Here

GASI
WHAT IS
INCLUDED:
• 11 nights lodging at
4- and 5-star hotels
• European style
breakfast each
morning
• 6 group lunches
• 5 group dinners
• Entrance fee for
tour attractions
• Transportation from
and to Munich
airport and hotel
• Motor coach
transportation and
driver tip
• Tour operator tip
• Snacks and
beverages on bus
AIR FARE IS NOT
INCLUDED
October 5-17, 2011
GERMANY AUSTRIA SLOVENIA ITALY
Join us for the GÄSI (GAY cee) Mill
Tour where we will explore these
beautiful countries:
GERMANY ‒ the ultra modern city of
Munich is contrasted against its
infamous past where the Third
Reich was born and nestled at the
foot of the Bavarian Alps.
Austria ‒ a weekend in Salzburg,
made famous by The Sound of
Music and Mozart. Our tour begins
in heart of Austrian Alps visiting
the timber processing plants.
Slovenia ‒ formerly part of
Yugoslavia until 1991 when they
gained their independence. Our
business tour continues in this
undiscovered gem of a country by
hiking through managed forests in
the Julian Alps, seeing harvesting
techniques and visiting a wood
house builderʼs assembly plant.
With the tighter security
regulations, it will be
better for you to make
your own reservations to
ensure the proper
information is registered
with the airline. You can
use your favorite airline
and earn frequent flier
miles.
Italy ‒ a Saturday excursion to
Double: $2,790/person
Single: $3,375/person
Venice. Boating through the canals,
touring a glass factory and
enjoying the food, sights and wine.
LEARNING TOUR
The GÄSI Mill Tour presents a
unique opportunity to see the full
process of a wooden house built in
Central European-style. We visit
the spruce and larch forests in the
Julian Alps, learn about their
harvesting methods and watch the
timber processing at two different
manufacturers.
In this part of Europe wood homes
are the exception -- not the rule.
Typical building materials are
concrete and brick, so the builders
we visit have centuries of
misperception about wood-built
construction to overcome in selling
their homes. Technologies used are
slightly different, as is the
construction process.
Our hosts at each of these
companies are very willing to share
their knowledge, answer your
questions and ask you questions
about our techniques. This will be
an engaging cross-cultural
exchange.
The Companies
Sightseeing
Hasslacher Nordic Timber ‒
(www.hasslacher.at/en.html) From tree trunk to
finished roof frame, this Austrian timber producer is
well known for its quality products and integrity.
The companyʼs founders are environmentally
conscious and use technology for complete use of
the timber and improving air and water quality in
the process. We will tour their GLU-LAM plant at
their headquarter located in Sachsenburg.
Of course, a tour such as this will include many
historical sites, breath-taking landscapes with
different libations and cuisines to sample. Here are
just a few of the highlights:
KLH ‒ (www.klh.at) KLH is the market-leading
manufacturer of large-format glued laminated
timber elements, which are used worldwide under
the brand name “KLH” as structural wall, ceiling and
roofing elements. Their cross-laminated timber
technology has been written about in industry
publications in the United States recently and is
gaining increased interest. Their efforts in
contributing to a liveable environment and using
innovative advancements in this industry also
contribute to the reasons why their customers do
business with them.
Wigo Haus ‒ (www.wigo-haus.at) Their patented
pre-fabricated system has earned Wigo Haus the
Innovation and Research Award of Carinthia. The
wall-ceiling-roofing system is a complete highquality product constructed with the utmost care in
its manufacturing process. In their construction
process, great planning is used to keep the local
ecology in mind. Each home is highly energy
efficient using a cellulose insulation. The designs
vary to meet their customersʼ individual desires
whether it be modern, timeless or rustic.
Riko Home Builders ‒ (www.riko-haus.com) This
home builder/assembler made its start in the
industry by providing wood elements to a foreign
partner in 1997. By 1999 the innovators at Riko
used their technical knowledge, improved their
technology and overtook their partner in the wood
home manufacturing process. Today they ship their
product across Europe from Sweden to Italy.
Sensitive to ecological issues, their homes are
energy efficient and designed to make minimal
impact on the environment. Their stylish and varied
designs are used not just for homes, but also for
other projects such as small hotels.
Munich - This cosmopolitan city does not shrink
from its past where Hitler first organized the Nazis,
but in fact speaks very openly. We will visit Dachau,
Olympic Park, Mariaʼs Square, Kingʼs Square and
Augustiner Beer Hall. The striking architecture,
warm-hearted people and cold beer is a great place
to start the tour.
Salzburg - Birthplace of Mozart and filming location
for The Sound of Music, this small but sophisticated
city is nestled in the Austrian Alps protected by the
Hohensalzburg (the castle overlooking the city).
