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Behind The Iron Curtain: Spies & Espionage in the Cold War
On this fascinating tour we take an in depth look into the dark corners of spying behind the Iron Curtain in Germany and look at what might have happened if the Cold War had turned hot. The Cold War lasted for almost 50 years and the spies and espionage on both sides played a big part in the West's attempt to prevent a Third World War. Led by a Specialist Battlefield Guide, join us as we visit the new Berlin Spy Museum and the Berlin Wall, the Glienicke Bridge, which featured in the film ‘Bridge of Spies’, the Stasi Prison which was used to detain people condemned by the Communist regime, and, see the so-called ‘Fulda Gap’, where the main thrust of a Soviet advance on the West would have taken place.
Tour Includes
- 8 nights hotel with continental breakfast
- Specialist Historical Guide
- Historical visits as described
- FREE local joining points
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Itinerary
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Local departure by coach or Door-to-door service then to Holland and our overnight hotel.
We travel to Berlin, stopping at the old Cold War border at Hötensleben, to see a preserved section of the Internal German Border which separated East and West during the Cold War, seeing tank traps, the wall and watch towers. We stay for three nights in a hotel once used by the Stasi.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
On our first day in Berlin – a city at the dark heart of the Cold War – we begin at the new Berlin Spy Museum, spending the morning here and at nearby Topography of Terror, where we see the Berlin Wall and also have time for lunch in the area around Checkpoint Charlies: the Cold War front line for the Americans. In the afternoon we look at the Stasi – the East German security services, visiting the Stasi Prison used to detain people condemned by the Communist regime and also the Stasi Museum, in the site of their headquarters.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
This morning we travel over to West Berlin to the Glienicke Bridge, made famous in the film ‘Bridge of Spies’ and a location where during the Cold War spies were exchanged. We returned to Berlin to look at the development of the Berlin Wall at Bernauerstrasse, seeing the open air memorial site and preserved wall, and Visitors' Centre, with time for lunch in this area. In the afternoon, we visit the Teufelsberg: the ‘Devil’s Mountain’, which was the site of a Cold War spy station overlooking Berlin, a site not normally open to the public.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
On our final morning in Berlin, we visit the DDR Museum, the museum of everyday life under the East German regime, with some fascinating exhibits. You can also take time to visit the nearby ‘TV Tower’, now one of the iconic symbols of Berlin, but established as a communications hub to spy on the west. We then depart for Leipzig for two nights.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
In Leipzig, we visit the Stasi Bunker, the last remaining Cold War site used by the Stasi in its original state. After lunchtime in Leipzig, we travel out to the Kossa Cold War Bunker, a massive Warsaw Pact site with tanks, hangars and bunkers.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
Today we look at when the Cold War could have gone hot, travelling to the so-called ‘Fulda Gap’, where the main thrust of a Soviet advance on the West would have taken place. We set the scene, look at possible scenarios and visit the ‘battlefields that never were’.
Overnight in Fulda.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
On our last morning, we visit the Point Alpha Memorial at the Fulda Gap, which commemorates the role of American and NATO forces in the area, seeing the Visitors' Centre and preserved border section. We depart for Belgium for an overnight stay.
Includes Breakfast
Included Highlights
Return home.
Includes Breakfast
For your convenience, pre-book 5 evening meals to be taken at your hotels in Berlin and Leipzig for £109 per person. Call for more details.
Accommodation
