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The Bach Journey - A journey exploring the music of J.S. Bach through the places he lived and worked in central Germany
Festival highlights
- Nine concerts by some of the finest Bach interpreters in the world, from the UK and continental Europe.
- Renowned ensembles Dunedin Consort, Vox Luminis, Solomon’s Knot and The Marian Consort all appear.
- Hear the Brandenburg Concertos in Schloss Köthen where they were written, the deeply moving St John Passion in Weimar, and the monumental B minor Mass in Leipzig.
- Keyboard works by superb harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani and on an organ from Bach’s time in Sangerhausen.
- Choose from range of hotel options in each of the three hotel bases: Eisenach/Mühlhausen, Weimar and Leipzig.
- Daily talks by leading Bach experts Professor John Butt and Sir Nicholas Kenyon.
Journeying to the places where Johann Sebastian Bach lived and worked is an experience as near to pilgrimage as the history of music offers.
For this, the tenth Bach Journey, we have assembled artists and ensembles from Britain and continental Europe who are world leaders in this repertoire.
The superb Dunedin Consort appear in both Köthen, to play the dazzling Brandenburg Concertos in the very place they were likely written, and also in Mühlhausen with an intimate sonata programme.
Vox Luminis perform in the Georgenkirche in Eisenach where Bach was a chorister, in Weimar we hear the deeply emotive St John Passion.
We hear keyboard works by renowned harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani and on an organ from Bach’s time in Sangerhausen.
The Marian Consort team up with lively period instrument ensemble Spiritato, and Solomon’s Knot complete the festival with a performance of the monumental B-minor Mass in the Nikolaikirche in Leipzig.
There are daily talks on the music by an array of speakers, including Professor John Butt and Sir Nicholas Kenyon.
The festival is emphatically a journey. It starts, as did Bach, in the little towns and cities of the principality of Thuringia and finishes, again like Bach, in the free city of Leipzig. The entire audience stays in hotels in three places: Eisenach or Mühlhausen, Weimar and then Leipzig, and the concerts take place here and in other towns.
Hearing his works in buildings which he frequented, performed by some of the finest international interpreters, must rank among the highest delights available to music lovers. This unique festival provides the opportunity.
Videos
Brochure
Musicians
Practicalities
The price includes:
— All nine concerts.
— Accommodation for six nights – choose between four hotel options. See page 18.
— All breakfasts, five dinners, three or four lunches (depending on flight option), and interval drinks.
— Talks on the music by Professor John Butt and Sir Nicholas Kenyon.
— All coach transfers.
— The assistance of festival staff and a detailed programme booklet.
Optional extras:
— A pre-festival tour, 'Organs of Bach's time'.
— Arriving a day early in your festival hotel.
Category A
Arriving a day early (27 September):
Two sharing: £3,680 per person
Single occupancy: £3,980
Arriving on the first day of the festival (28 September):
Two sharing: £3,590 per person
Single occupancy: £3,770
Category B
Arriving a day early (27 September):
Two sharing: £4,080 per person
Single occupancy: £4,350
Arriving on the first day of the festival (28 September):
Two sharing: £3,990 per person
Single occupancy: £4,230
Category C
Arriving a day early (27 September):
Two sharing: £4,520 per person
Single occupancy: £4,910
Arriving on the first day of the festival (28 September):
Two sharing: £4,410 per person
Single occupancy: £4,730
Category D
Arriving a day early (27 September):
Two sharing: £4,900 per person
Single occupancy: £5,400
Arriving on the first day of the festival (28 September):
Two sharing: £4,790 per person
Single occupancy: £5,220
Flights: if you choose to take one of the offered flight options, there is an additional cost of £270 per person.
Flights from London Heathrow are offered – all options fly into Frankfurt and back from Berlin.
If you select hotel option A or B, you can travel on flight options 1, 3 or 5.
If you select hotel option C or D, you can travel on flight options 2, 4 or 6.
There is the option to fly out on the 27 September, the day before the festival begins – see details in 'prices, per person'.
