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Festival of Tours: April 13–27

A Rick Steves' Europe tour is a vacation, an adventure, and a cultural crash course all in one — and from April 13 to 27, we invite you to join our virtual Festival of Tours to learn about our tour program and discover which of our over 45 exciting itineraries could become your next trip.

To kick things off, Rick sets the stage by recounting the origins of his tour program — back when a Rick Steves tour was just Rick, eight travelers, and a minivan — and how the spirit of those early tours lives on in today's itineraries. From there, our great guides join the party to show off their favorite cultural wonders region by region — from sampling a parade of tapas along the streets of Madrid to scaling windswept castles in Wales to strolling back centuries amid the ruins of Pompeii — and to share how you can experience these "wow" moments alongside them on a Rick Steves' Europe tour. We then finish the festival by getting to know the new tours on the block and marveling at a fireworks show of more dazzling "wow" moments from across Europe.

It's all free, and you can sign up for any (or all) of these fun, informative sessions using the links below.

We hope you're able to join us for this virtual Festival of Tours — and perhaps for an on-the-ground adventure in Europe — soon.

rick in bern

April 13: Why Rick Steves’ Europe Tours Are So Dang Good with Rick Steves

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Each year, 35,000 travelers trust a Rick Steves' Europe tour to make their European travel dreams come true — many of whom have taken a dozen or more of our tours. Join Rick as he shares the story of how his tour program began, how it evolved, and how his early days as a guide helped mold the travel philosophy that continues to steer our tours today. Plus, Rick revisits his flagship 21-day tour — from Amsterdam, down to Rome, and back up to Paris — and shares how you can embark on that same odyssey with a Rick Steves' Europe guide at your side.

neuschwanstein castle in bavaria

April 14: Germany, Austria & Switzerland Tours with Travis Parker & Jim McDonough

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Seasoned guidebook researcher Travis Parker and expert tour guide Jim McDonough team up to trace our itineraries across the Germanic world. We begin by visiting Germany's Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich before enjoying Bavaria's fairy-tale Neuschwanstein Castle and medieval Rothenburg. In Austria, we tour the grand capital of Vienna and Mozart-crazy Salzburg, along with Danube charm. We finish in Switzerland — licking gelato in Italian-speaking Lugano, savoring cosmopolitan Lausanne, and ascending cut-glass peaks to a nature-lover's nirvana.

sheep in britain

April 15: Britain & Ireland Tours with Lisa Friend & Charlie Rawson

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Tour guides Lisa Friend and Charlie Rawson join forces to explore our tours across dazzling and dramatic Britain and Ireland. Starting in England’s Georgian gem, Bath, we amble through flowery Cotswolds villages, castle-studded Wales, the scenic Lake District, and historic York before hopping a train to bustling London. We then venture north to Scotland, land of mysterious lochs, mossy mountains, royal Edinburgh, and underrated Glasgow. Finally, we pop over to Scotland’s Celtic cousin, Ireland, to enjoy music-filled pubs and historical sites from Dublin to Dingle to Belfast.

lake bled island in slovenia

April 16: Central & Eastern Europe Tours with Cameron Hewitt & Péter Pölczman

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Guidebook author Cameron Hewitt teams up with tour guide Péter Pölczman for an inspiring sweep through our Central and Eastern Europe tours. We begin by touring the Czech Republic with perfectly preserved Prague, Hungary with cosmopolitan Budapest, and Poland with lovable Kraków. We then continue along the Adriatic Sea: weaving together Slovenia's charming Ljubljana and fairy-tale Lake Bled and Croatia's seaside Rovinj, waterfall-laced Plitvice, historic Split, and picture-perfect Dubrovnik. 

manarola in italy's cinque terre

April 20: Italy Tours with Dave Hoerlein & Andrea Vincenti

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Why is Italy our most popular tour destination? Rick's first-ever employee, Dave Hoerlein, and beloved tour guide Andrea Vincenti unlock the answer, starting with Italy's great cities — canal-laced Venice, Renaissance Florence, and eternal Rome. From there, we sample Italian countryside delights in the Chianti hills and traffic-free Cinque Terre, tiptoe along the towering peaks of the Dolomites, and wonder at Sicily's steaming volcano. Plus, Dave and Andrea share how you can experience this history, cuisine, and culture on an unforgettable Rick Steves' Europe Italy tour! 

granada spain

April 21: Spain & Portugal Tours with Robyn Stencil & Adriana Rodrigues Madeira

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

The Iberian Peninsula sizzles with colorful traditions and epic history, and tour program manager Robyn Stencil and tour guide Adriana Rodrigues Maderia are excited to show off our tours there. In Spain, we marvel at Catalunya's Gaudí, Toledo's El Greco, and the masterpieces of Madrid's Prado before heading south to Andalucía for iconic castles, dreamy hill towns, and fine cuisine. Next, we visit highlights from our Portugal tours: the sun-drenched Algarve, trendy Lisbon, Roman Évora, beachy Nazaré, gritty Porto, and the vineyards of the Douro Valley.  

red bridge and church in Lyon France

April 22: France Tours with Gabe Gunnink & Nina Seffusatti

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Tour guide Nina Seffusatti is a font of France knowledge, and in this session, Monday Night Travel host Gabe Gunnink fills buckets of information from her on our France itineraries. We start in Paris with the Louvre and Orsay museums and the opulent Palace of Versailles. Next, we visit the powerful D-Day beaches and mesmerizing island abbey Mont St-Michel before wandering the châteaux of the Loire Valley, markets of the Dordogne, hill towns of Provence, and half-timbered villages of the Alsace in search of your next French adventure.

group of people in greece

April 23: What’s New for 2027 with Aggie Nixon-Kirschner & Robyn Stencil

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

For the first time in five years, we're adding new itineraries to our tour program — and there's no better team to introduce you to the new tours on the block than the dynamic duo of tour program manager Robyn Stencil and director of brand marketing Aggie Nixon-Kirschner. Together, Aggie and Robyn unveil the new itineraries, reveal 2027's upcoming tour trends, and share the small tweaks — hotel swaps, fresh sights, and route rearrangements – that help wring maximum experience out of every mile, minute, and dollar for our tour members.

lady-in swiss-alps

April 27: Best “Wow” Moments on Tour with Rick Steves

6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET | REGISTER

Each year, we ask our 35,000 Rick Steves' Europe tour members to share the top "wow" moments of their trips. To finish off the Festival of Tours with a bang, Rick reveals a highlight reel of these most memorable moments, which often extend beyond the marquee sights — intimate experiences from cooking up pierogi in Poland to sipping wine beside an Italian volcano to watching sheepdogs at work in Scotland. Don't miss this grand finale fireworks display of dazzling moments from across Europe!