Only 2.5 days to see Castles

So as I understand it, you have the pm of June 1, June 2 and June 3 in Germany. Then you travel to Rome.

"We also want to see as many castles as possible."

The best collection in Germany is in the Middle Rhine Valley. Take the train to Bingen and cruise north 1.5 hours to St. Goar - that yields the best scenery. This map shows the castles and towns you'll cruise past. Visit Rheinfels Castle in St. Goar. From St. Goar, ferry across the river and take a train north (22 min's.) to Braubach for a tour of Marksburg Castle, an intact, never-destroyed castle that has stood there for 800 years

You need to fly to Rome if possible. Look first for your flights, then decide how to arrange your time in Germany. You might want to check flights on Ryanair out of Frankfurt Hahn; there's a shuttle to the airport from Koblenz (near Braubach.) They have flights on Sun June 4 to Rome Ciampino. (Check also flights from Frankfurt International , Karlsruhe Baden-Baden, and Stuttgart)

The area to the south and east of Darmstadt is particularly castle-rich, but far less well-known than the Mittelrhein. Most are in various states of ruin and are difficult to see up close without a car. Most are always open and require no entrance fee.

Head south on route B3 (known as the "Bergstraße, because it runs along the foot of the Odenwald mountains) towards Heidelberg. Keep on eye on the mountains to your left, because this is where you'll see all the castles. The first, above the town of Seeheim-Jugenheim is Burg Frankenstein, whose name may have inspired Mary Shelley as the titular character in her book. It's a ruin, but on clear day, from the restaurant deck, you can see all of Frankfurt, Darmstadt, Wiesbaden, Mainz, the Taunus mountains and all the way to the southern terminus of the Mittelrhein.

There's a small ruin above the town of Zwingenberg, but not really extensive enough to merit a detour.

Next up, Schloss Auerbach, above the town of Auerbach, is worth your time. Once again, a ruin, but from the towers you can get an amazing view.

Burg Starkenburg above Heppenheim now houses a youth hostel and small beer garden. The town of Heppenheim is far more interesting than it's castle, however. Make sure to at least visit the Markt in the Altstadt.

Weinheim has not one but two castles. Burg Windeck is mostly ruined, but Wachenburg was rebuilt early in the 20th century. You can visit if no private functions are being held.

Strahlenburg above Schriesheim may look impressive from a distance, but it's a hotel built into the shell of the old ruin. You can't visit.

Once you reach Heidelberg, if you follow the Neckar river upstream, you'll drive along a deep valley similar to the Mittelrhein, with more than it's fair share of castles. Heidelberg itself offers it's famous Schloss ruin.

As you drive up river, you'll see Dilsberg on top of a hill, which itself is a walled castle town. Across the river is Neckarsteinach, which has 3 castles and one fortified defensive tower. The tower and one of the castles are open ruins, the others are private homes.

Next you'll see the "Pearl of the Neckar", Hirschhorn, with it's partially rebuilt ruin, Burg Hirschhorn. It houses a hotel-restaurant, but you can visit without eating or staying there.

Eberbach has a pretty good castle ruin above the town, but you can only reach it by a vigorous uphill hike of about 30 minutes.

Zwingenburg has probably the most impressive intact castle in the area, but it's a private residence.

There's another mostly intact ruin across the river from Neckargerach. It doesn't take much of an effort to reach it, but it isn't that easy to find.

Beyond Mosbach, you'll see Burg Hornburg. It's a mostly intact ruin, and tourable for a fee.

A little further up river, Burg Guttenberg and Burg Horneck are mostly intact from the medieval period. I don't know if they're tourable, however.

Finally, you'll reach Bad Wimpfen, which although not a castle, is worth a visit.

To the east of Darmstadt, Burg Breuberg is also very well maintained in something approximating it's medieval state and it's also tourable. It never seemed to be open when I tried to visit, however.

Is that enough castles for you? Because if you really want to know, there's even more...

Wow! Thanks for the replies.

Wow, Tom really delivered on castle info. As for Heidelberg, don't delay on booking your lodging, especially if you opt for the rental car. We are working on a September trip including 1-night in Heidelberg. Availability is already somewhat limited for hotels in the town center that offer parking and have lifts. (We don't travel particularly "light", and -- in our 70s, but mobile -- are wary of places where we might be schlepping bags up old, narrow staircases.) If interested in what we found/booked, send a PM -- I don't want to appear on the public Forum page like a shill for a particular hotel.