Bled - A quaint, charming Slovenian village at the
foot of the Julian Alps. The natural beauty of the
Alps, lake, and forests will take your breath away.
Ljubljana - The capitol city of Slovenia is a shopper's
mecca of fashion and arts. The restoration of its old
city and redevelopment of its new city center under
the communist government is another interesting
study of contrast.
Venice - The city of romance! Gondolas, winding
narrow streets, restaurants overlooking the canals,
and stunning architecture.
Sunset over canals in Venice
GASI TOUR DETAILS
October 5-17, 2011
Wednesday, October 5th - Travel from u.s.
Lunch on your own and free afternoon and evening.
Thursday, October 6th - Travel, MUNICH
Sunday, October 9th - SALZBURG - BERCHTESGADEN HALLEIN - SACHSENBURG
All arrive in Munich; bus meets people at airport;
check into hotel in the city center. For those of you
who arrive early, please be sure to check into the
hotel no later than noon.
Welcome reception where we will serve a small
buffet, make introductions, and review entire trip.
In the afternoon there will be a walking tour
through the old part of Munich. We will visit Carl's
Gate, St Michael's Church with the royal tombs of
Wittelsbach family, Old and New Town Hall on
Maria's Square, old and new royal residence of
Wittelsbach family. At the end of our walking tour,
we will stop for a dinner in one of the oldest beer
halls in Munich - Augustiner Beer Hall.
Friday, October 7th - MUNICH - DACHAU - SALZBURG
Bus tour of Munich. We will visit the King's Square,
with beautiful Greek style palaces, Maximilian street
with University, Victory gate, Olympic Park with
692 foot (192 meter) tower with a beautiful view
over Munich and its surroundings.
After Munich, we will drive to Dachau, small town
north of Munich famous for the concentration camp
from World War II. Lunch on own on the way to
Salzburg.
In Salzburg we have a quick bus tour prior to
checking into the Neutor Hotel. Late afternoon we
give you an orientation of the city followed by a
group dinner at a traditional Austrian restaurant.
Saturday, October 8th - SALZBURG
Group tour of Salzburg includes Leopoldskron
Palace with the lake where the movie SOUND OF
MUSIC was made, Mozart Square, cathedrals, St.
Peters Church and the oldest cemetery in Salzburg,
the Catacombs, festival halls, Mozart's birth house.
Your choice to explore Salzburg on your own or
take in an optional group tour of the Salt Mines or
Eagleʼs Nest, depending on weather:
1. Salt mine - In a small village of Bad Dürrnberg,
not far away from Salzburg is a Salt Mine from the
16th century, established by Archbishops of
Salzburg. Tour through this Mine museum, an
educational but funny adventure.
OR ̶ 2. Eagle's nest - On the peak of the German
Alps, Nazi officers ordered to rebuild the small
alpine cottage into a modern house, reachable by a
special alpine road and an elevator. When finished,
this house became a birthday present for Adolf
Hitler. After the bombing at the end of the 2nd
World War, it was rebuilt and became a famous
retreat for tourists, who come here to admire the
beautiful view over Bavarian Alps and valleys.
Lunch on your own with a free afternoon before we
bus to the village of Sachsenburg, Austria, where we
stay at Zum Goldenen Rössl guest house. Evening
includes update on Mondayʼs itinerary followed by a
group dinner at the guest house.
Monday, October 10th - KATSCH - SACHSENBURG
(HASSLACHER PLANT) - BLED
In the morning we tour KLH, a cross-laminated
timber board plant, in Kirsch, Austria.
We bus back to Sachsenburg for lunch at
Hasslacher (glulam plant) which we tour in the
afternoon. From there we bus to Bled, Slovenia;
check into Toplice Hotel by the Lake. That evening
we have an orientation of next dayʼs tour, followed
by a romantic walk around beautiful Lake Bled.
Dinner is on your own.
Tuesday, October 11th - FELDKIRCHEN (WIGO FACTORY)
- KRANJSKA GORA - PLANICA - BLED CASTLE
We bus to Feldkirchen, Austria, to tour Wigo, a
preassembled home builder and manufacturer.
Afterwards, we drive to to Kranjska gora, a well
known ski resort at the footsteps of Julian Alps for
lunch in the country.
In the afternoon we return to Bled to tour its 16th
century castle where we will visit the printing
workshop, wine cellar and herbal gallery. Then you
have your choice of taking a boat to Church Island,
walking or shopping around Bled. Dinner is on your
own.
Wednesday, October 12th - POKLJUKA - BOHINJ - MT.
