Best Places to Stay in the Rhine and Mosel Region

"St. Goar and Cochem?"

If you wish to stay on both rivers, this is a good pair to pick. Trier is an easy day trip by direct train from Cochem if you wish to visit; so is Burg Eltz. Or take a ferry to Beilstein from Cochem (1 hr. each way.) St. Goar is mid-way between the north and south ends of the best part of the Rhine, and there's a ferry there that crosses to St. Goarshausen and that allows easy access to the east bank trains and the towns of Braubach and Rüdesheim. Bacharach is 10 minutes away, Oberwesel 5, both just south of St. Goar on the same riverbank. Map of left (west)-bank train stops:

https://mittelrheinbahn.de/assets/images/0/mittelrheinbahn-strecke-590e1210.svg

Right (east)-bank train stops:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/de/9/91/VIAS-Netz.png

A one-base stay is possible as well; Boppard (Rhine) makes for easy day trips along both rivers; though it's a bit far to Trier, it's a little closer than St. Goar would be... Boppard subtracts around 25-30 minutes from the round trip journey to either Cochem or Trier. Boppard is an attractive old-world town with an equally attractive waterfront, numerous opportunities for wine and food and a clifftop terrace-cafe-restaurant called Gedeonseck with an outstanding view of the river valley - use the chairlift to get up there. (I would suggest a visit to Boppard if you're staying in St. Goar, btw.)

For me the answer is neither. Stay where the rivers meet for the whole stay. Or almost, the city of Koblenz is the meeting point but when I stayed there I discovered a little village on the edge of the city (and on the bank of the Mosel)

http://www.koblenz-guels.de/index.php/tourismus

the website is in German but the links Hotels and Gastronomie are obvious and lead to links to actual places. Transport into the city and around the region on either river is very simple.

Hi,

I agreed with Koblenz where you can see Deutsches Eck, the point where the Mosel and Rhine come together. You can visit Bad Ems too, near to Koblenz

Koblenz is a convenient travel base but in general lacks the charm of the neighboring towns IMHO. The very small remaining part of Old Koblenz constitutes a few blocks - 90% of the city was destroyed in WW II - and the old town section is a long walking distance from the main station. Much of the area in between was filled with modern post-war buildings and experiences a lot of street traffic. The area around the main station, where most choose to stay for the convenience of making day trips, is a tad boring and a little bleak.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/L%C3%B6hr-Center_Koblenz.jpg
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Bahnhofsvorplatz_Koblenz.jpg/800px-Bahnhofsvorplatz_Koblenz.jpg
http://www.rhein-zeitung.de/cms_media/module_img/2688/1344494_1_popup_image_356a6e494e23631e.jpg

It's not a bad city- just a sort of average place, IMO. It has some sights that are worthwhile. If they interest you it should be a simple matter if you're staying in St. Goar or in Boppard (15 minutes by train from Koblenz) to pop in for a look around - you must change trains in Koblenz on the way to the Mosel towns anyway, and it's possible to do the same on the way to Marksburg Castle in Braubach, but with the nice small-town alternatives in more scenic spots nearby, it would not be my choice for 5 nights, not unless you're visiting in winter, when the small towns are "Deadsvilles."

Koblenz-Guels is indeed a step up from Koblenz proper, I think. If you're into music the Cafe Hahn is there and usually has some interesting bands. Winningen, a wine town just a short distance further up the Mosel fron Guels, is pretty nice as well, and could also serve as a 1-town base:

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4120/4745527870_9850deb0ee_z.jpg
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/3475980.jpg

We've stayed in Bacharach and Cochem and very much enjoyed both! As long as you don't mind packing up and moving I personally would do this vs. staying in Koblenz.

In terms of places to stay on the Rhine, I much preferred Bacharach. It's a nice smaller town with a nice character. I wasn't as "taken" with St. Goar and could hardly wait to get out of there.

For your stay on the Mosel, have a look at the RS Germany guidebook as there's a good description there of the various towns, along with suggestions for reliable hotels.

Cochem is touristy but for a reason - it's absolutely lovely. We used it as a base for both Trier and Berg Eltz as others have said, all via train, and found it perfect.

Let me add one more vote for Cochem

Mike
DC

We just got back from our Germany trip a few days ago. Ended the trip in the Mosel area. We had rented a car and for us Beilstein worked really well. Quiet little town that was a relaxed home base to explore from. (Stayed at Hotel Haus Lipmann where proprietor David took amazing care of us. Best included breakfast in Germany too.)

Ventured into Cochem one afternoon and soon fled because of the tourist chaos. It was pretty with obviously more to do, but was a shock to the system after the peace of Beilstein. We'd hit Berlin, Prague, Munich, etc. earlier on the trip and maybe our crowd tolerance was worn down.

From Beilstein, visited Burg Eltz, arriving in a half hour. Also rented bikes in town, and enjoyed riding up and down the paved bike lanes along both sides of the river, past vineyards and little towns. Beilstein pretty much shuts down in the evening besides the restaurants, and doesn't have any stores to speak of, but they're close enough in other towns.

Flew out from Frankfurt and it was a pretty smooth 90 minute drive away.

,Another vote for Beilstein,we stayed at Hotel Gute Quelle,next to the other hotel listed great hotel either one would be good to stay.On the Rhine we stayed in Bacharach and liked it,just the right size.
Mike

We stayed in St Goar at Hotel zur Loreley (great restaurant too) for 2 nights, only spent 2 hours in Bacharach. There was not much happening in Bacharach, lots of closed shops (July) and the train goes between the town and the river. Glad we stayed in St Goar, easy to take the ferry to other side of river (train to Marksburg) & also easy to walk along the river & not have to get around the train tracks. Stayed 2 nights at Pension Gundert in Cochem & wish we had stayed longer. Hiked to Burg Eltz, rented bikes & rode to Beilstein. Already planning trip for next year to spend more time in the area.

Thank you for all of your suggestions!