Home Base Location in Western Germany by Netherlands/Belgium

...Prefer to stay out of big cities but also needing easy rail transport connections/access as we will not have a car, so we realize that may force us into bigger city. Rhine river seems to have beautiful areas/cities...

Sounds like you need to spend some time on the DB scheduling pages. Connections between the small Rhine towns and Belgium are not tricky. You probably know there are direct ICE trains from Cologne to Brussels that take less than 2 hours with stops in Aachen and Liege.

(I don't know what airport you are using, but if it's FRA, it takes only about 1 hour to reach the Rhine towns between Koblenz and Mainz.)

Then it's a bit further to Cologne. I will just use BOPPARD as an example since it's a really good base town for visiting the small towns and castles in the Rhine and Mosel areas. Sample schedule below for the trip to Cologne... then the train to Brussels.

• Boppard > Cologne by direct RB train: 9:12 am - 11:02 am (1:50 travel time)

• CHANGE TRAINS in Cologne

• Cologne > Brussels by direct ICE train: 11:42 - 13:35 (1:53 travel time)

(Of course you may be heading to smaller places like Gent, Antwerp, or Bruges, ultimately. That might require a second change of train.)

But basically, it's possible to travel to Brussels from any of the west-bank Rhine towns ( Boppard, St Goar, Oberwesel, Bacharach, Bingen) with only one change of train.

Even if Cologne doesn't appeal that much, you can make a stopover there for specific stuff... the Cathedral, the Nazi Doc center, whatever interests you; there are of course several later direct trains to Brussels that you might take from Cologne to fit in a stopover.

https://int.bahn.de/en/

I think that Cologne would probably be best in terms of rail connections. You can get direct trains to most cities in Belgium and also direct high-speed trains to Amsterdam. Personally, I loved Cologne. I thought it was wonderful and did not have any "industrial" feel to it. It is a beautiful city with a lot of ambience and the most gorgeous cathedral you will ever see. There are a number of good restaurants (including the best restaurant I ate at in Germany—MaiBeck Für Dich and also has some fun shopping as well. I really enjoyed my stay there.

Aachen is charming and has a lovely vibe to it. But it's definitely smaller so there's not as much to do there, and you'd probably wind up with more rail transfers there. That said, its cathedral is quite beautiful (especially the interior, which is drop-dead gorgeous) and houses the remains of Charlemagne, leader of the Holy Roman Empire. It's smaller than Cologne and you could easily spend some time just walking around and enjoying the sites. Don't miss the Granus tower, which is next to the Rathaus (town hall) and is one of the few pieces remaining from Charlemagne’s palace. It dates back to the 8th century, making it over 1200 years old.

If you are looking for historic castles, there are some beautiful ones near the Rhine and Mosel area, such as Burg Eltz (my favorite), which is a gorgeous castle with an even more impressive view. Marksburg also has a panoramic view and is very popular.

FWIW, I also love Amsterdam! It is a very vibrant city with so many things to see and do. It's not just museums by any means. And the towns around it are just as wonderful. My personal favorite is Leiden, which has a wonderful atmosphere. It's a college town and has that fun college vibe feel to, with lots of canals, museums, bookstores, cafes on the water and so on. It is definitely worth a visit.

My recent Germany trip w/ teens started in Amsterdam with a direct train connection to Dusseldorf. We did a day trip from Dusseldorf to Cologne. Both cities might be considered "big" but they're not that big and both had their charms.

If you're looking for "iconic German" in that region then Aachen would be a good choice. While I didn't go there, I've read nothing but good things about it. And there's a direct ICE connection to Cologne.

If you're looking for train convenience, Cologne would be a good choice. You get a direct train route to Koblenz which gets you into prime Rhine castle country. And there's the Aachen connection.

but other than that Amsterdam is not sounding super appealing unless I'm shown differently

Anne Frank House is a must see.

Going to jump on the Cologne bandwagon with @Mardee.

Yes, mostly destroyed in WW2 and rebult since then. So it doesn't have the old world feel of a city like Bamberg. It does have the Dom, an excellent Roman History museum and the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, a just-right-size art museum. Only one Van Gogh in their solid impressionist collection.

Regarding Amststerdam, if Van Gogh is a priority, plan a trip out to the Kröller-Müller Museum.

I realize I did not make my suggestion clear... you should probably have 2 bases... a RHINE Gorge travel base and a BELGIAN travel base. Although Maastricht and Cologne could be seen from AACHEN, the Rhine Gorge towns would be too far and require more than one day trip. And it would not be my choice to attempt day trips from COLOGNE to most destinations in Belgium and the Netherlands. Even Maastricht would be a long day trip from Cologne.

