We are a family of four going on the Rick Steves' GAS tour starting in Trier on August 1st. We plan to fly into Frankfurt on July 31 and take the train to Trier. It looks like you can take the train from the airport. My question is which terminal is at the Frankfurt airport? Any suggestions as to what train to take. Thanks
John
There are two rail stations at Frankfurt airport, the "Fernbahnhof" for high speed trains, and the "Regionalbahnhof" a few steps away for all others. They are signposted from all terminals. just follow the signs.
"Any suggestions as to what train to take." - The next train that heads in the correct direction at whatever time you are at the station.
Go to the DB (German Railways) site and enter "Frankfurt(M)Flughafen" to Trier, and your date and time and it will show you the trains, multiple departures per hour.
As you cannot predict when you will emerge from arrivals, you cannot buy in advance. Just buy a tiicket when you arrive and you will be directed to the correct trains.
If you want the best price, you can buy a "Quer durchs Land" Ticket out of the vending machine at the Regionalbahnhof. Travel must begin after 9 am weekdays, anytime weekends and you must use regional trains only. Cost is 44 EUR for the first person and 8 EUR for each additional person up to 5 traveling together, Write all the travelers names on the back of the ticket. You can then travel any regional trains through out Germany for the rest of the day. So then it would cost 68 EUR for all 4 of you or 17 EUR per person.
https://www.bahn.com/en/view/offers/regional/day-ticket-for-germany.shtml?dbkanal_007=L04_S02_D002_KIN0060_REGIO-INDEX-QDL-DESKTOP_LZ01
If you buy from a ticket window, there will be a 2 EUR service charge.
This is a little more complicated, but will save you about $10. Buy a Rheinland-Pfalz-Ticket for 4 P for €43,- from a Bahn ticket vending machine in the Regionalbhf at FRA. Then buy an RMV (Frankfurt metro district) "Preisstufe 4 Gruppentageskarte" (day ticket for up to 5 P) from an RMV vending machine for €16,70. Total price €59,70. The RMV ticket will cover you to the Mainz Hbf; the RL-P-Ticket will cover you from Mainz to Trier. You might change trains at Mainz Hbf, or you might find a regional train from the Regionalbhf to somewhere else closer to Trier to transfer, but regardless, you will go through Mainz Hbf. Even if you don't change trains, you will "change" tickets.
You can't use the RL-P-Ticket (ie, leave Mainz Hbf) before 9 AM, but you can use the RMV Gruppentageskarte to get to Mainz anytime.
Probably the easiest connection is to take the next S8 S-Bahn to the Mainz Hbf, look at the board, and take the next regional train leaving for Koblenz. When you get to Koblenz, look at the board and take the next regional train leaving for Trier.
Slightly more complicated, but potentially faster - check with the schedule on the Bahn website or ask at the DB information desk. A faster option could be a regional train going from the Regionalbhf all the way to Koblenz, or there could be a regional train going somewhere else (probably Ingelheim or Bingen) connecting with a regional train to Koblenz
Notwithstanding all the advise above, RS will provide detailed and readable instructions in your final tour packet.
It's been a few years but my recollection is that we took the train from the airport and bought tickets at a booth there. (just followed the signs and the instructions). I believe there was a train change somewhere along the way. We ended up on a local that stopped at nearly every road crossing. (there is an express but we would have had to wait for a while and arrival time about the same) Very scenic on both the Rhine and the Mosel. Talked to some other tourists and some locals on the train. No problems changing trains - signage is good and lots of people speak English.
Since you will have most of the 1st day to yourselves (tour starts in the late PM) look at the provided suggestions from RS or just go out and wander. Trier is a lovely and very accessible town. Also, best Riesling wine in Germany. Trier is second only to Vienna on this tour.
Enjoy you tour, Robbie
The point of Lee and my advice is, that if you just bought 4 tickets to Trier from Frankfurt airport, the cost would be 190.80 EUR for 4 people using an IC or ICE connection, or 186 EUR for an all regional connection. Maybe the ticket agent would be nice and explain the QdL Ticket as the way to go, or maybe not. They certainly would not suggest the clever way to do it for 59.70 EUR that Lee mentioned.
