St Goar to Bacharach......car or ferry?

Gil, hello again.

First, it's not a "ferry", per se, to Bacharach, it's a full fleged boat (ship). See www.k-d.de.

There are trains on both banks of the Rhein from Koblenz to Bacharach and above, so you will probably see more by train than by car.

Next, the Rheinfels castle ruins in St. Goar is worth a stop. The trip "up" the river, against the current, from St. Goar to Bacharach takes 70 minutes, 30 minutes longer than the other way. The train from St. Goar to Bacharach take 11 minutes. I would seriously look at going all the way to Bacharach, then taking the boat down to St. Goar, seeing Rheinfels castle, then taking the train back to Bacharach. But it depends on when you can pick up the boat, at either St. Goar or Bacharach.

The trip from Bacharach to Würzburg is easy by train; no need for a car. If you book early, you can get a Dauer-Spezial fare for €29 pP, including Mainz to Würzburg by express train.

See my online report of my trip by public transportation on the Romantic Road.

Lee.....I can't thank you enough, I'm really appreciate your feedback.

another question:

How far is the Burg Eltz Castle from Bacharach? is it doable in one day? if so, what transportation would we take?

Once again Thank you very much!

Burg Eltz is 35 to 40 miles from Bacharach by car, allow about 1hr 15min. Or you could train to the nearest town with a train station, Moselkern, and take a taxi from there. Read the details in the Mosel Valley chapter of Rick's book.

Hi Gil. I totally agree with Lee. But, some people choose to drive a car between Koblenz and Bacharach, to visit a winery or vineyard. (There are wine festivals in the Spring. I guess those occured in April). If you want to do something like that, it might be possible to ride in a taxi from Boppard to a winery. My opinion is that traveling in trains to Wurzburg is less stressful. And you will have the freedom of driving a car when you are south of Wurzburg. I like those parts of Germany ! In what months will you be in Germany ?

I would go with number 2. The local trains are cheap and convenient on that section of the Rhine. A car will help you accomplish more on the Romantic Road.

My family preferred using the autobahn and making a few stops along the Romantic Road vs. the scenic drive. I would have been happy to drive the scenic route, but was soundly outvoted after a couple of hours.

When you stop in a town, Wurzburg, Dinkelsbuhl, etc. find parking and visit the tourist information office first. That will help you get the most out of the time you spend in each place.

Having read Rick Steves' suggestions, train or ferry seem to be the best for the Rhine. I read that in Bararach the train noise at night is NOT good.

We are planning to drive from Alsace this summer to Bacharach but not stay there. Take the river cruise from Bacharach to St. Goar and back to our parked car. Staying in some other town other than Bacharach. Possible Speyer or Rick suggests Eltville near Mainz.