I'm trying to book a hostel in Bacharach Germany and at checkout it has some options with varying price points: HPM, VPA, VPM, HPA, and ÜF
Any ideas on what these stand for?
Also what is the best website (in english) to book this on?
I'm in my 40s and traveling with my 69yo mother and 13yo daughter. Ideally we would love a room if our own.
Thanks for the help!
Also, is this hostel an easy walk to town and to catch the boat and trains? Tnx!
Bacharach is more of a B&B town than a hostel type town. I've stayed there three times over the years, and it's a quiet place to recharge your batteries. A train runs right through the middle of town, and the Rhine River is across the street. The area is famous for their sweet dessert wines.
Bavaria Ben has room listings on his website, and they're right on the money:
http://bensbauernhof.com/accommodationsrhinemosel.html
In fact, Bavaria Ben's website is a very good one for traveling through Germany and Austria.
The somewhat "famous" castle hostel in Bacharach requires an uphill walk or taxi ride to get to.
I tried to book this hostel for my family's stay this June but they were already full. I was surprised. Anyway, here's the website you can use to book:
http://www.jugendherberge.de/en/youth-hostels/bacharach390/shortportraet
ÜF = price of overnight stay per person with breakfast
VP and HP = p/p price for full board and half board options
You pay per person, in other words, for a typical family room with 4 beds and a bath - not by the room - and price varies by meal arrangement.
I have no idea what David means by a "hostel" or "B&B" town - but IMO the problem with Bacharach's hostel is its location, which is high on the cliffside above town. Train travelers will need a taxi or sturdy legs for the 500 uphill stair steps from town. This of course discourages coming and going. If you are driving it might work for you but before booking you should still have a look at where the parking area is - I don't remember that info.
Bacharach's other room options must be carefully vetted. Some are WAY too close to the train tracks. You will find quieter places (like Im Malerwinkel) along Bluecherstrasse, which zags away from the river on the north end of town. Check the reviews carefully for noise complaints wherever you book.
Rick Steves advises staying in Bacharach. But there are several good towns you can stay in. A hostel that's right in town near everything is the Kaub hostel, in a most attractive historic building (if you really want a hostel.) But it too is institutional and can be very crowded. Why not just get a vacation apartment? I've stayed solo, with my wife, with my wife and daughter, and as a multi-generational family of 5 in Bacharach, Oberwesel, St. Goar, Osterspai, Koblenz, and Boppard - in hostels, hotels, private B&B's, and apartments. The Bacharach hostel was OK but also overcrowded - seems like its 170 beds are always full. Our favorite stay was the inexpensive 2-BR St. Goar apt. "Rhine View" overlooking the river. Great owner, apartment fully equipped, steps from everything. All the other towns have apartments too, including Bacharach. I see Rick's insistence on Bacharach as the top place to stay as extremely arbitrary. There are good reasons for staying in these other towns - including the fact that they tend to offer more to see and do - instead of Bacharach, but I wouldn't recommend one without knowing more about what your plans for the area are.
We stayed at Pension Lettie. It has one room that has three beds, one double. Lettie is a great host! Her breakfast was great. Her tips were very useful. We lost a day due to a cancelled flight but she accomodated us.
Russ, thanks for the thoughtful insights. My daughter and mom had seen the RS show and loved the idea of the hostel in Bacharach. But, from other threads on this, I hear that the hostel can be crowded with loud school kids, so perhaps a rethink on that one (plus the big hill climb).
We are going to be driving in the area by train from Rothenburg, and are planning to stay 4 nights in one place, and doing day trips out from there. One day boat cruise from Bingen to Koblenz, one day train over to Eltz castle, one day to see another castle or two. My mom is fit and hearty, but doesn't like to be rushed, so we are going to take our time. She likes to find places to eat and just relax and people watch.
Your post had me thinking of staying perhaps in St. Goar at the Reinperle. They seem to have a reasonably priced triple with a balcony that is available in June when we are traveling.
Do you think this a better option to the hostel in Bacharach? Will it be as easy to train around to Eltz? And to train to airport in Frankfurt?
I appreciate the help!
"We are going to be driving in the area by train from Rothenburg... One day boat cruise from Bingen to Koblenz..."
