Cologne?

I was not a fan of Cologne. We were there over a weekend and there was a lot of partying and it seems to be a drinking culture, much more so than the rest of Germany that we visited.

Edited. Edited again, didn't see you had another thread.

Thanks so much for that, Celeste! I appreciate your experience, and we'll certainly consider it as we move forward with plans! :-)

Personally, I enjoyed my time in Cologne-the Cathedral is (I believe) the 2nd largest in Europe, and, if you enjoy small shops, it has a large pedestrian mall, including a Lego store with DL centric items the I would bring back for my guys, and there are a multitude of casual and white table cloth restaurants in the area near the HBF. There is a Hilton near the HBF I would normally stay at, rooms are "business oriented," however, the restaurant is terrific. Also, south of the HBF near the river is the "Chocolate Museum!
On top of that, if you rent a car at the HBF and want to spend a night or two in a small, untouched village, I highly recommend the Hotel Am Wallgraben(+49 2961 4044) in Brilon (2hrs by car)which has basic rooms but a 4 star chef and restaurant featuring both German and Continental dinners-if interested, you'd best make reservations as they are usually pretty full-it's where my customer had me stay when I visited (about twice a year.

Köln would not be high on my list. I'd look at a map. You are starting in Belgium. I assume Brussels. I see why Köln, since it is the closest city in Germany. That part of Germany is the least interesting to me, in my opinion. Another approach would be to rent a car, drive to Luxemborg, stay 1-2 days, and do the Mosel (Trier to Koblenz). Trier is a very old town, with die schwarze Tür (the black door), a very old building. It is one of the old Roman fort towns. The Mosel is charming. Traben-Trarbach is a town we have been to. We stayed in a winery/B&B. There are many small towns which are charming on the Mosel. There are boat trips. That's what I would do.

Hi,

If you have never been to Cologne, then go. In the area I would suggest Duesseldorf, Bonn, Neuss if you intend to stay in Germany.

Compared to the others Cologne is just a day trip. Antwerp is to me more interesting a good base to see Ghent Brugge from. I went to Aachen Germany from Brussels and found it quaint great cathedral Charlemagne is buried in it

Five days is a stretch, even with that incredible cathedral, and the good museums (Roman and art museums), and the interesting shops and streets, but you could day-trip to Aachen to see Charlemagne's Chapel or go south to the Rhine Castles. You could also take a train along the Moselle all the way to Trier for a couple of days.

I would spend enough time in Cologne to visit the Cathedral and Roman museum,the Cathedral is spectacular and there is Kolsch Beer served in the restaurants.Close to Cologne is Trier and the Moselle as other posters have suggested,we loved the laid back style on the Moselle.
Mike

you could definitely do Cologne in a day, IF you really want to see it. For us, the only things of interest were the Cathedral (The Three Wise Men's relics are there, so if you go, pay for the tour - it is well worth it). The Chocolate Museum is nice and interesting . . . I think it can easily be a day trip (if that). I say that because there are so many other amazing towns.

The Anne Frank House in Amsterdam was one of my all time favorite things I've ever done.

We LOVE Strasbourg France, Colmar France, and Heidelberg Germany. And we are fans of just walking, eating, Cathedrals . . . we can take or leave the museums.

Agree with the above, Aachen is also nice and easy with a great OLD TOWN

I am a huge fan of Cologne (twice for three nights each) and it is ideal from Brussels or Antwerp. You also have Aachen and Duesseldorf if you get bored with Cologne. It's really cheap by advance, non-changeable train.

Thank you for posting exactly what's needed for a thoughtful reply. While opinions differ on the best Belgian cities, I urge you to use the search box here to read how easy it is to stay in Antwerp and daytrip to Gent, Brugge, Brussels, Leuven, Lier, and Turnhout. The Antwerp museums aren't as good as Cologne's, but they are still good. I love staying in Antwerp. There are a few expensive romantic hotels, but I'm used to staying at the Hilton.

Antwerp is more romantic than Cologne or Brussels, but not as romantic as Brugge. But IMHO, Brugge is not worth more than one or two days. It simply doesn't have enough to do. London and Paris are both well connected to Brussels and Antwerp, but you say you've been there before. (I've been to Paris at least six times, hard to count them all, however.)

Edit: Amsterdam is a great idea, and good for five days, but I suggest flying home from there. I don't agree with the many posters here who pair it with Belgium. There are enough daytrips from Amsterdam to spend ten days in Amsterdam, or six in Amsterdam and four in Den Haag or Rotterdam, depending on your interests.