renting a car in Germany

Where is the closest place to rent a car in relation to Sankt Goar

The Alsace.

Seriously. Germany has a great rail network, and there are good train connections to Strasbourg. Take the train to Strasbourg and rent a car there.

Koblenz, Wiesbaden and Mainz may be your closest. I would call AutoEurope and ask them. Sometimes they have locations that are not listed on their website.

I'd suggest contacting http://www.gemut.com/ as they will be able to provide all the information you need on renting cars in Germany. I believe they have a toll free number or you could send an E-mail.

Were you planning to rent the car in St. Goar and drop it off in the Alsace. There's normally a significant extra charge added for renting a car in one country and dropping in another.

Autoeurope offers rentals out of Emmelshausen, less than 10 miles from St. Goar and reachable by train (with a change in Boppard) from St. Goar. Mainz, Bad Kreuznach and Koblenz are other nearby options.

But as Ken and Lee indicate, there are good reasons for taking the train to Strasbourg and renting there, especially if you are not returning to Germany.

If you are considering renting in Mainz, also consider Karlsruhe. I don't know where auto rental facilities might be in Mainz or Karlsruhe, but compare the accessibility of both. From St. Goar to Mainz, the train will cost you 24,60€ for two people. For only 3,40€ more (28€ total) you can get a Rheinland-Pfalz-Ticket and ride the train all the way to Karlsruhe, which is about an hours drive to Strasbourg.

Thanks everyone for all your help. I will check into all the suggestions. If we decide to take a train from St. Goar to Strasbourg and then rent a car to drive to Alsace., how long is the train ride? Also we wanted to stop at a couple wineries somewhere in Germany or Alsace area. Any suggestions?