Train or Car from Rothenburg to Bruges?

You can use this website: https://www.bahn.com/i/view/USA/en/index.shtml. It shows 4-1/2 hr trains (Frankfurt to Bruges with one change in Brussels) at 10:30 am and 2:30 pm. I used a dummy date 90 days from now and it looks like fare is €59 if purchased well ahead and that locks you in to a particular train.

Any train connections taking 10 hours to Bruges from Frankfurt are pretty bad connections or possibly overnight connections where you are sitting in the Amsterdam station for six hours between midnight and 6 am. It doesn't take that long.

And it doesn't have to cost €200 either. You're planning a long way in advance. You can buy SAVER FARE tickets from German Railways starting 91 days in advance of this trip.

But it makes more sense to drop your car in Würzburg or at least closer to Rothenburg than Frankfurt, IMO. Why spend the extra gas and drive into a major city like Frankfurt? Then you take the train from Würzburg. I am looking at a trip right now on the DB website about 90 days out (June 26) just as an example - the fare is €39 each for Würzburg to Bruges, and the trip takes less than 6 hours. You will surely find similar pricing for your November trip but you'll need to wait until August to see the actual prices for your travel date.

DB itinerary/ticketing page
Saver fare information

Only $175 to drop the car in a different country (is that US $?). That seems cheap.

I am not user what you mean by "I'm not finding a solid train schedule" or "I'm concerned on if there will be consistent trains in November". The train times are fixed from December to December (with a few minor tweaks in July). It will be the same times every day until December 2016, and even then probably only minor adjustments.

Where are you looking for train times? You should be looking at www.bahn.de I just looked and it is showing times of between 4½ and 6 hours. That is from "Frankfurt(Main)Hbf". If you are dropping off a car, it may be better to drop it off at the airport ("Frankfurt(M)Flughafen"), which will save driving into the city, and trains from there to Belgium are a few minutes quicker.

You could also leave the car in Rothenburg ob der Tauber (if it has an office). That would be 8-10 hours by train to Brugge. Or Würzburg, a larger city between Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Frankfurt am Main, which is worth a visit and will definately have a car hire office.

P.S. There are two Frankfurts in Germany. The other one is "Frankfurt(Oder)". Do not accidentally select that one.

Lizzy,

I'd suggest dropping your car somewhere close to the border and close to a main rail hub, and travelling by train to Bruges. Using a high speed train that travels at up to 320 km/h will not only be much faster and more relaxing, but also a more efficient use of your valuable holiday time. No car can match those speeds!

For example, there's a train departing Frankfurt Hbf at 10:29, arriving Bruges at 14:51 (time 4H:22M, one change at Bruxelles Midi). Saver fares for that trip are currently listed at €59 PP.

I had the same thought as mentioned in a previous reply - a drop fee in another country of only $175 seems too cheap and somewhat unusual.

Yep, I triple checked it, and it's only a difference of 175 USD ...

However, I am intrigued of the idea of dropping the car in Wurzburg - currently we have 3 nights booked in Rothenburg, considering taking that down to 2 nights, dropping the car in Wurzburg, staying 1 night there, and then training out from Wurzburg to Bruges that next day.

Go for it Lizzy.
The Würzburg "Residenz" (Palace) is a UNESCO World Heritage site: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/W%C3%BCrzburger_Residenz%2C_Gartenfront.jpg
And the rest of the city has plenty to see:: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Marienberg_wuerzburg.jpg

On your way to Würzburg, make some stops in the wine towns along the Main River - Sommerhausen, Ochsenfurt, and/or Marktbreit.

Rothenburg: (Not sure what hour of the day you arrive there, but...) You are correct that it doesn't require 3 nights. Probably not even two. I'd suggest one night there (plus some time the next morning, possibley) - then drive north to the above towns and pull into Würzburg in the evening for a 2-night stay there. A full day in Würzburg might not be enough; a full day in Rothenburg is unnecessary.

Würzburg must-sees
(Be sure not to miss the Hofkirche if you visit the Residenz.)
Goldene Gans Biergarten
The Stachel restaurant/wine house w/ outdoor seating

We did that trip in the opposite direction last year.
My suggestion is to drive to Frankfurt, drop off the car, and take the train to Bruges.
You will have to change trains in Brussels, but that is easy.
The difference in timing for the trains is that there are "local" trains with many stops, and "express" trains with fewer stops.

Another suggestion if you have time: drive to the Rhine River Valley and drop the car in Cologne. Its beautiful and filled with castles!

You will absolutely love both Rothenburg and Bruges...I hope you have planned enough time for both. In Rothenburg you must do the Night Watchman's Tour. Worth every Euro!

Kevin

The Rhine was our original plan on the way to Bruges, but sadly everything is shut down when we'll be there (11/20-11/21-ish) - I contacted 2 B&Bs and both said there are hardly any hotels open, no castles, not many restaurants, and no boats running - they said it'd be a ghost town. :(