Tours Update

Sorry guys, we still won't be doing tours in 2011.
Feel free to email us for advice, no probs.

Cheers,
Andy
andy@bier-mania.com

No More Tours

Hello Everyone,
After some very hard deliberation over the Christmas period, sadly we regret to inform you that due to the current economic climate we will no longer be doing any tours in 2010.
We will however be leaving the website online and hope that there is an economic upturn in 2011, our email addresses will also be active!

We wish you a very happy 2010.
Cheers,
Andy

Latest News - 2010 Tours

Hello to all of you who take the time to read our blog.
So what are we up to then? What's on in 2010?

We have just restructured our tours and in 2010 we are now offering 7 x 10-day tours as well as 4 x 3-day tours.
We have also teamed up with The German American Connection and now offer tours to the former East Germany, pretty exciting tours and very different.
For those who are interested, we are also offering tours on demand to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, think whisky, beer, scenery....you got it!

In summary, we generally offer a selection of 10-day tours every month, just pick where you'd like to go and let us know. 
Dates on our Tour Schedule.
Photo right - cleaning the barrels, Pilsner Urquell (Czech Republic)
Lower left - Bahler Zoigl house, Neahaus, 'Zoigl Land' (Germany)

January 2010
Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)
Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB)
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)
Go East Special (GE)


February 2010

Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)
Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB)
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)
Go East Special (GE)


Photos
Right - Charles Bridge, Pargeu (Czech Republic)
Below - Den Dyver restaurant, Bruges (Belgium)



March 2010
Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)

Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB)
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)
Go East Special (GE)

April 2010
Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)
Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB)
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)
Go East Special (GE)
 Photos
 Right - Sumava region (Czech Republic)


May 2010
Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)

Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB)
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)
Go East Special (GE)

June 2010
Colorado Byways & Beer Tour (WWBT)
 Photos
 Right - Continental Divide, Colorado (USA)

July 2010
Colorado Byways & Beer Tour (WWBT) 
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB) Annafest 2010

August 2010
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB) Annafest 2010
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Photo
Right - Annafest, Forchheim (Germany)
September 2010
Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)
Oktoberfest 2010 & Alps Special (MBA)


October 2010
Oktoberfest 2010 & Alps Special (MBA)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)

November 2010

Great European Beer Tour (GEBT)

Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB)
Bohemia Czech Special (BC)
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB)
Go East Special (GE)

December 2010
Great European Beer Tour (GEBT) Xmas Special

Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT)
Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB) Xmas Special
Bohemia Czech Special (BC) Xmas Special
Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special (MB) Xmas Special
Go East Special (GE) Xmas Special
Photo
Ardennes (Belgium)

If a weekend away interests you then we have tours in the Lower Rhine/Düsseldorf area, the Ardennes as well as West Flanders/French Flandres and the Lorraine and Verdun region of north France.

Photos copyright Bier-Mania! Cultural Beer Tours

Oktoberfest 2010 & Alps Tours (MBA)

Our other tour to Bavaria and the Alps is the upbeat 4-day Oktoberfest 2010 & Alps Special tours which starts and ends in Munich.

All tours cost €780.00 per person and we think are extremely good value, remember we only have 8 people per tour. We include the main meal every day, hotel and breakfasts, leader/guide who is also the driver (Andy) as well as beer tent reservation (confirmed around May 2010) including 2 litres of beer and a half chicken! Oh, and we are also in a 4-star centrally located hotel when we are in Munich.

By the way, we have now completed a total of 13 Oktoberfest tours since our first tours to Munich in 2007, so that is an average of 4.3 tours per year! Was anyone on the .3 tour?

So, next year we have a total of 5 Oktoberfest tours which not only introduce you to the world renowned annual Oktoberfest in Munich but also shows you something of the rest of Bavaria and Munich, we think that's a good idea!
And we know you'll have a good time!

Cheers,
Andy@bier-mania.com

More information on our website.
Photo
Top right - Hacker Festzelt, September 2009. The lady in the photo is Anna. She could carry 6 litres of beer. Good girl!
Bottom right - our final 2009 Oktoberfest tour in Hacker Festzelt. Another year to wait!

More photos.

Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special Tours (MB) 2010

Our incredible NEW Bavaria & Tyrol Alps Special 10-day tour shows you not only Munich but also the rest of Bavaria and the Austrian Tyrolean Alps.

