Deutsche Ecke Worth It?

I like the Ecke. If the weather's good I'll just get a table and a beer and people watch.

There’s a huge monument, great vistas and a nice Biergarten there. I’ve enjoyed it several times.

"The next day we’ll probably hop the train to St. Goar and take a KD cruise back after seeing a little of St. Goar. So, we will get a good taste of the Rhine."

I know - you've probably seen Rick do just that on his videos. But trust the consensus of the regulars on this forum... That cruise covers only half the most scenic part. You've come all this way... why not cruise it all? Here's a map of the most scenic part. Instead of taking the train to St. Goar, take the train south to BINGEN and cruise north from there to St. Goar (and then after St. Goar, the train back to Bacharach.) The Bingen - St. Goar cruise takes only 1 hr 25 minutes. (The half-cruise in your plans will take you 1 hr 10 minutes. It costs you very little extra time to do it right!) If you clicked on "BINGEN" above you've seen a bit of what you're missing with your current plan.

"Deutsche ecke" is correct German for "German corner" but the proper name of that spot at the confluence of the two rivers is "Deutsches Eck." I believe there are more worthwhile ways to spend your time than walking or taking the bus down all the way there from the train station, across mostly modern Koblenz, for this somewhat underwhelming experience.

You may or may not know that there's an outstanding, intact medieval castle just outside Koblenz. The best side trip from Koblenz station IMHO is to the pretty wine town of Braubach for a tour of Marksburg Castle. It's a 10 minute train ride along the east bank of the Rhine from Koblenz station to Braubach. Time your arrival there so you can catch the 1 pm or 4 pm tour (both in English) if possible; if not, catch a German tour and follow the crowd with a pamphlet in English. (The tour guide can likely answer any questions you have in between stops in English.) Braubach is small and makes for a nice stroll, even if you don't wish to visit the castle for some reason. The station is right in town. See map. You can use Koblenz station lockers for your bags, just as you planned.

You should look into a Rheinland-Pfalz ticket day pass. It covers your trip from Cochem to Bacharach or from Cochem to Koblenz to Braubach to Koblenz to Bacharach.

The statue on Deutsches Eck that of the Kaiser Wilhelm Denkmal is a more modest one, less flamboyant than its original predecessor. The original was damaged in the war when the Americans reached Koblenz.

To get an aerial view of the Rhine and the Moselle, ie, Deutsches Eck, I suggest taking the S-Bahn in Koblenz Hbf to Ehrenbreitstein, which was the Prussian fortress built to guard, ie, Die Wacht am Rhein, over any French resurgence following the defeat of Napoleon in 1815 since Prussia was awarded the Rhineland, including Koblenz, by the Great Powers.

Ehrenbreitstein serves as a HI hostel, one of the hostels I stayed at in 1971.

I also find Deutsches Eck underwhelming. However if you go, I would take the cable car across to the fortress and back. That I enjoyed.

Please take the train to Bingen to start your cruise on the Rhine. Starting in Bacharach is one of the odder things that Rick recommends. You miss 2/3rds of the castles if you start there instead of farther up the Rhine.

If you are in Koblenz, walk into the old town part of the city. The Deutsche Eck is almost as underwhelming as the the Lorelei statue is.

Thank you everyone. It seems that if we wanted to make a nice meal with a beer, the Ecke would be a nice stop but not something to break our neck over. That was my question and I appreciate the opinions.

"...a nice meal with a beer..."

For just that, near the Koblenz station, your best bet is likely this place. Nice terrace out front. Take a left just as you leave the main Koblenz station exit:

https://s3-media2.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/jUu9RyfzOxGBUJRQb5HwOw/o.jpg