Frankfurt to Luxembourg

You could have yourselves a very nice weekend in the Mosel River Valley and/or the Rhine River Valley. Here's a map:

http://rhein-moselland-reisen.de/bilder/Karte-Rhein-Mosel.jpg

The towns in both valleys are well served by train, as a rule - trains are frequent, dependable and inexpensive, as well as scenic.

http://www.zughalt.de/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/DB11321.jpg

The Rhineland-Palatinate ticket is actually a day pass that will provide you with unlimited access to the local and regional trains between Mainz (near FRA) and the Luxembourg border along these river valleys; two adults pay €29 per day. The pass is also valid for bus connections and some ferry crossings. After landing at FRA, head to the FRA Regionalbahnhof station; buy a local ticket for the train to Mainz (less than €5 each) and the Rhineland-Palatinate ticket from a ticket machine. With these 2 tickets in hand you can get to any destination you like along the two river valleys. Buy the same ticket on Sunday to make excursions from your base town to nearby towns and castles.

I would avoid overnighting in Koblenz and instead pick a smaller, more atmospheric Rhine or Mosel town, perhaps St. Goar, Boppard, or Cochem.

Any suggestions on best mode of transportation from Cochem to Remich, Luxembourg?

Remich is not on the Luxembourg rail network but you can take a number 175 bus (integrated closely with the CFL trains) from the bus station next to the train station. It runs every 30 minutes.

Or you could take a taxi across the border from Trier, or from Wasserbillig on the Luxembourg side of the border.

The buses in that country are large and comfortable, and would be my choice.

While I'm a fan of the train, I would rent a car -- it will give you flexibility over the limited weekend. A vehicle will facilitate access to destinations such as Burg Eltz along the Mosel or Chateau Vianden in Luxembourg.

Downsides of a rental car may include:

• A fee to pick up and drop off in a different countries.

• Backtracking to get the car if you wanted to travel a portion of either river by boat, such as http://www.kdrhine.com/rhineschedule.htm.

Other downsides include:

1. Time lost to wrong turns, not being able to read signs in German, traffic delays,

2. Added cost of photo radar tickets,

3. Cars are almost always more expensive than trains.

On weekends, there are buses from several points on the Mosel to Burg Eltz.