Wow, you guys are great, thank you for all of the suggestions... now I want to just go everywhere.... darn it! I wasn't really aware how many towns, castles, and other beautiful stops there were along the Rhine Gorge! And wow, the number of castles! The only castle we have in Wisconsin is Packer Stadium.

So, now I am thinking that maybe we should split it up into two home bases. Somewhere on the Rhine river and then yes, somewhere in Belgium/Netherlands. Dang it, now a whole other problem popped up with a new home base, lol.

I recommend Aachen.
Another option is to go further south to Trier and explore Luxembourg as well.

...somewhere in Belgium/Netherlands. Dang it, now a whole other problem popped up with a new home base, lol.

Probably not a huge problem.

Rick Steves rail map pricing chart for Belgium and the Netherlands provides rough prices, not travel times. But the visual still provides distance clues for the solution you need...

If Antwerp, about 1 hour north of Brussels, looks like a good base town, you're right. You'll be about 1 hour from Gent, 1.5 hours from Bruges, and one hour from Delft (nice smaller town in NL) and 1.25 - 1.5 hours from Amsterdam. These travel times are pulled from the DB site.

I don't know if Antwerp is right for you or not - I liked it - or if the towns named are the ones you might want to visit, but clearly, Antwerp will work more efficiently than Cologne (which would require 3 hours to Bruges, 2.5 hours to Gent, 2.5 hours to Antwerp, and 3-4 hours to Delft and Amsterdam.) Gent might also work as a base town similarly well. Check the rail schedules, of course.

Just want to make a plug for Anne Frank House. It was a very powerful experience for all of us (including 12 and 13 yoa boys). And take the Those Dam Boat Guys evening canal tour if you're staying overnight.

I'm going to suggest you avoid the whole Ruhr Valley and stay in Belgium for a day or two, and then move over to Trier or Saarbrucken. That would allow you to see the Moselle (which I think is much nicer than the Rhine and has more castles too.) In Belgium you might look at Brussels, or for a smaller town, Bruges. If your husband is a beer drinker this would be a plus.

If you fly into Amsterdam, and out via Frankfurt you could easily go down the Moselle to Koblenz, and then up the Rhine to Bingen.

RE: preferring not to stay in big cities.

How about Bad Godesberg ?

I can think of cultural sites as well as historical ones in the cities you list , except that for Duisburg. Any particular reason for Duisburg, other than it normally is a transfer point to Amsterdam and is on the trunk line to Berlin?

I've been to Duisburg a few times in 1990s when a singularly important house/museum connected to Prussian history was located there, (it moved out in the 21st century) , and it struck me as a pretty ugly city as regards to the 1960s rebuilding style so evident in the Zentrum of German cities, Duisburg is one of them. If you're going to Duisburg anyway and in the mood to see infra-structure , Germany's biggest Binnenhafen (as well Europe's) is located in Duisburg.

Thank you all for the great tips and ideas. So it is sounding to me like I need to do some research between Mosel area and Rhine area. I had not heard of Mosel area... so more research to do. We have decided to split it up with doing a short stay in western Germany and a short stay in Belgium/Netherlands.

We have decided to split it up with doing a short stay in western
Germany and a short stay in Belgium/Netherlands.

A good choice.

I need to do some research between Mosel area and Rhine area.

Research both... but you do not need to choose between them. These two river valleys are both worthwhile, and you can visit BOTH of them from ONE well-located base town. Some guidance for you...

The Rhine and Mosel meet up at KOBLENZ, a city of 115,000 people. On the map below, the red lines are railways. Look for "Koblenz Hbf" where the two rivers meet. "Hbf" is the abbreviation for "main train station." From this station, you can catch a train to almost any nearby town on the Mosel or on the Rhine.

https://www.mobiregio.net/fileadmin/mobiregio/pdf/DB-Netz%20Rlp-Saarland.pdf

Koblenz is a handy base town, but thanks to its size and WW II, it lacks the quaintness and the scenery you are looking for. So the idea is to pick a smaller old-world base town near Koblenz instead.

