After meeting your guide in central Berlin, sit back and relax aboard an air-conditioned coach during your 2-hour journey to Dresden. When you arrive in Dresden, also known as the 'Jewel Box' because of its rococo and baroque city center, your guide will show you the city on a walking tour.
Learn about Dresden's history and how it served as a cultural capital between 1806 and 1918 under reign of the Saxon Kings. As you walk around, learn about the tragic end of World War 2 and hear about the controversial bombing in February 1945, during which the whole city center was destroyed. After the city's reconstruction and since the reunification of Germany in 1990, Dresden has regained importance as one of the country's cultural centers, now featuring 56 galleries, 44 museums and 36 theaters, including the former royal treasure collection, the 'Green Vault.'
See the neo-Renaissance Semperoper opera house, in which the world-famous composer Richard Wagner held some of his premiers. Next to the opera house is the Zwinger palace, one of the most delightful baroque constructions in Germany. Once a palace for parties and celebrations for the royals, it now houses museums including the Old Masters Picture Gallery featuring among others Raphael's Sistine Madonna and a porcelain museum. Admire the impressive and newly rebuilt Frauenkirche, completely destroyed in 1945, which served as a war memorial in the German Democratic Republic and was not rebuilt until 2005.
By midday, you'll have time at your leisure to explore this interesting city. To get a feel for it like a true local, have lunch (own expense) at one of the many kneipen (pubs) in Weisse Gasse, a pedestrianized area in the old town. Later, you can visit the sights you saw on your walking tour from the outside in more detail, stroll along the beautiful river Elbe, visit Dresden's many parks, or enjoy a cold beer in a Biergarten (beer garden) overlooking the baroque skyline.