VOGEL - BLED
We travel to Pokljuka, mountain in Julian Alps, with
the most beautiful woods in Slovenia. Foresters and
loggers will give us the regionʼs history, show us
how they manage their spruce and larch forests and
how harvesting is done. This requires good shoes to
hike into the forest and along summer pastures.
builder, and local museum. Lunch will be at Rikoʼs
cafeteria, where you experience a ʻworking manʼs
lunchʼ followed by a tour of a custom wood window
factory. After a rest in the afternoon, the Slovenia
Forestry Department is hosting a reception and
lecture for us to tell us more about their most
precious resource.
Saturday, October 15th - VENICE - LJUBLJANA
Another exciting day of all pleasure as we drive to
the Adrian Sea and visit Venice, Italy. When we
arrive, we take a boat through canals to Rialto
Bridge in the city center and walk to a glass factory
near San Marco Square for tour. The afternoon and
evening are free for you to explore. We recommend
a tour through ducal palace and St. Marco's Church
as well as roaming the streets and visiting the shops
and restaurants. After a full day, we return to
Ljubljana.
Sunday, October 16th - LJUBLJANA - MUNICH
Lunch is in Bohinj, the lakes region, at a typical
country restaurant. Afterwards, walk around Bohinj
Lake or take the gondola up Mt. Vogel.
That evening we are treated to traditional Slovenian
food and dancing.
Thursday, October 13th - POSTOJNA (CAVE) LJUBLJANA
We travel out of the Alps into the valley to tour the
Postojna Cave. It is a 2-1/2 mile long karst cave
system, a web of underground passages, galleries
and chambers. It is both the largest cave of the
Classical Karst and hosts the largest numbers of
visitors to a cave in Europe. There is lunch on the
property followed by a tour of Predjama castle built
above a portion of the cave where its occupants had
access to them.
A big travel day as we bus back to Munich with
stops for lunch and breaks. A group farewell dinner
will be arranged where we explain how people will
be transported to the airport the next day. Plus, for
those staying, we will provide the orientation of the
Barvarian castles tour.
Monday, October 17th - MUNICH
Departure for USA. Breakfast at hotel and people
return to U.S. OR people take extended tour of
Munich.
In the afternoon we bus to Ljubljana, Sloveniaʼs
capital city, After checking into the City Hotel, we
walk through the city to see the cathedral of St.
Nicolas, "3 bridges" over the Ljubljanica River,
Ljubljana castle, town hall with beautiful Robba
fountain. Evening is on your own.
Friday, October 14th - RIBNICA (RIKO FACTORY) LJUBLJANA
A business tour of Riko, another well-known home
above) Marias Square, Munich.
on front cover, left to right) 1. Fountain in front of New
Town Hall, Munich. 2. Bread vendor at Saturday market,
Salzburg. 3. Fall colors in Julian Alps overlooking Lake
Bled, Bled.
G ÄSI Mill Tour
October 5 – 17, 2011
registration Form
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Primary Name: ___________________________________________________________
Guest Name(s) : __________________________________________________________
Company: _______________________________________________________________
Address: ________________________________________________________________
City: _____________________ State/Province: _______ ZIP: ______________________
Telephone: _____________________________ Fax: _____________________________
E-mail: __________________________________________________________________
Return a copy of this form with your $300 per person non-refundable deposit by June 1.
You will be invoiced for the balance.
Mill Tour Price: $2,790 per person, double; $3,375 per person, single
$___________
Extended Tour of Munich Price: $955 per person, double
$ __________
Payment may be made by check (payable to Northwestern Lumber Association) or by credit card:
Account No. __________________________ Exp. Date __________
MasterCard___
Visa ___
Signature __________________________________________ 3-Digit Code _______ $__________
Fax to:
Mail to:
(763)535-4060
Northwestern Lumber Association
5905 Golden Valley Rd. #110
Minneapolis, MN 55422
Munich 3-Day Tour Extension
October 17-20, 2011
Monday, October 17 - Herrenchiemsee Castle
Stay three days in
Munich at the conclusion of the mill
tour and explore the surrounding
Bavarian villages where King Ludwig II
built three distinct and
extraordinary castles.
Included in this package:
- minivan and the driver/guide
- 3 nights in 4 star hotel in Munich
- breakfast each morning at hotel
- dinner in Hofbreuhaus /live music
- farewell dinner
- boat to the Herreninsel
- entrance to the castles
$995/person
Departure from the hotel 10 a.m. We travel south
to Lake Chiemsee and the town of Prien. A special
boat will take us to the island of Herreninsel, one of
3 islands on this "Bavarian sea". You walk 15
minutes to the Herrenchiemsee castle. The castle
and the park are almost the exact copy of famous
Versailles castle south of Paris but unfortunately
this castle is not finished due to the sudden death of
King Ludwig II.
