Trabant Tours: Nostalgic Sightseeing in Central and Eastern Europe
The Trabant 601 has become an iconic tourist attraction throughout the former communist states.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and what better way to go sightseeing around where the wall once stood than in a Trabant. Besides the many events and activities celebrating its infamous destruction, there is a unique phenomenon taking place in the region – the popularity of Trabant tours.
The Trabant was produced by former East German auto maker VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau from between 1957 to 1991. The ”people’s car” with its two-stroke engine, famously known for its flimsy workmanship has become an icon of the past Communist era and the latest tourist attraction. Times sure have changed for this little car! Once scoffed at, it’s now trendy to drive. It’s become such a sensation that even Former Bulgarian foreign minister Solomon Passy made a point of taking visiting dignitaries, including the late pope John Paul II, for a spin in his Trabant. The nostalgic car was also featured in the 2003 international hit film “Good Bye Lenin“, which was a political comedy about the transformation of East Germany.
Now you can drive one yourself. Trabant tours are widely available throughout all of Central and Eastern Europe including in Germany where you can rent one from tour companies like “Trabi-Safari“ and drive through places like former East Berlin to see past communist landmarks.
In Budapest, “Rent a Trabant” offers eager tourists the option to drive a Trabant on a closed circuit track or engage in a Trabant treasure hunt through the city streets.
So, if you’re looking for a unique way to tour the region while learning about its turbulant past, you might consider throwing modern day driving sensibilities to the wind and instead rent a Trabant. Below is a listing of various Trabant tours throughout Central and Eastern Europe.
Happy motoring comrades!
Germany
Event & Touring AG
Trabant tours available in Berlin, Leipzig, Mühlanger, Müritz, and Greifswald.
http://www.trabant-mieten.de
Trabi-Safari
Offers daily Trabant tours in Berlin and Dresden.
http://cms.trabi-safari.de/opencms/opencms/trabi-safari/en/_main/home/
Hungary
Rent a Trabant
Tour company specializing in Trabant tours and rentals in Budapest.
http://www.rentatrabant.com
Poland
Cracow City Tours
Young tour company offering a variety of trips including 2 to 4 hour Trabant tours in Cracow.
http://www.cracowcitytours.pl
Crazy Guides
Specializes in “Communist tours” throughout Poland.
http://www.crazyguides.com/cars/
Ukraine
GoEast
Various adventure tours available in Kiev.
http://www.goeast.com.ua
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One of my friends drives a Trabant “kombi”, which is like the Trabant version of a mini-van. She is always getting waved down by tourists in Budapest so they can get pictures of the Trabi.
Anyways, we’ve been offering the “Trabant Trek” in Budapest for over five years:
http://www.stagrepublic.co.uk/budapest/trabant-trek
Happy Trabant-ing!
nice share