Season 11 of "Rick Steves' Europe" is now available for streaming on our YouTube channel and on our website at www.ricksteves.com/season11! Traveling across Germany, we learn how fascism rose and then fell, taking millions of people with it. Visiting actual locations — from Munich to Nürnberg to Berlin — we trace the roots of Nazism in the aftermath of World War I, when masses of angry people were enchanted by Hitler. We explore the totalitarian society Hitler built, and see the consequences: ge

If Germany's on your list, consider timing your trip around one of Europe's biggest parties: Munich's Oktoberfest. I've been in Munich for each of the last two Oktoberfests, and I'm so impressed by the simple Bavarian joy of the party. For a visitor, there's no better place to see (and join) Germans at play. Inside huge beer-hall tents, you'll find a slap-happy world of lederhosen, dirndls, fancy hats, and maidens with flowers in their hair. Join the party with me in this clip from my new, one-h