Bavaria/Rhine Valley Itinerary help!

I assume you will stop in Rothenburg on your way from Munich to the Rhein. With two weeks you should have plenty of time to see things. On the Rhein, of course, you'll probably want to stay in either St. Goar or Bacharach, take the boat from Bacharach to St. Goar, see Rheinfels in St. Goar. Also go down to Braubach and see the Marksburg castle, the only castle on the Rhein that was not destroyed. I stayed in Boppard and there was a Weingut a couple blocks away, but I didn't visit it. Several years later I did the Mosel and tasted wine at the winery next to the Bahnhof in Cochem.

If you like wines, you'll want to see Bernkastel-Kues. There is a bus that goes from the train station in Wittlich to B-K.

Munich is a fabulous city full of history and fun. I would give the city of Munich at least 3 days in order to tour and explore (the Residenz, English Garden, Marienplatz and Dachau Concentration Camp being highlights). I would also give Munich 1 more night in order to take a day trip to Fussen (to see King Ludwigs castle.) That starts you off with 4 nights in Munich.

Then I would head to Rothenburg for 2 nights.

After that, head to Bacharach on the Rhein for 4 nights. You will need 2 nights to explore the Rhein. 1 to take a day trip over to the Mosel Valley to explore (this is where I saw a LOT of people biking and touring wineries). And I highly recommend one full day to go to Koln to see the cathedral. (thus your 4 nights in Bacharach).

Lastly up to Berlin for your remaining time. I know this isn't Bavaria/Rhein, but this is a must see city. In the interest of full disclosure, I have not been to Berlin. I chose to explore the southern part more, but I need to see that city because people absolutely rave about it.

If you decide to catch Berlin another time (like me) - there is Baden-Baden in the Black Forest. This city has only one real draw...co-ed naked Roman Baths. Glorious! They also have a really nice art museum. You can fly home from Frankfurt after that.

But really your options are limitless...that is just my suggestion based on my experiences. There are 1,000 other great German towns that I have yet to visit.

Amy has given you some good tips. I personally enjoyed the Mosel river area more than the Rhine, so I would probably choose to spend a night or two up there. On my trip, we spent one night in Bacharach, and 2 in Zell on the Mosel. Both are well worth a visit.

Thanks so much for the help! I haven't heard of the Mosel river area so I will definitely check this out.

My husband and I have "sacrificed" Berlin from our itinerary a long time ago ~ we prefer to see more nature-oriented places. We are thinking about going to the Netherlands if two weeks for Bavaria/Rhine is more than enough.

Lisa

Lisa,

Two weeks in Munich and the Rhine / Mosel areas sounds like a great trip! If you have time, Lee's suggestion to stop in Rothenburg ob der Tauber for at least one night would be a good idea. Be sure to take the Night Watchman's Tour, as it's very entertaining. The Kathe Wolfhart Christmas Museum is incredible!

You might want to have a look at a copy of the Germany 2010 Guidebook. As I recall, there were some good suggestions in there for bike trips in the Bacharach area (some of these involve Wineries as I recall).

Happy travels!

I suggest staying in Bacharrach over St. Goar in the Rhineland. It has a lot more personality, in my opinion. St. Goar is still great for the castle though. The Rhine cruise was a highlight of our Germany trip. You should try and make it to Burg Eltz while you are there, though that's in the Mosel and not so eacy without a car.

Rothenburg is a must. Consider also Nuremburg. The German cultural museum was great. You should try and make it to Neuschwanstein Castle too, one way or the other.

I agree that Baden Baden is fun. Is you like the outdoors and the weather is good, you can do a hike from right i town.

[Sorry if my spelling is off on some of these.]

Is it possible to travel to Mosel without a car? I'd really like to go to Burg Eltz. We also like biking so perhaps we could go that way?

Thanks! Lisa

Lisa- If you don't get an answer to your train question, re-post it either here or under transportation. There are some train "experts" on this site, and they will be able to help you. (We had a car)

Yes Lisa, you can absolutely travel to the Mosel without a car. You take the locally run Rhein train up to Cochem (I think, but I would need to double check) and then switch to a different train that takes you to the right town on the Mosel.

It is all detailed very nicely in the RS Germany book.

Since you like the outdoors and are interested in Berg Elz, there is a great 2 hour hike you can take up to the castle.