Festival flight options
Arriving a day early:
Option 1 – hotel options A & B
27 September: depart Heathrow 09.30, arrive Frankfurt 12.05 (LH 901)
4 October: depart Berlin 11.20, arrive Heathrow 12.25 (BA 987)
Option 2 – hotel options C & D
27 September: depart Heathrow 11.30, arrive Frankfurt 14.05 (LH 905)
4 October: depart Berlin 12.55, arrive Heathrow 13.55 (BA 991)
Arriving on the first day of the festival:
Option 3 – hotel options A & B
28 September: depart Heathrow 09.30, arrive Frankfurt 12.05 (LH 901)
4 October: depart Berlin 11.20, arrive Heathrow 12.25 (BA 987)
Option 4 – hotel options C & D
28 September: depart Heathrow 09.30, arrive Frankfurt 12.05 (LH 901)
4 October: depart Berlin 12.55, arrive Heathrow 13.55 (BA 991)
Option 5 – hotel options A & B
28 September: depart Heathrow 11.30, arrive Frankfurt 14.05 (LH 905)
4 October: depart Berlin 16.45, arrive Heathrow 17.45 (BA 991)
Option 6 – hotel options C & D
28 September: depart Heathrow 11.30, arrive Frankfurt 14.05 (LH 905)
4 October: depart Berlin 16.45, arrive Heathrow 17.45 (BA 991)
The no-flights option:
You can choose not to take any of our flight options and to make your own arrangements for joining and leaving the festival. You are welcome to join our airport coach transfers if your flights coincide with any of the options above.
Pre-festival tour:
The price for the pre-festival tour offers the option of a return flight – out at the start of the tour, and back at the end of the festival.
All pre-festival tour participants return to the UK on festival flight option 1.
We charge for flights, if you are taking them, as part of your pre-festival tour booking. You therefore pay the ‘no flights’ price for the festival.
The audience stays in three different towns during the course of the festival.
Choose between four different hotel options, A–D – see below.
If you intend to share a twin room with a friend, the best options are C and D (due to visibility of the bathroom from the bedroom area at the Park and Radisson Blu hotels in Leipzig, as well as a very limited number of twin rooms at the Brauhaus zum Löwen in Mühlhausen).
Mühlhausen or Eisenach:
27 or 28–30 September (two nights, or three if arriving a day early)
Depending on which hotel option you choose (A–D), you stay for the first two or three nights in either Mühlhausen or Eisenach.
Mühlhausen has few hotels. Categories A & B stay in the same 3-star hotel. The bathrooms have showers only. Double beds consist of two mattresses on a single base, and there are very few actual twin rooms. The hotel does not have air conditioning.
In Eisenach, both Categories C & D stay in a well-appointed hotel in the centre. Bathrooms are baths with shower fitments. Double rooms largely consist of two separate beds.
Weimar:
30 September–2 October (two nights)
Weimar has a very good range of 3-, 4- and 5-star hotels. A small city, the hotels we have selected are no more than 10 or 15 minutes’ walk from the venue. There is no air-conditioning at the Anna Amalia (Option A) but windows can be opened. Nearly every room at each of the four hotels is accessible by lift.
Leipzig:
2–4 October (two nights)
Leipzig, as a trade fair city, has a good selection of hotels of all categories though some lack individuality. We have selected ones within the periphery of the medieval core of the city; none is more than 15 or 20 minutes on foot from the venues. All have air-conditioning.
Option A
Mühlhausen: Brauhaus zum Löwen. An old timber-framed building of great character in the centre of town. Rooms are either in the main building or in a modern annex, 3 minutes walk away. The modern buildings may be less characterful, but all rooms are spacious. There is a lift to some rooms but not all.
Weimar: Anna Amalia. A family-run hotel in a quiet cobbled street in the centre of town. Rooms are simply furnished with cream walls and light wood furniture. Bedrooms vary in size. All rooms have a shower and there is lift access to all floors.
Leipzig: Seaside Park Hotel. A modern and comfortable hotel. The quirky design uses plenty of wood and is vaguely nautical. Bedrooms are a good size. Bathrooms are open to the rest of the bedroom, although the lavatory is in a separate room. There is a good restaurant. Every floor is accessible by lift.
Option B
Mühlhausen: Brauhaus zum Löwen. Same as option A.
Weimar: Dorint am Goethepark. Comprising two historic houses connected by a new addition, this is a modern hotel pleasantly situated by the park and a short walk from the town centre. Décor is a little austere, but the rooms elegant and comfortable. There is a restaurant in the hotel. All rooms have air conditioning and can be reached by lift. The majority of rooms have a bathtub rather than a walk-in shower.