After the castle tour, we will be able to visit the
castle museum with some original objects of King
Ludwig II. Through the story of the castle, we will
learn about the life and bitter end of this "magical"
King. Before return to the mainland, we will visit the
old palace of the royal family Wittelsbach,
connected to the old Benedictine monastery. In this
palace, the first modern constitution of Republic of
Germany was hammered out in 1948. You return to
town for lunch and then drive back to Munich for a
free afternoon.
At 7:30 pm, we will walk to the most well known
beer hall in the world, Hofbrauhaus for dinner in the
old hall "Festhalle" with live music and traditional
folk dance.
Tuesday, October 18 - Ettal, Oberammergau,
Linderhof and Neuschwanstein Castle
Ettal Abbey, founded by King Ludvig II.
Depart from hotel at 10 a.m. We travel south of
Bavaria, to the footstep of the Bavarian Alps. We
will first visit the Abbey of Ettal. Ettal is one of the
most important Abbeys in Germany. The most
impressive part of this Abbey is a baroque - rococo
church with the statue of Madonna of Ettal. The
self-sustaining community is occupied by an
independent religious community which produces
most everything they need for life. You will be able
to try and buy some of their products: Herbal
brandy, chocolate.
From there we travel to the palace Linderhof. The
smallest and the only finished palace of Ludwig II is
hidden in woods underneath Bavarian Alps. In this
palace Ludwig spent most of his time during his
regime. The palace is surrounded by a beautiful
park, fountains and cascade. Not far from the main
palace there is "Venus grotto", the artificial cave,
with the lake and the scenery from Richard
Wagner's operas, that Ludwig loved the most.
For lunch we travel to Schwangau valley and have
our pick of one of many restaurants in this small
town. After lunch, we will climb to the last of our
castles, the most beautiful and most well known
castle Neuschwanstein. The interior is different from
other castles because it was built as a retreat from
the royal life. The design of Neuschwanstein was
inspired by the operas of Richard Wagner, to whom
the king dedicated the castle. It was not however
directly modeled on Wagner's works, but on the
medieval legends that the composer had also taken
as the basis for his works.
After the tour through the castle, we drive back to
Munich. Dinner is on your own.
Wednesday, October 19 – Munich
In the morning we will visit the largest baroque
palace in Europe - the Nymphenburg palace,
birthplace of King Ludwig II and the summer
residence of Wittelsbach family. The palace is on the
edge of Munich, connected with water canals with
the Olympic park.
After visiting the castle, you have a free afternoon
for shopping or individual visits to the museums
and galleries in Munich. We recommend one of the
galleries in the Museum quarter, such as the Old
and new Pinakothek, Glypthotek, Antic museum,
Deutsches museum, which is the biggest technical
museum in Europe.
There will be a group dinner at the hotel restaurant
with a farewell drink and souvenir.
Thursday, October 20 - Departure Day
Transportation to the airport will be arranged.
ADDITIONAL TRAVEL DETAILS
TRAVELERS INSURANCE
To give you peace of mind in booking your trip,
you may want to consider purchasing travelers
insurance. The insurance must be purchased
BEFORE you make your final payment. You can
do a search on the internet for the respected
companies. Choose the type of coverage you
want: trip interruption, medical coverage or
injury. This web site provides you helpful
information to decide the type of insurance that
you need;
http://www.travelinsurancereview.net/who-hasthe-best-travel-insurance/
One company that we recommend is Travel
Guard, www.travelguard.com .
PASSPORTS
Of course, a passport is needed. Check the
expiration date. If it expires less than six months
from the dates of the tour, you should renew it
before you leave. It typically takes 4-6 weeks to
renew. No other travel documents are needed.
COMMUNICATIONS
All the hotels have a computer to access the
Internet and WIFI. Some of them work in the
rooms and others work strictly in the lobby.
Contact your cell phone provider about cell
phone coverage and how to get global service.
ELECTRICAL NEEDS
You will need an electrical adaptor and converter
(or transformer) when you travel to Europe. The
adaptor allows you to plug your item into their
sockets. The converter converts the European
220v to 110 volts so that American appliances
will operate on European current. The hotels
have hair dryers so you donʼt need to pack it. For
more information, do a search on the Internet or
check out this web site,
http://goeurope.about.com/od/electricityineurope/Electricity_in_Europe_What_the_Eur
opean_Traveler_Should_Know.htm.
REFUND/CANCELLATION POLICY
If you cancel prior to the June 1 deadline, your
deposit will be fully refunded. After the June 1
deadline, deposit will be forfeited.