Train Travel in Germany--Please Help

The answer for planning and buying train train tickets in Germany is the DB (German Railways) site: https://www.bahn.com/en/view/index.shtml

In German cities, the main station is always called "Hauptbahnhof", abbreviated "Hbf". In Amsterdam it is "Amsterdam Centraal". If you are offered multiple locations and are not sure, there is usually an option of the name in BLOCK CAPITALS, which will find you the best station.

Early April is only a few weeks away, you need to be buying your tickets now, or all the cheep tickets will be sold out.

For example, I went to the DB site, Amsterdam to St Goar, date: Monday 9th April, time: 09:00

Amsterdam Centraal 08:55, 4 changes, St Goar 14:55, No special fares available 65,70 EUR
Amsterdam Centraal 09:25, 3 changes, St Goar 15:55, 29,90 EUR
Amsterdam Centraal 09:55, 4 changes, St Goar 15:55, No special fares available 65,70 EUR
Amsterdam Centraal 10:25, 3 changes, St Goar 16:55, 24,90 EUR

And so on through the day.

April 19--KD boat to Bingen, train to Rothenburg, spend the night @ Hotel Rothenburger Hof

Book your train tickets asap, I can still see tickets for 29,90 in the late afternoon. Note: your train station is Bingen Stadt (which is near the KD dock) not Bingen Hbf.

April 20--train to Nuremberg, spend the night @ Le Meridien Grand Hotel

Buy a VGN TagesticketPlus (€19 for a family) from the ticket machine, no pre-booking necessary.
Transfers in Steinach and Ansbach (small stations, easy)

April 21--train or bus to Prague, spend 2 nights @ Hilton Prague Old Town

The fastest connection is by direct DB bus. Look up prices and schedules at www.bahn.com. Lowest price if booking today: €14.90. Double check at www.busliniensuche.de for prices of competitors. The bus station (Nürnberg ZOB) is only a few steps from your hotel.

From your hotel the station Amsterdam Bijlmer Arena is just a few minutes walking. For picking up the international train to Germany you can either take the local train to Amsterdam Centraal or to Utrecht Centraal. Make sure your tickets mentions »Amsterdam Bijlmer Arena« as departure station by filling out this station when you buy your tickets.

I hope you realize how long some of these train rides will be. You're leaving yourself VERY little time to see much in St. Goar or Rothenberg Odt.

I've been looking at the April 19 travel schedule and it doesn't work well to do both the cruise and the trip to Rothenburg. Cruise on Apr. 18 instead. Here's a train itinerary for you...

Apr. 18

FROM: Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA 9:02
TO: St. Goar 14:55

(Drop bags. KD Boat dock is in front of hotel. Buy ticket at dock and board 15:20 boat to Bingen (18:00.) Take train back to St. Goar after dinner (€7 each. However, you will each get a 20% cruise discount by showing your train ticket at the KD dock, which amounts to about €4 each.)

April 19

(See Rheinfels castle in the morning?)
St. Goar 12:00
Rothenburg 16:50

April 20

Rothenburg 13:09
Nuremberg 14:18

Right now you can do these 3 trips with one Saver Fare ticket at DB - €79.80 for two persons. How:

Search the DB itinerary page for a ticket on April 8 at 9 am from Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA to Prague. Enter a stopover of 21 hours in St Goar and another for 20 hours in Rothenburg. Scheduling Prague as your final destination will trigger a stop in Nuremberg on April 20. You will not get on a bus or a train for Prague that day - you will forfeit that travel leg and end your trip in Nuremberg. (The reason for entering Prague is that the system allows for very long stopovers like the ones in this plan when you schedule a foreign destination.)

You then search for and buy a 2nd saver fare ticket for the direct IC bus from Nuremberg to Prague on April 21. Fares are showing at €15 - €20 each.

If you try to book the individual trips on separate tickets day by day, I think you will find it more expensive. Plus you'll have 2 more tickets to buy and carry around.

Such amazing help! Thank you so much.

