3-day emigration-themed weekend tour in Bremen

Day 1: Arrival in Bremen

Welcome to the Hanseatic city of Bremen! It’s an almost magical feeling to be “back home”, knowing that for the next few days, you will walk in the same paths as your German ancestors once did.

Make your own way to the hotel or book a transfer from Bremen’s main train station or Bremen airport (extra charge).

Once you have settled in, meet your tour leader and the other group participants in the hotel lobby at 4 pm local time. Together, we will head to the nearby medieval market square and enjoy a 2-hour emigration-themed guided tour of the city of Bremen.

We will pass by all highlights of the city: The 600-year-old town hall and Roland statue, the 1,000-year-old cathedral, the Bremen Town Musicians statue from the famous Bremen fairy tale, the old harbor front at the river and the medieval Schnoor quarter with Bremen’s oldest houses.

Afterwards, we enjoy our first included welcome dinner at a cozy restaurant and get to know the other tour participants.

Meals included today: Dinner

Day 2: Day trip to Bremerhaven

Today after enjoying our hotel’s delicious breakfast buffet, we make our way to Bremerhaven. The harbor town is located about 50 miles north from Bremen at the seafront of the North Sea. 

We get there the same way as your German ancestors did: by boat! It takes longer than by train or car, but we will surely pass by some beautiful sights and might feel even closer to your predecessors. And don’t worry: The modern ships are very comfortable!

Here, we visit the emigration museum “German Emigration Center” on a guided tour with an English-speaking local guide. In an interactive exhibition, the museum has recreated the journey that your ancestors would have taken when they emigrated from Bremerhaven to America.

After so much food for thought, we enjoy the fresh breeze of the North Sea coastline and see the Emigrant statue at the original departure dock, from which more than 7 million left for a new life overseas. Both are located just a few steps by foot from the museum.

After heading back to the city of Bremen, we meet up again for another included dinner.

Meals included today: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 3: Day trip to a living history museum in Cloppenburg 

Once we fueled up at our hotel’s hearty breakfast buffet, our coach takes us from Bremen to Cloppenburg in the neighboring state of Lower Saxony.

Here, we will visit the open-air museum “Museumsdorf Cloppenburg” (museum village Cloppenburg). On a guided introduction tour in English with a local guide, we travel back in time. 

Then, we put our handicraft skills to the test. In a fun workshop, we make our own butter churn or our loaf of bread (butter and bread workshops alternate on different tour dates). At the same time, we also learn more about the daily life (and daily struggles) of our rural ancestors.

Tonight, we get together as a group again and enjoy another group dinner in the city of Bremen.

Meals included today: Breakfast, Dinner

Old farm house in the open-air museum “Museumsdorf Cloppenburg”

Day 4: Departure from Bremen

After breakfast, it’s time to say goodbye to Bremen. In German, there is a saying that goes “All good things have an end, just the sausage has two”. So unfortunately, our tour must come to an end today.

By the end of your weekend in Bremen, you will have learnt a lot about emigration from northern Germany and the living conditions of your German ancestors prior to their emigration. You will understand the reasons why they emigrated and also have some insights into what their lives were like back in the home country.

Now, it’s up to you to explore the next chapter of your ancestor’s journey.

So perhaps you will continue your ancestry-inspired trip in Germany or even other countries in Europe. For example, to your ancestors’ hometowns. 

Meals included today: Breakfast