Rhine Day Cruise from Boppard

Most efficient way:

1) Train from Boppard to Bingen Rhein Stadt station, but hopping off and back on the TRAIN in the places you wish to visit. St Goar, Oberwesel, and Bacharach are all good options.

2) Cruise all the way back to Boppard on the 16:15 Goethe Paddlewheel ship (the only boat that goes all the way to Boppard.) This boat is idle on Mondays.

There is no value in a round-trip cruise to see the same scenery twice. IMHO of course.

Stopping off here and there during the cruise is tricky because the boat schedule is skimpy and irregular. Do that by train.

Thanks Russ, very helpful. Or I could take an earlier boat to Saint Goar then short train to Boppard? I like the idea of getting off and on the train at those towns too.

Yes, that works too if you want a shorter day. Or if you just want a shorter cruise. The 14:15 boat from Bingen hits St Goar at 16:10. The 16:15 boat from Bingen also stops in St Goar (17:55) on its way to Boppard, so getting off in St Goar works for either boat... check the train schedules for St Goar > Boppard to see if the boat arrival times match up well for you.

Getting to Bingen Rhein Stadt:. The VRM Guest Card covers the trains between Bingen > St Goar > Oberwesel, but no further south, so you will need a standard tickt for Oberwesel to Bingen Rhein Stadt (€8.70 from a ticket machine or on the app) which you can buy at any station prior to travel on that section of track. You can hop off the train (and back on) later in Bacharach with a standard ticket. Be sure to present this train ticket at the K-D kiosk in Bingen to get a 20% cruise discount.

I have to basically agree with Russ. The best cruise on the Rhein is from Bingen to St. Goar. Go that way, with the current. I once did St. Goar to Bacharach, against the current, and the trip was so excruciatingly boring, against the current. Never again.

Personally, I don't think the St Goar to Boppard section is that interesting. I'd take the hourly train from between Boppard and Bingen, stopping at whatever towns you want to see between Boppard and Bingen, then come back on the boat to St Goar and finish with the train.

By the way, if the boat to St Goarshausen takes to long to go over to St Goar, there is always the ferry from St Goarshausen to St Goar.

I have gone both ways on the Rhein, many, many times and am surprised that anyone thinks this is boring. I kind of feel sorry for anyone who finds gorgeous scenery boring. You simply have a little bit more time to take photos of the many castles you will see. The time difference is not that much.

Thanks so much Russ, Lee and Ms. Jo for all of this valuable info, really appreciate it.

When you see how much faster and more frequent the train is than the boat, you will understand this advice better. Note also that starting in Bingen is boating downstream, a bit faster, but not too fast for leisurely viewing. And it delivers even more sights.

Thanks Tim. Just to confirm, I don’t need to book the boat tickets in advance even though it will be high season in July?

"Booking" a day cruise boat is not really possible. You can buy a ticket in advance but there is no advantage - seating is not guaranteed and the ticket is not fully refundable... conditions apply, and there's a refund fee. Advantage, cruise company; disadvantage, customer! Buying on the spot gives you the advantage of a 20% cruise discount (with a valid train ticket in hand) which you cannot get online. And you can choose which day you travel (in case of bad weather, etc.) without ticket hassles.

Great, thanks Russ for this information.