Since it seems that we are rushing a little too much through this beautiful area, I can make some adjustments to our hotels. It will involve a little juggling but I think it can be done.

Prior to this leg of the trip we are spending 4 nights in London, 3 nights in Belgium, 5 nights in the Netherlands.

Following the Rhine Valley part of our trip, this is our itinerary:
Prague--2 nights
Vienna--3 nights (possible day trip to Bratislava
Budapest--5 nights
Fly back to US

I plan to take the wise advice to book soon (and am so grateful fo the thoughtful and wise advice!) but I am open to your suggestions before I actually finalize transporation--more time in Rhine Valley and less time in one of the other cities? Skip the KD boat trip and simply see the area by train? Skip Prague all together and go directly to Vienna? Cut a day from Budapest?

Hi Russ-Thank you so much. I am trying to recapture the route you suggested. Is there another name or ID for Nuremberg? I don't see it when I try to recreate what you mention. This is what I see:

Rothenbürg arr 20:57 1
Transfer time 20:07 h
Adjust the transfer time
Fr, 20.04.18

Rothenbürg dep 17:04 1 ag 84630 agilis Direction: Bayreuth Hbf
Number of bicycles conveyed limited , only stops on request (Rothenbürg --> Rothenbürg), 2nd class only , Tickets available on board train , Behindertengerechte Ausstattung , air conditioning
Köditz dep 17:11 1
Hof-Neuhof dep 17:18 1
Hof Hbf dep 17:22 8
Oberkotzau dep 17:27 5
Martinlamitz dep 17:32 2
Kirchenlamitz Ost dep 17:36 2
Marktleuthen dep 17:40 1
Röslau dep 17:45 1
Wunsiedel-Holenbrunn dep 17:49 1
Marktredwitz arr 17:54 5
Transfer time 5 min.
Adjust the transfer time
Marktredwitz dep 17:59 3 RE 5291 Regional-Express Direction: Cheb
Number of bicycles conveyed limited , air conditioning
Schirnding dep 18:10 1
Cheb arr 18:22

It's hard for me to tell what you are doing.

https://reiseauskunft.bahn.de//bin/query.exe/en

Traveling April 18, 9:00 am
2 adults
Start station is Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA
End station is PRAGUE

Click on "Add intermediate stops" under "Stopovers"

Enter St Goar (no period) for the first stopover with 21:00 stopover hours in the time box

Click on that first "1 stopover" box and select "2 stopovers" - then enter Rothenburg ob der Tauber (no umlaut over the u) as your second stopover - with 20:00 stopover hours

Hit search and you should find all the trips between A'dam and Nuremberg - just click on "show details" on the left when the itinerary for 9:02 from A'dam pops up with Nürnberg as your last stop. You do NOT enter Nuremberg when you do your search.

The current price of €79.80 for two is still in force as of now.

There's a notation that says you have too many changes of train altogether to show the full itinerary. But it looks like they will sell you the ticket anyway, and you don't need the itinerary beyond Prague. You'll buy the IC bus fare separately for April 21.

Is there another name or ID for Nuremberg?

"Nuremberg" should work but you may try "Nuernberg"

Rothenbürg arr 20:57 1

You've selected the wrong Rothenburg (Umlauts are meaningful; Rothenbürg is a small village in northern Franconia). Please type in "Rothenburg ob der Tauber". Since that is the most popular destination among all those Rothenburgs, usually it will pop up in the selection list while you are typing.

@Russ

You do NOT enter Nuremberg when you do your search.

The reason for entering Prague is that the system allows for very long stopovers like the ones in this plan when you schedule a foreign destination.

Replicating your interesting suggestion, I see no difference whether I enter Prague as a destination or Nuremberg. The connection, including the long stopovers, is the same and the price too. Have I overlooked something?

I think you're right sla... This is already an international journey because of A'dam - I think A'dam slipped my consciousness momentarily - so in the OP's case, the long stopovers should be permissible with Nuremberg as an end-station as well. (Domestic stopovers must result in trip completion by 10 am of the 2nd travel day, normally.)