(Again, don't include Koblenz in the cruise.) Let's say you're staying in St. Goar as you suggested. It's a good choice. Best scenery in the valley, IMO. You can cross the river by ferry there at any time of day and use trains on the opposite river bank if you like - can't do that in Bacharach or most other towns. Since you plan to arrive at the south end of the Middle Rhine Valley, you could get off in Bingen - then walk to the dock (w/ bags) and board your northbound cruise on Day 1 (thus saving you a train trip to Bingen later.) This way you will also see the place for the first time from the best perspective - from the river. Don't know your date so you need to research the advice that follows... The 9:06 departure from Rothenburg would put you at the Bingen (Rhein) Stadt station at 13:01. It might be 10 minutes' walk at most from the station to the KD Kiosk (there's a lunch spot right there, and others along the riverfront promenade nearby, if you want.) The 14:30 KD boat gets you to St. Goar at 15:55.
("My mom is fit and hearty, but doesn't like to be rushed, so we are going to take our time. She likes to find places to eat and just relax and people watch.") The Rheinperle isn't so close to the boat dock or local cafes or the train station for your outings; I'd pick something closer in. For Hotels, maybe the Rheinhotel St. Goar or the Hotel am Markt would be better situated. From this area you are just steps from the pedestrian-zone cafes on Heerstrasse (nice view of Rheinfels Castle from there.) There are apartments/holiday flats and other options too: https://www.st-goar.de/612-1-host-directory.html )
Day trip to Eltz: There are train + bus connections on weekends during high season but I don't know your dates. The DB train site will provide the bus connections (if available) on other dates. (Use Burg Eltz, Wierschem as the station name; trains to Hatzenport, bus from there to castle.) At other times you need to catch trains to Moselkern (takes about 2 hours with a long layover between trains in Koblenz) and then walk through the forest from Moselkern. Here are the directions. My 75-year-old in-laws did fine on this hike. If Mom is in shape it should be doable but read over the directions.
Day trip to another Castle - Marksburg! It's in Braubach - use the St. Goar ferry and take a train 20 mnutes north. Like Eltz, it's intact and was never destroyed. A shuttle is available during high tourist season but you may need to reserve in advance. I've only hiked up myself. It's a steep hike of 20-30 minutes or so. Ruckes Reisen is the operator and you'll find an email address here at their kontakt page for schedule info.
Of course Rheinfels can be toured whenever - it's right in St. Goar.
I would also recommend a visit to Oberwesel and to Bacharach from St. Goar (both lie just to the south) and perhaps a visit to Boppard (very cool chairlift.)
Trains:
The VRM mini-group ticket is a day pass that can be used for outings to Burg Eltz, Marksburg, Boppard and Oberwesel.
The Rhineland-Palatinate ticket is a day pass with a larger reach - use it to travel from St. Goar to Bacharach, Bingen, or Mainz.
Buy point to point RMV (local transit authority) tickets from Mainz to FRA airport (less than €5 each) at a Mainz station ticket machine.
I don't know your flight schedule of course or how quickly you need to get there. But for simplicity and speed, I would suggest booking 3 nights in St. Goar and a final night in Mainz (only 25 minutes to FRA by direct train, trains running all the time from around 4 am.) Spend your last day in the Rhine area if you want more time there - OR spend some time in Mainz, a nice city in itself for shopping and sightseeing. The Königshof is near the station - there are other choices as well.
"Also, is this hostel an easy walk to town and to catch the boat and trains? Tnx!"
No, it's not an easy walk to town. Burg Stahleck is located on a hill above the town, so you'd either have to walk down the road or down a trail through the woods to reach the main part of town. It's an HI Hostels property so having a membership might be a good idea. You could stay somewhere in town but hike up to the Hostel for a "cool one" and to enjoy the incredible views.
As someone else suggested, Pension Lettie or Pension Im Malerwinkel would also be good choices (I can't remember, but Malerwinkel might have parking). There's also Hotel Kranenturm and I didn't find train noise to be a problem there.
Pension Lettie is closed. Malerwinkel has parking
As you search for rooms, you may find some town maps helpful.
You can find the Malerwinkel at E17 on this map of Bacharach. The train station is at L6, so the Malerwinkel is a bit further out for train users than most in-town accommodations. The Kranenturm is at L13 - closer to the station but also insanely close to the tracks.
On this map of St. Goar, the Hotel am Markt is at K8 and the Rheinhotel St. Goar in L7, in between the KD boat dock and the train station. The Loreley apartment "Rhine View" where we once stayed is about 200 ft. further south of the Rheinhotel on Heerstrasse in L6.
We much enjoyed Bacharach and the Malerwinkel.
https://mcchelsea.smugmug.com/Germany-2009/Bacharach-2009/
The 2nd and 3rd pictures are of a scenic walkway back to the Malerwinkel. The Hotel is featured in the 3rd & 4th pictures.
The last picture show the castle towering above the town. We walk up to look it over. Nice view from up there but the walk is strenuous.