The tour starts in Munich or Frankfurt airport and then takes in König Ludwig’s Neuschwanstein, a trip up Zugspitz mountain, the Austrian Tyrol, Salzburg & the Eagles Nest, the Bavarian Forest and then onto Regensburg and the Danube where we spend the night at a brewery guesthouse in the Altmühltal region.

Finally we end up in Munich for the weekend and during the September 2010 tour we also visit Munich’s Oktoberfest.

The tour is usually 10-days long with the September 2010 tour being 1 day longer. We only have only 6 people maximum so book early!

Experience the Alps, the beer gardens, beer halls as well as some great architecture, oh and of course some great beer!

More information is on our website, Bavaria and Tyrol Alps Special
Photos
Top right - Mittenwald night 3.
Bottom left - Augustiner Beer Garden, Salzburg (Austria)


More photos






Zugpitzbahn Video

Bohemia Czech Special (BC) Beer Tours 2010

This amazing 10-day Bohemia Czech Beer Tour takes us from Germany’s Zoigl Land and on into the Czech region of Čechy (Bohemia), where we visit and stay overnight in Plzeň (Pilsen), Prague and Český Budĕjovice (Budweis). Along the way we see some of the Czech Republic’s amazing micro-breweries, this tour really is a contrast between large and small breweries!

We also travel through some stunning areas including the remote Sumava region of Czech Republic as well as visiting 3 UNESCO World Heritage Sites-Prague, Český Krumlov as well as Bamberg.

The tour then goes into the Bayerischer Wald (Bavarian forest) and Oberpfälzer Wald (Palatinate Forest) and then on to Franconia and Franconian Switzerland. We have 2 nights in Bamberg with our final night in Bad Windsheim before the tour ends in Frankfurt.



Cheers!
More information on our website, Bohemia & Czech Czech Special.

Photos-top right Pilsner Urquell cellars (original)
bottom left Budvarka Beer House, Cesky Budejovice
More photos

Franconia & Bamberg Special (SB) Tours 2010

This tour, the Franconia and Bamberg Special is now a complete 10-day tour. These tours run all year and every month and in July/August 2010 we will also be visiting Annafest 2010!
Included is also a visit to the Pilsner Urquell brewery in the Czech Republic, a good tour and one we have visited twice this year, well worth the trip. We also go to the Bavarian Forest staying in Eck Brewery Guesthouse the night-a unique brewery and guesthouse, Mike normally shows us a around the brewery as well! 
Oh, and not to forget an overnight in Zoigl Land!

What do we do?

• Regensburg UNESCO Walkabout & Regensburg‘s Steinbrücke and Old Town
• Visit a Schnapps Museum!
  
• Schneider Weisse Brewery & Weltenburg Monastery
• Burg Randeck/Zoigl Land
• Pilsen, Czech Republic
• Bavarian Forest/Sleep in Brewery guest houses
• Forchheim's 4 breweries Annafest 2010 & 23 Cellar 'bars'!
• Franconia Country Breweries/Fränkische Schweiz
• Medieval Pottenstein/Meet Franconia‘s female brewer!
• Maisels Steam Brewery Museum Bayreuth
• Weissenhohe and Vierzehnheiligen Monasteries
• Bamberg's Smoked Beers and 10 breweries/Bamberg UNESCO Walkabout
• And much much more.......

Pretty awesome tours!
More information is on our webiste, Franconia and Bamberg Special.
Photos
Pottenstein, July 2009
More photos

Great Belgium Beer Tours (GBBT) 2010

Our Great Belgium Beer Tour (GBBT) is the classic gourmet and beer tour through the whole of Belgium and north France! This really is THE way to see Belgium, even if you aren't that interested in beer (!) then it is still a great way to see the country.

Tours run all year and every month on demand (except September=Oktoberfest!) and generally start in Düsseldorf in Germany where we recommend you have a Day Zero 'training day' to get over jet lag and relax before the tour. We normally meet you for an Altbier or 2 in Düsseldorf that evening...

The tour is an anti-clockwise loop starting in Limbourg and Antwerpen Province the first day and visiting Luxemborg Province at the end of the tour before we drop you off back in Düsseldorf.

• Visit all 6 Belgium Trappiste Abbeys
• Visit all 9 of Belgium‘s Provinces
• 4 Countries - Belgium, France, Netherlands and Germany
• Drink every style of Belgium beer
• Cafe Culture of Antwerpen and Bruges
• Bruxelles for 2 nights
• Beer Dinners
• Visit French Flandres
  
• Biere de Garde region of Northern France
• Saison Country
• Lambic Country
• Brewery visits
• The Ardennes

 
As with all our 10-day tours, we restrict the maximum number of people to 6, although if you do have a large group then feel free to contact us for a quote.

