Tonight’s episode of The Amazing Race takes the teams to Germany, where self-driving, tricky puzzles and a scenic castle ferry set the stage for drama and elimination. Read the live recap below for a full play-by-play of the leg from Frankfurt to Cologne.
The leg opens with Greg & John learning their next destination: Frankfurt, Germany. Teams stop at a travel agency to pick up tickets and are told they’ll all share the same flight. They’ll also be driving themselves on this leg. As everyone heads to the airport, teams reflect on their strengths and concerns. Corey stresses the importance of navigation; Rob is eager to drive; Todd & Ashlie are excited to revisit Frankfurt; Steve & Anna Leigh vow to fight back after being U-Turned previously; and Robbin finds the trip emotional because her late husband was once stationed in Germany.
Once in Germany, teams must drive to a ferry that crosses the Rhine and delivers them to Burg Rheinstein. Early confusion on the roads costs several teams time: Robbin & Chelsea and Andrea & Malaina each miss turns, while Todd & Ashlie arrive first at the ferry. Joel & Garrett and Morgan & Lena follow closely, then Steve & Anna Leigh. Robbin & Chelsea, however, drive past the ferry and lose more time.
Greg & John and Rob & Corey end up on a later ferry to Burg Rheinstein. The leading teams reach the next clue box first and face a Roadblock: one team member must pay the correct amount of Witten by calculating a formula. The Roadblock proves to be a math challenge that tests patience and accuracy. Todd, Morgan, Anna Leigh and Garrett take the task early; Morgan finishes quickly, earning her and Lena the right to press on to Cologne and locate Gürzenich Köln for the next clue.
As teams move toward Cologne, driving becomes a key factor. Joel & Garrett admit to getting lost; Robbin & Chelsea tail Greg & John; Ashlie worries they’re off course; and Morgan & Lena briefly bicker after a wrong turn. At Burg Rheinstein, teams complete the Witten Roadblock at different speeds. Chelsea eventually figures out the formula by trial and error, correctly producing a total of fifteen coins. Andrea & Malaina accidentally board the wrong ferry, a mistake that threatens their continuation in the race.
In Cologne, the next challenge sends teams to a vibrant Carnival event: one member rides a horse tricycle while the other throws flowers. The successful completion yields the clue directing teams to Hohenzollernbrücke, the famous lock-covered bridge. Greg & John, Robbin & Chelsea, Todd & Ashlie and Rob & Corey all complete the carnival task and head to the bridge, where a new Roadblock requires locating a marked love lock among thousands and thousands of padlocks.
After searching the sea of locks, Greg finally finds the marked lock and receives a Detour choice: Just For Kicks or Matter of Taste. Just For Kicks blends soccer and darts, requiring teams to kick a ball into a large dartboard to reach an exact score of 66. Matter of Taste asks teams to identify various German mustard flavors by name. Greg & John opt for Matter of Taste; Robbin & Chelsea choose the same. Other teams split between the Detours based on their confidence and driving position.
A few teams struggle with navigation at the bridge—Steve & Anna Leigh continue to spar about directions—but several make rapid progress. Ashlie and Rob both locate locks that help their partners move forward. At the Detour tasks, accuracy and patience are essential: some teams do well identifying mustards, while others wrestle with the precision required by the soccer-darts hybrid.
Greg & John finish Matter of Taste and race on to the Pit Stop at Das Schokoladenmuseum, where host Phil Keoghan awaits with the results. Greg & John finish first and each win $4,000. Robbin & Chelsea arrive seconds later to take second place. Teams continue filtering into the Pit Stop: Todd & Ashlie and Rob & Corey claim third and fourth, while Steve & Anna Leigh and Morgan & Lena cross the line shortly after.
Joel & Garrett, who feared they were last after earlier navigation problems, complete the Detour and discover they are not eliminated—placing seventh—and are relieved to remain in the race. Meanwhile, Andrea & Malaina, who lost their bag of Witten after boarding the wrong ferry and fell so far behind that the other teams had already departed, arrive at the carnival too late. Phil informs them that they are in last place and are eliminated.
Leg Summary
1st place: Greg & John
2nd place: Robbin & Chelsea
3rd place: Todd & Ashlie
4th place: Rob & Corey
5th place: Steve & Anna Leigh
6th place: Morgan & Lena
7th place: Joel & Garrett
Eliminated: Andrea & Malaina
That concludes this episode of The Amazing Race. Teams faced navigation errors, mind-bending puzzles, carnival antics and a dramatic ferry mix-up that ultimately led to one team’s elimination. Tune in next week for another leg full of strategy and surprises.