Amble through 800 years of maritime history on a guided Rostock walk that also includes a brewery stop and free time for independent exploration. This lively harbor and university city along the Warnow River has been a power player in shipbuilding and fishing ever since the heyday of the Hanseatic League – and despite heavy damage in WWII still has the buildings to prove it. Your stroll through the city center provides encounters with ancient towers, imposing fortifications, gabled houses from the 15th century and inspiring churches and abbeys, foremost of which is Marienkirche, a true Gothic stunner. During your free time here, you might browse the shops of picturesque New Market Square in the heart of old town, or stop in at the city’s signature medieval monastery, now home to a cultural history museum. And your reward for all this walking around? That visit to a Rostock brewery complex, where you’ll be invited to sample fresh-brewed German beer along with its ideal accompaniment, a salty pretzel.