With the train rides, the hike there and back and the tour of the castle - that is one full complete day.

If you are staying overnight in either St Goar or Bacharach, Burg Eltz is easy but long to do through public transportation. It is worth it in my opinion though! There are two trains you must take to get there, and they are veery slow. The hike to Burg Eltz takes about one hour each way, but it is a pretty hike and not hard. Just plan on having an early start to your day. If you stay a night or two on the mosel, it will cut travel time significantly. Lots of biking to do in the Rhine/Mosel area.

I've spent a total of 9 nights on the Rhein (5 nts) and on the Mosel (4 nts) in two trips. I never needed a car to get to where I wanted to go. On the Rhein I saw Bacharach and St. Goar (Rheinfels), and the river cruise between them, Oberwesel, Boppard, Braubach (Marksburg), and Koblenz. On the Mosel, Treis-Karden, Cochem (Reichsburg), Beilstein, Zell, and Bernkastel-Kues. Burg Eltz was already closed for the season when I was there.

Most people, I think, walk to Burg Eltz from Moselkern. Looks like it is about 4 km (2½ mi), half on a wooded trail. If you are using a car, there is no direct route; you must circle around away from the Mosel. Coming south from Koblenz, get off at Lehmen and take L82 to Münstermaifeld, then south through Wierschem to the castle parking lot. That's about 8 miles from Lehmen. If you come north, down the Mosel from Cochem, leave the river at Hatzenport. From there it is about 6 miles via Münstermaifeld. You can find these routes on Googlemap, but I can't get it to show the actual castle. Apparently their office is in Wierschem, so that's what Google want's to show. The actual castle is 1½ mile south of Wierschem.

If I had to choose between Burg Eltz and the Marksburg, I'd choose the Marksburg. It's much easier to get to.

What a great trip! These areas have been our destination on several trips - most recently, last summer. I would agree with those who direct you toward the Mosel, as opposed to the Rhein. There are many small towns along the Mosel with wonderful accommodations.

In addition I might suggest time spent in Dinkelsbuhl vs. Rothenburg. Both are charming, walled towns but Dinkelsbuhl (maybe 1/2 hour from Rothenburg)is less driven by the tourist industry.

While Baden Baden is a great town consider instead looking for a town with "Bad" in the name....you will likely find a "therme" there. If you head into Bavaria you might find one with views of the Alps. (I am reminded of a great day spent in Bad Gastein, Austria - south of Munich: morning hike and afternoon of relaxing in a therme, gazing up at snow-capped mountains.)

Thanks so much for the tips! I wish I had a RS Germany book ~ as well as one for all the other countries my husband and I are going to! We're traveling in Europe for three months, so it's not practical to carry books for all those places. We do have the "Best of Europe" book though, which should help!

Thanks Lois for the tip about staying in Dinkelsbuhl ~ I'm looking forward to staying in a few small towns in the area, slowly making my way up to Frankfort and the Rhine. Also, I'm definitely convinced now to go to the Mosel area.

Also the link to the walk is really helpful Lee, thanks!

Lisa

Lisa -

Should be an awesome trip. My wife and I travelled there a few years ago and definitely plan to go back at some point. As others have pointed out their top attractions I will as well.

Munich - I absolutely loved the Hirschgarten - lovely beer garden just at the northern edge of the city - full of beach trees and picnic tables and locals. Grab a stein, maybe a pigs knuckle or a steckeral fish and you are golden. So relaxing and just fantastic out there.

Just outside Munich, as others mentioned Neuschwanstein Castle is a must see. It is fabulous there. Just amazing views from the castle and around it. Make sure you go up to Marienbrucke (Mary's bridge) to look back at the Castle. The pictures and views from there are unbeatable.

On the Rhine, we, like others, saw the Cathedral in Koln (Cologne) and took a boat ride down the ride ending in Bacharach. Lovely town - lovely wine shop that Rick pointed us to there.

And finally - as others have said, Baden-Baden is fantastic. Peaceful, cute, town with good food, not so many people, super clean, and the Roman baths which are a must and one of the most relaxing things we've ever done.

You're in for a treat!

Thanks Doug! I especially appreciate the tip about the beer garden in Munich, Hirschgarten. My husband and I really look forward to visiting places like that!