We stayed at an apartment the Hotel Altkolnischer Hof. It was pretty much right in the middle of the town. It had parking right outside the door. I believe we paid under 200 euros for 2 nights total in August. It was a fairly large apartment (i think they even have 2 bedroom options), they have 4 of them and they're located just down the street from the main hotel.
"Pension Lettie is closed."
That's unfortunate as Lettie was a great host, and the breakfasts were great. Oh well, I suppose it was inevitable at some point as we're all getting older.
I just booked our hotel at Hotel am Markt in St. Goar for June 25-29, 29th in Mainz, and fly out on the 30th. Our time in the Rhine is not over a weekend (it's a Sun through Thurs) with hopes it will be less busy when touring the castles and traveling in the area.
Though, are there some castles/places not open on Mondays we should plan around? Any advice on what to see when? We are hoping to go to: Burg Eltz, Marksburg castle, Bacharach, St. Goarshausen (Katz castle) , and is there also a summer sliding place too? I thought I heard of one somewhere in the area- my 13yo would love that!
Thanks for the info on hiking up to Burg Eltz. Is there a best day to plan on seeing that? Will train service be easy to Moselkern on any of those dates? We welcome the hike through the woods to get there from town- just wondering about the train from St. Goar to there.
I hope the kiosk at the St. Goar station is easy to use! That part makes me nervous...
I'm so grateful for the all the tips! I was so nervous about coordinating this trip, but with all the great feedback on this forum, I think it may just be doable! :)
"I just booked our hotel at Hotel am Markt in St. Goar..."
Excellent location.
"...are there some castles/places not open on Mondays we should plan around? We are hoping to go to: Burg Eltz, Marksburg castle, Bacharach, St. Goarshausen (Katz castle)"
The first two are open daily for tours. Burg Katz is privately owned and not open to visitors. Bacharach's has been converted to a youth hostel - you can imagine what that might do to the interior of a castle, so unless you're curious about how they cut the place into rooms and added 170 beds, touring it is sort of pointless. You can make the strenuous climb there and be rewarded with a nice view, but you can do that at Rheinfels Castle in St. Goar as well ( which is also open for self-guided tours and where there's a hotel next door and a nice lunch patio.) I'd suggest just staying in town when you visit Bacharach.
"...and is there also a summer sliding place too?"
The Loreley-Bob is across the river in St. Goarshausen and open daily from 10:00 to 17:00. You can hike up or shuttle up to the Loreley visitor center (Besucherzentrum) and walk to the facility. Here's the shuttle schedule.
"...Burg Eltz... Will train service be easy to Moselkern on any of those dates?"
Yes. Train to Koblenz, change there for Moselkern. Use the DB itinerary page for schedules. Sample schedule:
Lv. St. Goar from track 1 at 9:00, ar. Koblenz 9:27, track 3
lv. Koblenz 10:17, track 9; ar. Moselkern 10:49
"I hope the kiosk at the St. Goar station is easy to use! That part makes me nervous..."
Take your time. It may not be 100% transparent but it should be in English. You will likely want a VRM mini-group day pass (mini-gruppenkarte) for 2-5 persons (€22.10) or a Rheinland-Pfalz ticket day pass (buy for 2 persons and a free child, €29/day) depending on your destination (use the VRM ticket for Moselkern, Cochem, Braubach, Boppard, Oberwesel; use the R-P ticket for Bacharach, Bingen, Mainz, or other destinations on the R-P map below.) Stations usually have 2 different machine types. The yellow ones sell the local VRM passes and the R-P passes; the red/blue ones are DB machines (which for certain have an English interface) which for sure sell the R-P tickets (and may also sell the VRM tickets.) See the two machines in this photo at Boppard station:
http://www.abload.de/img/kbop2029j2a.jpg
Here is the R-P ticket coverage map.
Here is the VRM zone coverage map (light green.)
Both the VRM and R-P passes are valid from 9 am on weekdays - and valid on local trains and buses as well as the St. Goar ferry.
The VRM zone lies within the R-P coverage area - so if you're doing a day trip from St. Goar to Bacharach or Bingen, the R-P ticket would be needed but could also be used to hit all the VRM destinations that same day.
The direct way to Burg Stahleck is up a dirt path, with some steps at the bottom that look like railroad ties if you start up at the church. Definitely not for a rolling suitcase. Better be able to carry it.
Or, you can take the long way around, by paved road, out through the wall at Malerwinekl and up a long road to the hostel.
Halb Pension (HP) is one meal a day (besides breakfast), so HPM could be Halb Pension Mittag (meal at noon) and HPM could be Halb Pension Abends (meal in the evening, but that doesn't make sense for Voll Pension, which is two meals.
