Zero Mosel

July 14, 2011 4:03 PM

I would love help planning a two day / one night trip down the Mosel River in Germany.

Day one will start in Koln and day two will end in Trier.
Which is better, train or boat?
Where should we get off to have a look around?
Where should we stay along the way?
What should we see?
Any helpful hints or favorites places?

Thanks.

posted by Duffington to Travel & Transportation around Germany (4 answers total)

Best answer: I have taken the KD boats upriver on the Rhine, many times, from Köln to Rüdesheim, stayed the night in Rüdesheim, and then caught the train to Frankfurt airport for a morning flight back to the U.S. It's a good view of the scenic Rhine Castle District, a pleasant day trip of about 8 hours, if you stay on the boat and the river isn't at high flow (when it takes maybe 9 to 10 hours), and remains one of my favorite ways to leave Germany after business trips to destinations in the north.

KD boats do serve the Mosel river valley, too, but if you're boarding in Köln, you'll either need to be careful to select boats headed for Mosel stops, or take a Rhine boat, and transfer at Koblenz, either to KD or maybe Kolb Bros. boat. For various reasons, KD boats generally only serve a portion of Mosel valley, from Koblenz upriver to, generally, Cochem. So, for ease of planning, you might spend a couple hours on the boat from Köln to Koblenz, change for Cochem, overnight there, and take the train to Trier. There's not all that much to see or do in Cochem, so if it were me, I'd probably overnight in Koblenz, but YMMV. Depending on season and river stage, Koblenz to Trier by boat is generally more than a single day trip, by boat. Since you're planning this to leave from Köln, you also have to factor in the time to get from Köln to Koblenz, change boats for Mosel valley destinations, and such. Optimistically, if everything went well for you, you might make the trip in two days, with an overnight stay somewhere, but realistically, you should probably plan to take the train at least part of the way to Trier, for time's sake.
posted by paulsc at 5:15 PM on July 14, 2011

Best answer: I'd take the train. It will give you more time to explore.

We stayed in Cochem and loved it. Great walk up to the castle above town. Wonderful winding cobblestone alley-streets. Tasty food.

Do try to get to Berg Eltz. I know it's on the Rick Steves-side of things, but it's worth visiting.

Trier is cool. Some old stuff there.
posted by humboldt32 at 5:32 PM on July 14, 2011

Best answer: Another vote for Burg Eltz, well worth the trip. Trier is a very picturesque town with the Porte Nigre, spent a school exchange there and loved it. Lots of good sidewalk cafes and bars there.
posted by arcticseal at 8:34 PM on July 14, 2011

Best answer: I recently moved out of this region -- I lived just north of Koblenz on the Rhine, in Neuwied.

I might recommend this -- train from Köln to Koblenz relatively early in the morning, spend the day at the Bundesgartenschau (the federal horticultural show, currently in Koblenz, part of which is on a giant old fortress), and stay the night in Koblenz. A few months ago, KD offered a scenic boat tour of Koblenz that included a garden show ticket for only a few EUR more than the show ticket itself.

Although the scenery between Köln and Koblenz is nice, almost all of the really famous castles are south of Koblenz on the Rhine.

Burg Eltz is neat, but unfortunately this summer a lot of the external facades are being restored, so most of it is covered in scaffolding. The tour of the insides is neat (and offered in English), but it's unfortunately one of the castles you get herded around in and not one of the ones you get to wander around in.

I'd probably recommend taking the boat from Koblenz - Cochem the next day, poking around Cochem for a while and then heading to Trier on the train. One of my family's favorite places to eat there is the Kartoffelkiste, which is relatively centrally-located.
posted by naturalog at 8:52 PM on July 14, 2011