Hi All - still having a tough time planning a trip this year. I arrive Amsterdam in Sept. to visit a friend. Would like to visit the Rhine for possibly 2 nights. From there I considered Lake Maggiore; I am particularly attracted to Locarno. I will be traveling by rail - no car. After Amsterdam, I have 8 nights. I could fly but if I do, I may as well travel farther - perhaps the Italian Riviera or French Riviera? I am especially interested in smaller towns; not large cities. I like to walk around and take short day excursions. Could somebody suggest an itinerary? I have gotten many wonderful ideas in the past through this forum. I am not interested in spending the entire time in Germany; France would be a consideration as well. Thank you for any input.
Posted by
Paradise
7077 posts
"I am not interested in spending the entire time in Germany..."
That's a crying shame. It's the best time to visit Germany. Wine festivals, great weather... And you are right there already.
https://www.bo.de/sites/default/files/gallery/dsc_1721_0.jpg
You didn't request any feedback about your stay on the Rhine (which is probably a day too short to make the trip from A'dam worth it.) Why post this question on the Germany forum if you need no further information about Germany and have no further interest in Germany?
With only 8 nights, and your idea about an itinerary, with short day excursions, I would just look into a flight out of Amsterdam to France or Italy.
Posted by
OP
Lahaina, HI
74 posts
Sorry Russ - I certainly did not mean to offend anyone. I received quite a bit of valuable information about the Rhine in a previous post. Since each trip may be my last; I prefer to move around and see a variety of areas. I am aware of my limitations without a car and was hoping to gain some insight as to which villages would be easily accessible via train from the Rhine.
Posted by
The Heartland USA
8981 posts
Betty, how about keep going up river and visiting Alsace? Plenty of charming villages there. You picked a lot of good destinations, but they are all kind of far apart, which means you would burn up a lot of time in transit, and 8 days is not much. Have you considered open jaw flights so as not to backtrack, or is that set?
Posted by
Paradise
7077 posts
No offense taken. Just seemed like you had posted on the wrong forum.
"...was hoping to gain some insight as to which villages would be easily accessible via train from the Rhine."
Now there's a Germany question to respond to. The Middle Rhine Valley (yellow zone on the map between Bonn and Bingen) is the area of focus for most visitors. But with just 2 nights you ought to narrow your visit to the Upper Middle Rhine Valley - a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is the most spectacular part, the part south of Koblenz and north of Bingen. All named towns on this second map - on both sides of the river - have train stations. For train travelers looking to visit other towns on both sides, St. Goar is your very best bet for a stopover because of the ferry crossing there - the docks on both sides are very close to the train stations - and the ferry has long operational hours every day. St. Goar is also home to Rheinfels Castle and is situated on the most scenic part of the river, IMHO, with several river-view hotels that take good advantage of this scenery (something you won't find in the towns of Oberwesel or Bacharach as a rule.)
Posted by
OP
Lahaina, HI
74 posts
Thank you Russ for the wonderful tips on the Rhine. And Stan - thank you for the suggestion. I would like to get back to France. I have to make a decision very soon; it sounds like either I will visit the Rhine and circle around to Alsace and back through Paris. Or else I need to fly out of Amsterdam to one destination for 5 nights or so and return. I found a great price on a round trip flight so it's too late to change. I will post on the France forum to get suggestions from them.
Posted by
Alsenborn, Germany
1497 posts
Why not the Alsace-Lorraine? You could easily do the Rhine down from Koblenz, and then swing over to Trier, Luxembourg, Metz, and Reims. The cities are all very worthy of a visit, and if you haven't put Lux on your list of countries it would be a shame to be that close and miss it. This can all be done by train, and getting back to Amsterdam should be no problem.