Your family members might be a little different from me, but 3+ hours on the train after a long, probably sleep-deprived overnight flight can be pretty long slog. And that's how long it takes to get to Trier.
The tour doesn't start until your meeting at 4 pm in Trier on Aug. 1, right? A lot of people opt for an overnight stop in the scenic Middle Rhine Valley (think castles, old-world villages, and vineyards) on the way. Your tour unfortunately does not make a stop there, but you have time for that - and you could head to Trier around lunch time the next day.
Scene near Bingen: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Maeuseturm_Burg_Ehrenfels_Bingen_Rhein.jpg/1200px-Maeuseturm_Burg_Ehrenfels_Bingen_Rhein.jpg
Bacharach: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/G9VGDU_yIDo/maxresdefault.jpg
St. Goar and Rheinfels Castle:
https://www.st-goar.de/en/rheinfels-castle/
https://schwingeninswitzerland.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/dsc_06581.jpg
You should definitely consider what Russ suggests. I, myself, often try to stay within a couple of hours, or less, from my arrival airport the first night. That said, I have on several occasion had to travel as much as 4+ hours to get to my final destination the first night. And, yes, it was painful. I almost dozed off a few times (fortunately I was not driving). However, against the pain of a few extra hours of travel with jetlag, you have to consider that the alternative involves a one-night stand, which also is not recommended.
On my last trip to Germany, my eventual destination was the Allgäu, near Füssen. Instead of spending 5+ hours getting there the first day, I took a shorter trip to St. Goar, where I stayed for two nights before going on to the Allgäu.
Of course, I was partially motivated by wanting to make the longer trip with fast trains and a Savings Fare ticket, and not wanting to worry about a late arrival.
We (my Mom and I) are also going on the GAS Aug 1st tour. Can't wait to meet you, John! We are taking the advice Russ gave, which I had read in a previous review, and are staying in St Goar 2 nights before heading on to Trier. Is there a discounted ticket for this route, such as described in the above post? We are also planning to do the train to Bingen and cruise back to St. Goar on our second day.
are staying in St Goar 2 nights before heading on to Trier. Is there a discounted ticket for this route[?]
Not a discounted ticket as such, but if you buy an RMV (local Frankfurt metro) ticket to Bingen Hbf for €8,70/P, and a Bahn ticket from Bingen to St Goar for €7,50/P (Total €16,20/P, €32,40 for both of you), you'll pay less than the €44,20 for both of you (€22,10/P) for Bahn tickets from FRA to St Goar.
Next day, two Bahn tickets from St. Goar to Bingen Stadtbhf will cost €30,40 (€15,20/P) vs €27,50 for two (€13,75/P) if you buy 2 single trip Bahn ticket from St Goar to Bacharach for €4,75/P and 2 RMV tickets for Bacharach to Bingen Stadtbhf. This might not be worth the savings if you would have to get off the hourly train from St Goar to Bacharach to buy the RMV tickets and get back on the next train to Bingen Stadt in an hour. Alternatively, you should be able to buy the Bacharach-to-Bingen Stadt tickets from the automat at St Goar or you could buy them at the Regionalbhf at FRA before you leave.
I say Bingen Stadtbhf because the closest train station to the KD dock is Bingen Stadtbahnhof (not Bingen Hbf). At the Stadtbhf, take the underpass under the tracks and turn left up the ramp to the street, then turn right and go across the street and to the walkway next to the river. Turn left and walk 200 meters along the river to the KD ticket kiosk. By the way, show them your Bahn tickets for a 20% discount.
The third day, for St Goar to Trier, a 2 person Rheinland-Pfalz-Ticket, for €31,- will be less than 2 Bahn one-way tickets St Goar to Trier for €66,40 (€33,20/P).
Thank you, Lee!
