Next summer, we are going on this 14 day tour. We land in Frankfort and the RS trip starts in Trier Germany. We plan to land one day before the RS tour starts. So, should we stay the first night in Frankfort or just head strait to Trier by train? Pros and Cons? We will have our 12 year old daughter with us.
Posted by
The Heartland USA
8442 posts
evegstephens, we had a great time on this tour. Hope you have good weather. We came two days early and took a train from the Frankfurt airport train station to Bacharach on the Rhine, staying there two nights. You could pick any of the other picturesque towns on the Rhine, or Mosel, on the way to Trier. Look at a map and you'll see what I mean.
Some people went all the way to Trier and just spent the extra night at the tour hotel, but we were glad to see another place on our own. No need to stay in Frankfurt, since you'll probably arrive in the morning, and wont be able to check into a hotel, so you might as well keep moving forward.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19092 posts
I'd stay in Bacharach or St Goar. They're only 1 hr to 1½ hours from the Frankfurt airport by rail and a pretty nice environment to get over jet lag. Then go on the next day 2 to 2½ hours to Trier. with maybe a short stop in Cochem if you feel up to it.
By the way, your arrival airport is in Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Frankfort is the capital of Kentucky.
Posted by
Alsenborn, Germany
867 posts
I'll recommend Idar-Oberstein; it's a neat town, built down in a valley, once the center of the precious stone trade for all of Europe. has a unusual monastery built into the cliff wall, and a lot of jewelry shops. I can lay odds you'll be the only people on the tour to visit the town.
Posted by
Frankfurt, Germany
8942 posts
It depends on what your interests are and the time of year? Frankfurt has plenty to see an do and it may be nice not to travel anymore after a trans-Atlantic flight. I know the last thing I would want to do after a long flight would be to sit in a train again for a few more hours.
You could sightsee a bit in Frankfurt, have an early dinner and early bedtime, then leave early the next morning for Trier where you would still have time to explore the town before your tour begins.
Posted by
Paradise
6640 posts
I think a Rhine town stay, as others have suggested, is a smart plan for just about anyone heading to Trier for the GAS tour, as your tour unfortunately skips the Rhine.
And I agree most strongly with the suggestion of St. Goar. This town enjoys the most scenic setting (IMHO) on the Rhine. Rheinfels Castle is right in town and can be toured. "Main Street" in St. Goar is Heerstrasse, a car-less street lined with a good number of restaurants and cafes (personal favorites are the restaurants Alla Fontana and Hotel am Markt.) And St. Goar is in a perfect location if you want to do a Rhine River cruise through the best cruise segment. The town is small and walkable. Find yourselves a room at one of the river-view hotels there ("Rheinhotel St. Goar" or "Hotel Rheinfels" are two good choices.)
To take your Rhine Cruise... well, why not do it on your way to St. Goar? From FRA's station for regional trains (Regionalbahnhof) your train to St. Goar will stop in Bingen on the way. Get off in Bingen - the gateway to the Rhine Gorge - at the Bingen Rhein Stadt station and walk a few minutes to the boat docks there. The cruise to St. Goar takes you through the most scenic part in about 1.5 hours (dotted yellow line is the cruise route.)
Bacharach isn't quite as convenient for doing this cruise, and it doesn't take advantage of the river scenery as well as St. Goar does. Nor does it have a castle you can tour. But if you have time to visit Bacharach, it does have some very nice half-timbered buildings, and you can hop a train from St. Goar for the 10-minute ride and a look-around.