Cheers,
andy@bier-mania.com

More information can be found, Great Belgium Beer Tour.
Photos
Top right - La Villette, restaurant (Bruxelles) October 2009
Bottom left - Rodenbach brewery tour, October 2009
More photos

Great European Beer Tours (GEBT) 2010

New for 2010, we are  now offering the 10-day Great European Beer Tour (GEBT) as part of our regular packages.
Tours run all year and every month, we just need a minimum of 4 people, we only have a maximum of 6 people per tour so book early.
As we have done 3 of these awesome tours already we have now decided to have them as a regular tour! 
Our standard Great European Beer Tour is advertised on our website and is also downloadable as a complete document for you to print off and peruse over a beer or 2.
Where?

• Frankfurt-Bamberg-Kulmach-Zoigl Land
• Pilsen-Prague
• Prague 2 nights
• Zvikov-Budweis (the real one!)
• Cesky Krumlov-Sumava-Eck
• Zwiesel-Salzburg
• Mittenwald & the Alps
• Neuschwanstein-Andechs-Munich
• Munich 2 nights

Other options for this tour are available.

Cheers for now,
Andy



Tours run all year every month, more information Great Eureopan Beer Tour.

New Style Website!

Hello!
Our new style websire is now online.
See www.bier-mania.com

Hope you enjoy the site!
Cheers,
Andy

Bier-Mania! Facebook Page

Hello Everyone!
Yep, Bier-Mania! Cultural Beer Tours are finally on Facebook.

Link is also on the left of this page.
Cheers,
Andy

Latest News

Hello Everyone,
You must be wondering whether I came back from all our tours over the last 6 weeks! Well, I did, eventually!
Over the next posts we will be sharing our photos and experiences with you from all our tours, hope you enjoy them! We are now using just Flickr for our online photo albums from all our tours.


Photo is from Budweis Brewery in Czech Republic! Will the real Budweiser please stand up, please stand up...
So where did we go since the beginning of September?

• The 1st tour was an 11-day classic Great European Beer Tour & Oktoberfest 2009. We visited Germany, Czech Republic and Austria and ended the tour in Munich and the first weekend of the Oktoberfest.

• 2nd tour was a 4-day Oktoberfest 2009 & Alps Special tour.

• The 3rd tour was a 2-day Oktoberfest 2009 tour for 17 people from a UK company.

• Our 4th and final tour in Munich was another 4-day Oktoberfest 2009 & Alps Special.

• After a beer barrel run in Franconia when we dropped off 20 empty barrels from our August beer festival in Zwevegem, we reolcated to Bamberg.

• Our final Bavaria tour and our 5th tour was in Bamberg for the Thirsty Swagman's Euro Hard 'n' Fast tour.

• Finally we have just completed our 6th tour in 6 weeks-another 10-day Great Belgium Beer Tour to Belgium and Northern France.

• Next.....a Belgium Beer Night in Germany tomorrow night!

So keep on reading over the next few days!
Cheers for now,
Andy@bier-mania.com

Bier-Mania! Cultural Beer Tours-Latest News

Hello Everyone,
Just to let you know what we are currently up to, gonna be a busy 4-6 weeks on the road!
Tours kick in Frankfurt airport this coming Friday morning with an 11-day Great European Beer Tour & Oktoberfest 2009 covering Germany, Czech Republic and Austria. We then have 3 further Oktoberfest tours in Munich after which it is Bamberg from 06-09 October, we finally come back on Friday 9th October to Düsseldorf!

Just for good measure we then have our 10-day Great Belgium Beer Tour the following week from Friday 16-Sunday 25 October, this tour starts and ends in Düsseldorf and takes in Germany, Netherlands, Belgium and France! Awesome!

Take it easy and be good to see you on a tour!
Cheers,
Andy

Postman Pat

For those of you not from Blighty, you may be thinking what/who/why is Postman Pat?
Well, as his name suggests, he is a postman and his name is Pat. And he has a cat.
On our Franconia & Annafest tour in July we had a lovely lady from the States who was a postman/woman. I just couldn't stop singing the song as we drove merrily along Franconia's country roads....
So here goes, when you have your next German 'Stein', you'll find yourself humming the tune. Maybe!
Cheers,
Andy

Oktoberfest 2009-Places Available

There are still a couple of places available on 2 of our tours this year.
Please email andy@bier-mania.com

The piccie on the right shows the Oktoberfest grounds under construction last week. we had to check all was going well.....

