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Cologne and Upper Middle Rhine Valley - 5 days

Posted by (Alabama) on

Myself and 2 girlfriends return to the US from our annual 3 week African volunteer expedition thru Amsterdam this year and have a 5-6 day layover early November. We would like to visit Cologne and the Upper Middle Rhine Valley with the following being our itinerary based upon train schedules and sites we would like to see. Appreciate any comments, additions, changes as none of us have traveled in this area before.

Nov 7 - Arrive 0630 Amsterdam Airport take the 1018 train to Cologne arrive 1340(Staying at Cologne Marriott 2 nights)
Visit Cologne Chocolate Factory and See Dom at night.
Nov 8 - Visit Dom (1030 guided tour) and Treasury, Visit Farina Duftmuseum
Nov 9 - Leave by train for St Goar (thought about staying in Boppard but thinking St Goar central/timewise is better). Explore St Goar town (Staying Airbnb)
Possible to stop and see Stolzenfels Palace then get back on for travel to St Goar? (we only have carry on bag and backpacks to store)
Nov 10 - See Rheinfels Fortress and take KD up to Boppard explore town then train back to St Goar
Nov 11 - Ferry over to St Goarshausen and the train to Braubach to visit Castle Marksburg
Train from Braubach to Amsterdam Airport (stay Airport Sheraton)
Nov 12 - Flights after 1300 to US

Posted by
20254 posts

Nov 11, I am wondering about luggage while going up to Marksburg. No lockers showing at Braubach station. Here is a suggestion. Buy a VRM Minigruppenkarte for 23.60 EUR and take the 9 am train to Koblenz and change to the VIA train to Braubach, arriving at 10:05. You will have 27 minutes change time at Koblenz Hbf, which is enough time to store bags in a locker.

Buy 3 Sparpreis Europa tickets from Koblenz to Amsterdam Schipol for 89.70 EUR now. Book the 18:13 departure getting to AMS at 22:11 with train changes at Cologne and Utrecht. So now all you have to do is take the 17:24 (at the latest) VIA train from Braubach to Koblenz with at least 37 minutes to retrieve your luggage from the lockers before catching your connection to Schipol.

Posted by
5 posts

Thank you I had forgotten to check about storage in Braubach. Your suggestion sounds good and very doable. Wonder though if should change and detour to Castle Marksburg on the 9th before continuing on to St Goar? Then could do Stolzenfels on the 11th (way back north) or ferry across and take train up from St Goarshausen .Is Stolzenfels Palace worth trying to fit a visit in and is it interesting to take the train on both sides of the Rhine between Cologne? Something more interesting to see/do on way back from St Goar?

Posted by
20254 posts

Never been to Stolzenfels. It is about 1 mile north of Rhens Bahnhof and there are no train stations there, but you can get the 650 bus from a short walk from Rhens Bahnhof.

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