Two days in St Goar area

Thre is of course more to see and do in the area, but what you have now is A LOT for just two days. What could you leave out? Here are a few time saving suggestions... Burg Eltz involves a 45+-minute walk each way from Moselkern station. It's a fine castle though. If you visit Cochem, I might skip the castle tour but still do the falconry show on castle grounds- it's wonderful. Marksburg - never destroyed - has a fine tour, and Braubach is a handsome little town. Traditionally, English tours are at 11:00 and 16:00. The quickest way to get there from St. Goar is usually to cross over on the ferry (runs all day) walk north to the St. Goarshausen station, and take the train north to Braubach (22 min.) Taking the train north to Koblenz, then the train south from there to Braubach, usually takes longer. From Braubach station it's a steep 20+ min. walk to the castle or take the Marksburg Express shuttle for a few Euros.
Cruise: start in Bingen, end in St. Goar (takes 1.5 hours this way, 2.7 hours if you cruise from St. Goar to Bingen! The current is strong.)

In addition to the cruise & castles, we rented bikes & rode along the river....it was wonderful! I'd add that to your list.

Kathy, Burg Eltz is not really an "easy" day trip from St. Goar, although it can be done. It's not too complicated if you plan on taking the train to Moselkern and then making the one hour hike up through the woods to the Castle. You'll arrive in the valley below the Castle, cross a small bridge and then walk up stairs to reach the entrance to the Castle (there's a Beer Garden and souvenir shop close to the location of the stairway). However, if you're planning to use public transport from Moselkern, the trip becomes more complicated. As I recall, there is a Shuttle from one of the towns that goes to Burg Eltz, but I'm not sure it operates all year. It's been awhile since I've checked, so I'd have to do some research. If you have a "very generous" travel budget, you could take the train to Löf and travel to Burg Eltz via Taxi. The drivers don't seem to speak much English, so that could be a problem. You could get a translation printed on a small card, and then just show that to the Driver? Be sure to also arrange a pick-up time back to the station (3 hours or so at the Castle should be adequate). When you arrive at the Burg Eltz car park, you can walk down the hill (quite steep in parts) or take the small Shuttle Van (used to be €1 each way, but I suspect that's increased). There's a great viewpoint for photos about half way up the hill, so I'd suggest taking the Shuttle one way and walking the other. As I recall, photos were NOT allowed during the "official" part of the tour in the residence, but are allowed in the Treasury and elsewhere. Happy travels!

I don't think you've missed anything major, but it looks like a really full two days. With some planning to minimize your time lost to travel/connections, you could do it.

Hi ... and many thanks for your thoughtful replies. Yes, it does seem like a lot to crowd in, but with limited time you try to make every minute count, don't you! I like the idea of riding along the river - my husband would love that, being a keen cyclist! We're travelling with friends and a couple of us probably wouldn't cope too well with the walk up to Burg Eltz so might have to check out the taxi situation! Another query - is it worth going up the Sesselbahn chairlift in Cochem? And finally, the train from St Goar to Cochem, any thoughts as to the best type of ticket for 6 (or 8) people to buy? Cheers,
Kathy

" a couple of us probably wouldn't cope too well with the walk up to Burg Eltz so might have to check out the taxi situation! Another query - is it worth going up the Sesselbahn chairlift in Cochem? And finally, the train from St Goar to Cochem, any thoughts as to the best type of ticket for 6 (or 8) people to buy?" Train: The VRM mini-group ticketis a daypass that costs 21.20€ and will get 5 passengers between St. Goar and Cochem (or Moselkern for Burg Eltz.) Use it after 9 am weekdays or anytime on Sat or Sun on the regional trains (MRB, RE, RB) from St. Goar to Koblenz, then from Koblenz onward. You can buy one from the trackside ticket machine in St. Goar. If you arrange your trip on Sat or Sun, you can reach Burg Eltz for free without a taxi. Use the trains to one of the Mosel River towns (the German Railways site below will provide one when you do a connections search) and then the Castle Bus from there. The Castle Bus makes 4 trips on both Sat. or Sun. See schedule and details HERE: http://burg-eltz.de/en/arriving-by-/public-transport.html (copy and paste) The VRM mini-group ticket covers the Castle Bus as well. Use the German railways site to find train and bus connections. Use these start and destination names for the Eltz trip: St Goar Burg Eltz, Wierschem The Sesselbahn in Cochem offers a lovely view of the town, the valley, and Reichsburg Castle. If some of you are fairly athletic, you can hike up and let the others ride to save a few euros.

Thanks, Russ. Unfortunately we don't arrive in St Goar until Sunday night so can't take advantage of those weekend travel options! It's good to know that we can use the VRM mini-group ticket, though. The chair lift sounds like a good idea so we'll do that.
Thanks for the links - I've had a good look at them. Cheers, Kathy.

Thanks for the tips, Michael. Definitely sounds like it's worth a visit up there! Cheers, Kathy