Cheers!
Andy

Oktoberfest 2009

We have now closed all bookings for this year's Oktoberfest.
Book early (this year!) for Oktoberfest 2010 if you want to go.

Cheers,
Andy

Oktoberfest Tours 13% DISCOUNT

Good news for Oktoberfest 2009.
ALL TOURS ARE NOW €695.00 IF BOOKED BEFORE 7th AUGUST!

This year we have the following 5 tours, 8 people maximum on each tour.

Dates
Tour 1 MB-090918 (18-21 September) FULL
Tour 2 MB-090922 (22-25 September) 6 places left
Tour 3 MB-080926 (25-28 September) 4 places left
Tour 4 MB-090929 (29-02 October) 6 places
Tour 5 MB-091002 (02-05 October) 6 places

Cheers,
Andy@bier-mania.com
Bier-Mania!

Oktoberfest 2009 The Hofbräuhaus Song!

We're getting very excited about Oktoberfest this year and thought we'd get you in the mood, we know it is only 87 long long days until the 176th festival but hey, why not!

As part of this year's Oktoberfest Training Package (OTP), it is recommended that you learn certain things before the Big O.
One of Munich's finest songs In München steht ein Hofbräuhaus we find to be very emotional and makes us think of singing, large large beers and chicken. Not to mention Dirn'dls...

This year we have included 2 very useful videos to guide you along your way and ensure that when in Munich you sing like a local. We do however recommend that you listen very carefully to the words, sing this very quietly at first and gradually build up to a higher volume, then when you are confident you can introduce the song to your mates down the pub or at work, sit on a bench and roll side to side.

Good luck, one two, three.....

In München steht ein Hofbräuhaus: Eins, zwei, ... g'suffa!
Da läuft so manches Fäßchen aus: Eins, zwei, ... g'suffa!
Da hat so manche braver Mann: Eins, zwei, ... g'suffa!
Gezeigt was er so vertragen kann
Schon früh am Morgen fing er an
Und spät am Abend kam er heraus
So schön ist's im Hofbräuhaus.

In English this would sound something like this...

In Munich stands a Hofbräuhaus: one, two ... cheers!
There run out so many steins: one, two ... cheers!
There are so many brave men: one, two ... cheers!
Show what he can endure
Already early in the morning he begins
And late at night he comes out
So beautiful it is in the Hofbräuhaus!

The Extended Version!



Prost,
Andy

Work!

We don't often put stuff like this on the blog but just recieved this from a 75-year old retired man of the cloth, it's a corker....

The Center for Disease Control has issued a medical alert about a highly
contagious, potentially dangerous virus that is transmitted orally, by hand,
and even electronically. This virus is called Weekly Overload Recreational
Killer (WORK). If you receive WORK from your boss, any of your colleagues
or anyone else via any means whatsoever - DO NOT TOUCH IT!!! This virus
will wipe out your private life entirely. If you should come into contact
with WORK you should immediately leave the premises.

Take two good friends to the nearest liquor store and purchase one or both
of the antidotes - Work Isolating Neutralizer Extract (WINE) and
Bothersome Employer Elimination Rebooter (BEER). Take the antidote repeatedly until
WORK has been completely eliminated from your system.

You should immediately forward this medical alert to five friends. If you
do not have five friends, you have already been infected and WORK is
controlling your life.

Cheers,
Andy

International Streekbierenfestival-14, 15 August 2009

This years International Streekbierenfestival is from 14-15 August in the town of Zwevegem (no, I can't pronounce it either!) just to the east of Kortrijk in West Flanders.
You may be thinking what is this all about then!?
Streek in Flemish loosely translates as 'regional' for us English speakers, nothing to do with going naked. Last year there were some 13000 people and around 30-35 different international bars. Should be good!

We will be there this year with around 200-300 litres of some of Germany's finest beer with our usually named 'Beers of Germany', most of the beer will be hand picked up during our Franconia tours in July and August, we are also hoping to bring back some Annafest beer from Forchheim. The beer will also be mainly dispensed by gravity and in the correct glassware!


















Where/When
Friday 1500-0130 (3pm-1.30am)
Saturday 1100-0130 (11am-1.30am)


View 03-Combo Tours/Events in a larger map

Be great to see you there, say hello to us if you do read this blog!
Cheers,
Andy