Bullay, Germany - message for Russ
 

HiRuss,
Some time ago you gave us the suggestion of staying in Bullay and provided us with some accommodation links. However I noticed on another post the other day that you said your favourite accommodation is no longer available. Please tell me it is not the Gästehaus Eberhard!!! We are hoping to stay there next year.

I was in Bullay last month and saw that Frau Eberhard is still in the B&B business (it's Frau and Herr Mattes in Cochem that have taken their lovely little apartment off the market.)

Request one of the rooms with balcony (mit Balkon) at Frau Eberhard's - a pleasant spot to relax, even if the weather's not cooperative (one of those cool retractable awnings.)

Wow, that was quick! That is great news, I just had this awful feeling when I read your other post that it was going to be the one that we had our hearts set on.

Do you know if I can communicate with Frau Eberhard in English? I, unfortunately, don't speak any German.

Many thanks for you suggestion again and that Balkon sounds perfect to enjoy a glass or three of wine on.

Russ, do you think you might be able to help me with a train question too?

We will be arriving at Frankfurt Airport around 6.30am and are thinking of taking the train to Wiesbaden to have some breakfast and stretch our legs then traveling onwards to Bullay via St Goarhausen and Koblenz. We thought it might be a nice start to our holiday.

There will be 4 of us traveling and I understand that we will be going through two different Länder-Ticket areas though when I put in Wiesbaden to Bullay on DB it shows a total fare of €100.40. Can can we buy a Baden-W�ürttemberg ticket and a Rheinland-Pflaz ticket and travel that way? It is not appearing on the DB site or am I not understanding this correctly?

Many thanks yet again.

Maudie - Länder Passes can't be used before 9:00 am, and then, only on regional trains. However, I think there is a local day pass that you could purchase which you could use to get from Frankfurt to Wiesbaden, have breakfast, then start using the Länder Passes after 9:00 am.

I don't have time right now to check my notes about the local pass (I should be leaving for work right now), so hopefully someone else has the info. If not, I'll check my notes when I get home.

Robyn :)>-

I don't think she does English, but I think she has family who can manage. To reserve, there's an online form to complete at www.gaestehaus-eberhard.de
("Anfrage") which you can run through a translator, or try an e-mailed note in English first. The Bullay tourist office is run by a travel agency. They may be able to book for you; here's their contact info in case your note isn't successful:

Touristinformation Bullay
Reisebüro Ulfratours
Lindenplatz 2
D-56859 Bullay (Mosel)
Tel.: (+49) 06542/21141
Fax: (+49) 06542/22032
E-Mail: [email protected]

If your arrival is on Sat or Sun you can travel from FRA to Wiesbaden or anywhere in the country on a "Happy Weekend" ticket - 35 Euros - which works like a Laender ticket and can be used at any time of day. Buy it at a ticket machine at FRA Regionalbahnhof.

Otherwise, regular RMV (regional transit authority) tix can be used to Mainz or Wiesbaden - then continue from there on a Rheinland-Pfalz Laender ticket (26 Euros) and can be used after 9 am weekdays, at any hour on weekends.

Great thanks everyone. I am aware that we have to travel after 9am with the Länder ticket, that was the reason we thought of getting to Wiesbaden and stopping for something to eat. It looks like we will be arriving on Easter Monday.

So am I to understand that we can get from Wiesbaden to Bullay on just a Rheinland-Pfalz Länder ticket even though we will be in Baden-W�ürttemberg to start the journey?

Thanks Robyn, your trip report made us realise we can do our trip my public tranport. I just want to make sure we understand it all first.

Thank you Russ, I will try an email when we are ready to book and see what happens. I appreciate the address of the Tourist Information too just in case.

"So am I to understand that we can get from Wiesbaden to Bullay on just a Rheinland-Pfalz Länder ticket even though we will be in Baden-W�ürttemberg to start the journey?"

You are not in B-W when you begin your journey. You are in Hessen.

You can see exactly what is covered by the Rheinland-Pfalz ticket on the second page of this flyer:

www.der-takt.de/uploads/media/RPTicket.pdf

And yes, Wiesbaden-Bullay is covered. Use the routes on the map to route yourself.

Thank you for the link, that map will be very useful and for clearing up that we will start in Hessen not B-W.

Many thanks once again Russ.

Mainz and Wiesbaden are across the Rhein from each other, Mainz in Rhineland-Pfalz and Wiesbaden in Hessen. If you go from FRA to Mainz, it will cost you the same but you will already be in Rheinland-Pfalz. I think Wiesbaden is a "border station" for the Rheinland-Pfalz-ticket, and you should be able to buy the Ticket in Wiesbaden, but you can certainly buy one in Mainz. Mainz and Koblenz are both on the left bank of the Rhein, so why not start in Mainz.

Well we looked at that too but just thought the right side might be something different. We will be doing a day trip back to visit some of the towns along the Rhine and thought this might give us a different view to look across at Bacharach, Oberwesel, St Goar etc. But we are open to suggestions, nothing set in concrete.

The link that Russ gave us is great and we will be able to get to Bullay via Mainz or Wiesbaden on the Rheinland-Pfalz Länder ticket and lots of other places.
I just can't understand why it doesn't show as that on DB site, as it shows the Länder tickets prices for lots of other trips we will be making.

"I think Wiesbaden is a "border station" for the Rheinland-Pfalz-ticket..."

Yes - it's valid from Wiesbaden north along the Rhine.

"...and you should be able to buy the Ticket in Wiesbaden..."

Yes - but you can buy it at the airport train station or pretty much anywhere in the country from a DB ticket machine.

I agree with Larry that Mainz is maybe a better stop overall, especially for a meal - Wiesbaden is a little awkward for train traveler - but for a quick-stop breakfast it probably doesn't matter much, and I think you're wise to ride both sides of the river to maximize the views you'll get. It's even more fun if you have a good map with sightseeing descriptions to spot the castles as you go. Take the RB train if you have time to stop at every station - you get a better look - or, the RE if you just want to move it along to Bullay. The train takes you straight into Koblenz - no need to cross the river by ferry or on foot.

Ok then Mainz sounds like the better option but might see if we can cross to the north side and take a slow train as suggested. Will also have to wait until the end of the year to check the train timetables for Easter Monday.
We won't be in a hurry to get to Bullay as I am sure we won't be able to get into our accommodation until 2ish in the afternoon so we really have all day. Maybe a stop somewhere else might for lunch or a drink might be worthwhile.

Would we be able to use a "Happy Weekender" ticket on a public holiday, is that an option?

Russ, wonder if I can trouble you for a link to a similar map for the Bayern ticket?

I have found the map so please don't bother Russ.