Where to stay on the Rhine

I have not stayed in Oberwesel, but did stay in Boppard for 4 nights in 2022, and found it a delightful place to stay. It's a nice location because the town literally sits right next to the river, so you have the waters lapping as you walk out of your hotel. There are cafes that line the river that are very nice, lots of restaurants, shops and the train station is a short walk away on the outskirts of town.

I stayed at the Bellevue Rheinhotel and really liked it a lot. It was a very nice hotel that sat right on the water (practically). You could walk out the entrance and walk straight down to the KD cruise line about a hundred feet away, along with all the other attractions along the the water. They gave excellent service and many of the rooms have balconies overlooking the Rhine.

Thank you for the information!

Sorry, I gave you an incorrect link for the hotel. Here is the correct one: https://www.bellevue-boppard.de/en/rooms-and-rates/apartment-suite/apartment-rooms-residence-bellevue

The choice depends to some degree on what you wish to do in the area.

• If you plan to visit Marksburg Castle (near Koblenz) or Cologne or Burg Eltz or Cochem or other Mosel destinations, Boppard will shave off your round-trip transport time nicely.

• Boppard's ferry crossing also permits access to the railway on the other side of the river (which you might use to visit Rüdesheim or Marksburg Castle in Braubach.) Oberwesel does not have a ferry crossing, so you would first need to travel to St Goar or the Kaub ferry at Engelsburg to cross the river.

Oberwesel is worth visiting - there's a nice walk you can take around the old town wall there. You might want to stay there if you want a top-end castle-hotel (Auf Schönburg) and you plan to have a rental car - or you don't plan to do outings (this hotel sits high on the clifftop above town, discouraging access on foot.) But all things considered, I'd say Boppard will be more productive in terms of services and diversions for most visitors. From Boppard, you can easily visit Oberwesel by direct train; Bacharach and Oberwesel, both of which lie near each other to the south of Boppard, combine nicely for a day trip by train.

A perk that's available in Boppard went unmentioned in my previous post: the VRM Guest Ticket. You receive this pass for free train and bus transport automatically upon check-in at any Boppard hotel, apartment, B&B, etc.

I didn't stay in either spot but did stay in St. Goar and loved my stay at Rheinhotel St. Goar, right across from the ferry dock. They close for winter so booking might not yet be open (there's a phone number on the website to call). Easy access to trains, ferry, etc.

Ditto on the Rheinhotel. Loved the room with balcony, breakfast. St Goar has a very scenic location and is also very convenient (ferry crossing, proximity to Oberwesel and Bacharach, good for cruising) with the understanding that direct trains from FRA are not available to St. Goar like the other towns on this river bank.

Oberwesel has a nice Castle Hotel above the town Car recommended when you plan to stay there

Otherwise Boppard from my point of view is the better choice

Thanks for all the input. We will have a car and had planned to stay at the castle in Oberwessel, but changed to the Rheinfels Hotel in St. Goar. Good move?
After the Rhine area, we are heading south to Baden Baden, or Strasbourg area. Any suggestions there?

The choices you ask about are quite different. It just depends on what you want.

Either way I would look into parking costs and location. In September there are wine festivals in certain towns that bring large crowds to the Rhine towns and impact room availability and parking spaces; according to my sources, car parking is a total pain when visiting the towns in question, so you may want to just leave the car parked if you plan to visit one of those towns. if you leave the car at Auf Schoenburg, however, the hotel has no shuttle on offer AFAIK, so you will need a taxi, or it's an uncomfortably steep walk into/back from town. It's a lot easier to hop on a train to wherever if you are staying at the Rheinhotel. I've stayed in St Goar at least half a dozen times and attended a couple of wine fests but have never experienced that parking pain myself... the train service between these river towns is just too convenient, and getting there by train from FRA is not complicated. And I don't much like the idea of paying for parking or paying for a rental car that's just sitting in a parking space.

Oberwesel is often misspelled on this forum. It has only one "s". And the "s" is pronounced like a "z". And if you need to tell someone (like your taxi driver) where you are staying, the town's name is pronounced as follows: oh-buh-vay-zul

Oberwesel would have been a good choice Hope St Goar will be

Anyway you have a car and can go to Günderodehaus near Oberwesel or Maria Ruh (Loreley View) near Urbar between St Goar and Oberwesel for a glas of wine or a cup of coffee and a piece of cake

Maria Ruh not so easy to find coming from St Goar/Rheinfels Castle uphill through the Village of St Goar-Biebernheim then left signposted "Lorelayblick Urbar"
in the village of Urbar second left next remain left and then stay on this road

Going to Günderodehaus follow the signpost to Oberwesel in Urbar Village center for 2,5 km
Parking at the Günderodehaus is a problem only small carpark

Make it a 16km loop continue the from Gründerodehaus down to Oberwesel (narrow road) and then along the Rhine back to St Goar

btw GPS ;o)) which doesnt alway work well

Just in case you are interested.

Thanks for everyone's advice! Most helpful...