I with to drive up to Mainz for a day (basically from Ramstein), and would be looking for a convenient place to park. I have not mapped all things out but I am particularly interested in St Stephan's, the Maritime museum, any Roman remains, and probably any number of other things I have not thought of yet.
Any suggestions as to well located car parks? I am happy to park outside the city center and take the train/bus in, if that is a smarter choice.
... the first of many questions!
Thanks.
Joel
I don't have a specific recommendation for Mainz, but if you know how parking works in most German cities, finding a spot couldn't be easier (for the most part... Munich is a big exception). As you drive into town, you'll see a color-coded schematic map that shows where parking is available. For a tourist's purposes, parking labled "Zentrum" or "Rathaus" are usually the best bets, unless there's a specific site you know you want to see. Then, it's simply a matter of following the large blue and white signs with a big "P" on them. They will often even have a digital display showing how many spots remain vacant.
Just follow the signs and don't overthink or overplan it.
From K-town it will cost €20 for gas plus parking to Mainz and back. Figure 2 hours driving time there and back if traffic is good, plus driving/parking time within Mainz itself.
"I am happy to park outside the city center and take the train/bus in"
I suggest you take the regional train from K-town. Enjoy the scenery without the driving/parking worries. It takes 1.5 hours one way to Mainz station. Leave at 8:32, 9:32, 10:32... There's one change of train in Bad Münster am Stein, a scenic town on the Nahe River. Round trip is €24 for 1 or €28 for 2 adults with a day pass (Rheinland-Pfalz ticket, buy at station ticket machine.)
You can find schedules yourself at the DB itinerary page. Click on "only local transport" under "means of transport" and you'll find the regional train connections.
Put the Isis Temple ruins on your list of places to go. It is one of my favorites. The antique shipbuilding museum should be interesting. Do visit the Mainzer Dom. It is magnificent and very, very old.
A63 runs through one of Germany's largest grape producing regions, so yes, the scenery is quite nice during the late spring and summer. It isn't a particularly Stau-prone road (unlike A61). Perfectly reasonable to make the short drive, especially since the poster indicated he will already have a car anyway.
I am actually in Landstuhl, so add a few minutes onto all driving time estimates. Any concerns as to parking have been allayed, so many thanks.
I have not really looked at the train as I just need some practice driving around here and figured downtown Mainz would not be so great a challenge as Frankfurt. Advantage train: I could do some serious wine tasting. Next time I guess.
Thanks for your suggestions on points of interest. Inside knowledge is always the best!
j2
I only drove through Maine twice, but I don't recall any great difficulty. Personally, I don't think Frankfurt is very hard either...as long as you don't need to make a U-turn...
U-turn? I thought that was what roundabouts were for. :-)
But I thought I read somewhere that U-turns were illegal in Germany. Also right turn on red, which I am SO used to doing without thinking.
U-turns as they exist in America, yes, these are illegal. What I meant was an intersection where you can turn left, then go along another street so that you can reverse direction. I used to drive to the Frankfurt am Main Hauptbahnhof fairly often. Once you pull out of the parking garage, you can't drive back the way you came unless you cross the river, take a right hand turn onto a residential street, circle back then take a left onto the main road again. Round-a-bouts are nice, but you don't always have them.
Turning right on red is also not allowed.... except in situations where you see a green arrow posted above the traffic light. These are pretty rare, however. Should you encounter this situation, here's what the arrow looks like.