My first suggestion is the Rhine town of BOPPARD, a town of 15,000 which is both attractive and full of hotel/restaurant choices. The train ride from Boppard south to St Goar, Oberwesel, or Bacharach follows the river and takes only a few minutes. The ride to Koblenz takes 15 minutes, where you can change trains for Mosel towns like Cochem. The images in this video paint an accurate picture of Boppard, once a stronghold of ancient Rome:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzEJDemcLrE

A much smaller town - just 3,000 people - is located 10 train minutes from Koblenz Hbf and just across the Rhine from Boppard... super-quaint BRAUBACH, which has a limited number of hotels and restaurants but a lot of old-world charm:

https://fotos.schloemp.eu/wp-content/gallery/braubach/002Braubach-Bauernschaenke-Eck-Fritz.JPG
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4143/4751924826_98980aa49f_o.jpg

There are some small inns like the ones below in addition to hotels:

https://aph-bilder.de/images/2018/01/02/IMG_20170826_112715.jpg

https://image.jimcdn.com/app/cms/image/transf/dimension=1070x10000:format=jpg/path/sc484ea64eed53c8f/image/i82e0948970fa8d90/version/1550765364/image.jpg

Braubach is a place to visit even if you book elsewhere; it's the home of Marksburg (never-destroyed medieval castle, tours daily)

https://www.deutschland-luftaufnahmen.de/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Marksburg.jpg
https://www.marksburg.de/en/circuit/#/

Check out the Mosel towns on this list; not all are shown, and not all are worth your time, but COCHEM and WINNINGEN are, and they are easy to visit by train from Koblenz Hbf:

https://www.mosel-inside.de/en/travel-guide/mosel-villages.html

Also worthwhile is BEILSTEIN; catch a river cruise boat from Cochem to get there. Beilstein is in the Rick Steves handbook.

@Russ - wow, thank you! Thank you so much for sharing all of that amazing and SUPER helpful information and links! This forum has so many kind and super helpful supportive people, it truly is amazing! I still can't get over the transportation system that is in Europe! Wow, I wish we had even 1/4 of that in the US, it would make vacations and travel in general just so much easier!

So, I'll ask one more question, and I know it is totally going to be subjective but your knowledge is vast and I value all of your feedback. This is one stop on a crazy whirlwind Europe tour... so if we had to pick only one town to stay in, and say 3-4 sites/towns to visit, what would you recommend. In a perfect world, money and vacation time would be limitless.... but alas, it is not so we are cramming a lot in as I have no idea if/when we will make it back. Thank you!

"...so if we had to pick only one town to stay in, and say 3-4 sites/towns to visit..."

I don't mind taking a subjective stab at your request. But some additional guidance from you first will help.

• How many nights will you have for this one-base visit?

• Are you asking for a base town and sightseeing in Germany, or one in Belgium? (If it doesn't matter, I am pretty confident that you will get more of what you have asked for in Germany, however long your stay is.)

• What destination comes immediately afterward? The base town choice should depend on the ease of travel to your next base town.

@Russ - Thank you! Here goes:
How many nights will you have for this one-base visit? - we will have 3 nights

Are you asking for a base town and sightseeing in Germany, or one in Belgium? (If it doesn't matter, I am pretty confident that you will get more of what you have asked for in Germany, however long your stay is.) - asking for a base town for the 3 nights in Germany

What destination comes immediately afterward? The base town choice should depend on the ease of travel to your next base town. - - We are headed to Strasbourg/Colmar in Alsace region.

I think the Rhine/Mosel with a Boppard base would work best for you. 3 nights isn't much when Day 1 starts in Amsterdam. What's below can be altered/substituted in dozens of ways, but it packs in as much as is reasonable. If you were able to leave A'dam in the afternoon a day earlier, reaching Boppard by 8 or 9 pm, you'd have 4 nights in Boppard, which would provide a much fuller and more active Day 1 on the Rhine.

1) A-dam > Boppard, ar 14:00. Drop bags. Take Boppard ; + short walk to Gedeonseck (restaurant, lookout point.) See the town.

2) Marksburg, Rhine Cruise, Bacharach... Train to Braubach via Koblenz 8:23 - 9:05; walk town, then up for 50-min. tour of Marksburg (opens 10 am.) Quick lunch (snack bar there) on patio at Marksburg?. Back to station for train to Rüdesheim 12:36 - 13:22 then board the northbound 14:15 Rhine cruise. Break up your cruise at 15:15 for 2 hours for a walking tour of pretty Bacharach; reboard cruise at 17:15 and stay on til 18:50 (when it reaches Boppard.)

3) Cochem, Reichsburg Castle, Beilstein... Train to Cochem via Koblenz 8:23 - 9:41; tour castle and town, lunch. Cruise to Beilstein 13:30 - 14:30; Catch bus (runs every half hour) back to Cochem whenever; return by train to Boppard via Koblenz whenever...

4) Boppard > Strasbourg will take about 4.25 hours on the morning of Day 4.

The schedules are not all accurate for next summer at this point but should be similar to what you will find later.