Rental cars in Füssen & Bacharach

Bacharach is tiny, I would not expect any rental car companies there. Have a great trip!

Google might direct you to the closest options. Koblenz is probably the best option near Bacharach.

Fussen shows both Hertz and Avis, but I doubt there is anything in Bacharach, just too small.

You might want to consider a larger train station for pick-up and drop-off, saves having to get to a remote rental office in a small town, plus you would have more choice.

Augsburg might work for pickup if Fussen does not, and either Koblenz or Frankfurt for drop-off.

Might want to take into account where would be best to catch a train to Berlin.

Another option to look at when looking is to try AutoEurope, they are a broker that handles many of the major agencies, and will show what firms might work. You can always go directly to the company, or book through AutoEurope.

to drive the Romantic Road to Bacharach

Misty, it is 170 miles west (by road, about 120 miles as the crow flies) from Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the usual northern destination on the RR. The northern end of the RR is Würzburg, and there should be car rental places in Würzburg, plus a train station from which to leave for Berlin.

And if you want to visit Bacharach, take the train from Wuerzburg to Bacharach (train change in Frankfurt or Mainz), then train to Berlin (train change in Frankfurt).

...Rick's suggestion to pick up a rental car in Füssen to drive the
Romantic Road to Bacharach.

One convenient place in the area to drop or pick up a car in the Rhine Valley is WIESBADEN, where you can find Sixt, Europcar and Alamo offices within walking distance of the train station.

From Bacharach, you could cross the Rhine using a car ferry and drive south on the opposite riverbank.

https://www.rhine.apartment-listings.com/bilder-fotos/map/lageplan-bacharach-600-7.gif

A request and a question...

I don't remember seeing this suggestion in Rick's materials, and while the Romantic Road route is common knowledge, I am very curious about Rick's suggested driving route between Rothenburg/Würzburg and Bacharach. Where did you read about this route?

Also... It's a very huge detour to travel from Rothenburg > Bacharach > Berlin rather than just Rothenburg > Berlin. What is your specific interest in Bacharach? - or in the route that goes to Bacharach? There are several nice places to visit just between Rothenburg and Berlin, by car or by train, and sticking to that route instead might save you a lot of ground travel.

Thank you for the responses! Clearly, I am confused and am happy to accept help in planning our transportation.

Russ, I started by loosely following pages 26 & 27 of the Best of Germany book because this route will allow us to drive the Romantic Road and give us some freedom along the Rhine. We will stay in Rothenburg an extra night so we can use it as a base to drive to Nürnberg one day and to Stuttgarrt the next. It looks to me that our best option for returning the car, is to drive to Frankfurt after our stay in Bacharach, and return it hopefully near the train station. Does that make sense to you? Do you have suggestions regarding routes we should take to get from Rothenburg to the Rhine Valley?

"We will stay in Rothenburg an extra night so we can use it as a base to drive to Nürnberg one day and to Stuttgarrt the next."

So it's R'burg > Nuremberg > R'burg by car...

Then R'burg > Stuttgart > R'burg by on the following day?

(That sounds like 2 additional nights in Rothenburg.)

Then comes the drive from R'burg > Bacharach that you asked about, right?

"Do you have suggestions regarding routes we should take to get from Rothenburg to the Rhine Valley?" You said Rick has a plan for that... but I don't have Rick's book so can't look at what you are looking at. My thoughts...

• The quickest routes you will find on viamichelin and other routing services are not awe-inspiring drives. If the point of the car is to sightsee on the way, I'd make a detour to and a stopover in Miltenberg, at a minimum.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9nwkeiWgcU
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g198492-Activities-oa0-Miltenberg_Lower_Franconia_Franconia_Bavaria.html

• I think any routing you get will bypass Frankfurt, then skirt FRA airport, and later pass right by WIESBADEN (the town I mentioned previously for dropping the car) on the way to Bacharach.

So... how are you getting to BERLIN? Depending on where it is you want to end up after Bacharach (Frankfurt airport? Frankfurt central station?) you can drive there from Bacharach to drop the car, or you can just drop it in WIESBADEN as previously suggested, then ride the train to Berlin starting from Wiesbaden - which will probably be less hassle than driving into Central Frankfurt.

About your day trips from Rothenburg:

• Stuttgart: 4 hours or so round trip, not counting traffic delays, parking... Doesn't sound like a desirable day trip from Rothenburg to me, but then I don't know why it is an important destination for you. If this were me, I'd be staying in Stuttgart - and I'd make the drive to Bacharach directly from Stuttgart. Or I would drop Stuttgart and visit some alternative destination from Rothenburg.

Alternative day trips from Rothenburg:

Würzburg

Bad Windsheim (Franconian Open-Air Museum)

• Nuremberg: Another city where a car becomes problematic (parking, parking fees, etc.) It's about €25/couple for the round trip by train on a day ticket (Tagesticket Plus) which also lets you ride the subways/buses etc. that you might need during your visit once there. I've made daytrips w/ this day pass myself on multiple occasions from Nuremberg, including to Rothenburg.

I don't know what you are doing on the Rhine or in Stuttgart or how much time you've left for Berlin, so I really can't comment on the wisdom of including the Rhine, Stuttgart... It seems like a whole lot of ground travel that might be using up too much of your time if your time is limited.

Rothenberg to Stuttgart is a PIA drive; in summer it's slow due to caravans and trucks, and road repair. You're talking 5-6+ hours round trip. You'd be a lot smarter to drive there, and then head north to the Rhine (another 4+ hour drive) and forget returning to RodT. But why? Your whole plan does not make sense. You're crossing the whole country to see places that aren't even close. Fussen is closer to Stuttgart than RodT. And Stuttgart is closer to Bacharach. The Romantic road is well to the east of all those locations. And Berlin? You fly to Berlin from anyplace you listed, because it's not wasting a whole day on the train. Fly from Koln, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Zurich. You can do your trip in two weeks, but it won't be fun.

I'd look at flying into FRA, going down the Rhine, then south to Stuttgart, then Fussen, then the Romantic Road, and then Berlin. And fly home from there. Frankfurt to Bachrach, to Stuttgart, to Fussen, can easily be done by train. Fussen to the RR - rent a car. Drop it in Nuremberg and fly to Berlin. Much easier.