the Old Court, the New Residence, the Rose Garden, the Old Town Hall and Little Venice. Lunch is at leisure. Return to Bayreuth by 15.00.

17.00 We gather in the lobby and transfer to the Festspielhaus for Wagner’s Das Rheingold. 18.00 curtain.

20.30 Dinner is included afterward at the Burgerreuth Restaurant.

MONDAY, JULY 29

10.00 Today we visit several of our favourite museums in the Old Town, including the Museum of Art and the Franz Liszt Museum.

15.00 We gather in the lobby and transfer to the Festspielhaus for a late afternoon curtain (16.00) for Die Walküre. Dinner is included during the interval at the Green Hill Kitchen.

TUESDAY, JULY 30

10.00 This morning we board our private coach for a day trip to Nürnberg, stopping at the Nazi Rally grounds on the way. Once there, we explore the sights associated with the Nuremberg trials, including a tour of the Nazi “art bunker.” Lunch is included.

16.00 We transfer back to Bayreuth, where the rest of the evening is at leisure.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31

Enjoy the morning at leisure.

15.00 We depart for Siegfried. 16.00 curtain.

20.30 Dinner is included during the interval at the Green Hill Kitchen.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 1

10.00 Today we tour the Eremitage, the Old Palace of the Margraves, with its impressive grounds, Orangery and Sun Temple.

17.15 We depart for Der fliegende Holländer. 18.00 curtain.Afterward, the evening (dinner) is at leisure.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 2

10.00 Today we tour the Steingraeber & Söhne piano factory, where we also enjoy a brief recital.

15.00 We gather in the lobby and transfer to the Festspielhaus for a 16.00 curtain of Götterdämmerung.

18.00 Our Farewell Dinner is included during the interval at the Green Hill Kitchen.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 3

Enjoy the final day at leisure.

15.00 Depart for Tristan und Isolde at the Festspielhaus. 16.00 curtain. Dinner is included during the long interval at Green Hill Kitchen.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 4 Departure transfers are included and will be discussed on-site.

TOUR INCLUDES

• Top Category seats for Der Ring des Nibelungen plus 4 additional operas

• 10 nights half board at the Hotel Arvena Kongress (4-star)

• Full breakfast daily, 2 lunches and 8 dinners 

• Private tours as listed

• Airport-hotel transfers 

• On-site Tour Direction

• Comprehensive Tour Guidebook

FLIGHTS

Flights are not included in tour pricing. Return flights should be booked to Munich, Frankfurt or Nuremberg for arrival on July 25, departure on August 4.

TRANSFERS

We provide airport/rail station—hotel transfers for arrivals and departures within within 3 days of the start/end of our tour. We also provide transfers for group meals and performances that are beyond a 10 minute walk.

MOBILITY

There is minimal walking with some stairs and cobblestones during the guided tours. As for all of our tours, we are happy to accommodate you regardless of your mobility level. Please make clear your mobility concerns at the time of registration. We provide transfers for group meals and performances that are beyond a 10 minute walk.

INSURANCE

We strongly recommend that all tour members purchase cancellation insurance upon registration. We can assist you with this, though you are welcome to purchase a policy at your own discretion. For more information about our travel insurance, click here.