Leipzig: Radisson Blu. A modern hotel, purpose-built in 1964 and completely renovated in 2006. It is situated on the Ring overlooking Augustusplatz and the Gewandhaus. Geared more to the business market, its interior of cool elegance is nevertheless comfortable. Beds can be divided into twins, but there may not be much space between them. Bathrooms are open to the bedroom (though the lavatory cannot be seen).
Option C
Eisenach: Vienna House by Wyndham Thüringer Hof. A large, centrally-located hotel. Bedrooms (Superior category) are bright and simply decorated. Two restaurants, a bar, as well a spa with sauna, exercise room and rooftop terrace. There is no air-conditioning. Double rooms have two separate mattresses attached to one another.
Weimar: Best Western Premier Grand Hotel Russischer Hof. An elegant hotel dating to 1805 and furnished in a partially modernised, opulent Russian Neo-Classical style. Impressive public areas and restaurants, comfortable rooms with generally spacious bathrooms, excellent location. All rooms are air-conditioned and accessible by lift.
Leipzig: Marriott. A traditional hotel decorated in marble, wood and brass. Rooms are spacious with cosy, country-style furnishings and all mod cons. Centrally-located but quiet. There is a swimming pool, and lift access to all floors.
Option D
Eisenach: Vienna House by Wyndham Thüringer Hof. Same as option C (Deluxe category rooms).
Weimar: Hotel Elephant. Famous, historic establishment blending classical gravity with contemporary understatement. Bedrooms are spacious and very well equipped, with smart, modern décor and bathrooms with showers. The hotel houses the AnnA restaurant, the finest in Weimar.
Leipzig: Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Handelshof. A converted former exhibition building located next to the Old Stock Exchange and a stone’s throw from the market square. Rooms are decorated in a clean and contemporary style. Views are of the internal courtyard or the city. There is a spa and fitness area. There are some slightly ostentatious modern design features. All rooms have walk-in showers and many also have a bathtub.
This is a physically demanding festival and fitness is essential.
Within the towns and cities, you will be expected to walk for anything up to 25 minutes and at a pace which is unlikely to slow others down when moving together. Many surfaces are uneven or cobbled and there are some ascents and descents. You will need to climb stairs at some venues and hotels, check in and out of three hotels and be comfortable travelling considerable distances by coach, particularly on the first and last days.
We are very happy to talk you through each day’s manoeuvres, as these differ festival to festival, to identify if it may be necessary to opt out at any point.
We ask that you take the simple fitness tests before booking.
Are you fit enough to join the festival?
If you have a medical condition or a disability which may affect your holiday or necessitate special arrangements being made for you, please discuss these with us before booking – or, if the condition develops or changes subsequently, as soon as possible before departure.
Private. All the performances are planned and administered by us, and the audience consists exclusively of those who have taken the festival package.
Seating. Specific seats are not reserved. You sit where you want.
Audience size. There will be up to 180 participants on the festival. One of our venues cannot hold this number, and so the performance will be repeated.
Acoustics. This festival is more concerned with locale and authenticity than with acoustic perfection. The venues may have idiosyncrasies or reverberations of the sort not found in modern concert halls.
Changes. Musicians fall ill, venues may close for repairs, airlines alter schedules: there are many circumstances which could necessitate changes to the programme. We ask you to be understanding should they occur.
Before booking, please refer to the FCDO website and Travel Health Pro to ensure you are happy with the travel advice for the destination(s) you are visiting.
Organs of Bach's time, 23–28 September 2026.
Testimonials
“For me, a life long lover of the music of Bach, the week was unadulterated bliss, like a week cut out from normal life. I applaud what Martin Randall Travel does for music lovers.
”
“The talks by Sir Nicholas Kenyon were memorably lively, informative and beautifully presented. They were well calibrated to the progress of the Bach Journey and culminated in a masterly final talk...
”
“I absolutely loved my first experience with MRT and have recommended it highly to my friends. As a Bach fanatic I was already looking forward to it before I went but it exceeded my expectations.
”
“Astonishing line-up of concerts in wonderful places... meandering through those small Thuringian towns was most moving and helped give a picture of the world Bach lived in.
”
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