Castle Liebenstein or Boppard?
 

We are looking for accomodation just south of Koblenz, so we can get up to Burg Eltz early. I was excited about Castle Liebenstein but have read some negative comments. We thought we would take the ferry over to Boppard in the morning and head to Burg Eltz. OR, is it better to stay in Boppard. I was thinking of the Best Western in Boppard. Any issue with train noises? Thanks

Top

The BW in Boppard is on the Rheinallee several blocks from the tracks and separated by the bulk of Boppard and a good number of buildings from the train route. It's a bit pricey, and there are numerous other options in Boppard, but I'd have to say that anywhere in Boppard, where there are a good number of diversions, restaurants and shops in the attractive old town, would be better than on the other side of the river. Liebenstein (I've heard some spooky stories too)is pretty far out of Kamp-Bornhofen, which is no bastion of nightlife, and you'd probably want to spend your time somewhere like Boppard anyway. Another castle-hotel you might check into (I'll assume you've inquired at Auf Schönburg in Oberwesel already) is the Rheinfels in St. Goar, built partially within the remains of Rheinfels castle and in an annexed Villa on the same ridge a short distance away. Magnificent views of the Rhine from up there, and a few more things to see/do than in Kamp-Bornhofen (though not as lively as Boppard.)

Thanks for the input. I had quotes from both Liebenstein and BW in Boppard and they are within 10 Euro of each other. We have already booked Schonburg for 2 nights, but they were full for the Saturday night. It is the Saturday that I needed. Anyway, I've just e-mail a final request to the BW. Thanks, Mary

Oh-oh! WHAT negative stories haas anyone heard about the Castle Liebenstein? We have booked two nights here at the end of July! Please help!

Laura: Just do a search on this board. I did and came up with this in ref. to Liebenstein:<BR><BR>Author: Gina ([email protected])<BR> Date: 04/16/2000, 12:05 pm<BR><BR> Message: That would be me on the Eurotrip board, and yep, I still give it a "no" recommendation. (The only accommodation from our trip through Paris, Chamonix, Venice, Munich, the Rhine, and Amsterdam that I don't<BR>recommend.) <BR><BR> The problems: <BR><BR> 1. It's located *very* far from the train station; it took us between half an hour and 40 minutes to walk, and we're young and in pretty good shape. The village at the base of the steep cliff road leading up to Liebenstein is Bornhofen, which has next to nothing in the way of amenities. I like sleepy little villages, but there wasn't much of interest here...a couple of hotels catering to the coach crowd, a couple of sit-down only restaurants, and that's about it. Everything in the "twin cities" of Kamp-Bornhofen is down near the train station in Kamp. There is a cab service from near the train station to the castle, but I didn't love<BR>having to pay six or seven dollars every time we didn't want to waste 40 minutes getting back up there (or back down). <BR><BR> 2. The rooms are dingy and ill-maintained. I somewhat expected that in an old castle, but considering the fairly low-rent properties we'd stayed in, I don't think our standards were too high. It took absolutely *forever* to get even lukewarm water in the shower (again, we had been staying at bargain<BR>properties where we did not have this problem all the rest of the trip). <BR><BR> 3. The staff/proprietors weren't exactly helpful. In fact, when we got back to the hotel at 9 pm one night (after plodding in the pouring rain from the ferry stop to Kamp, where we could get that cab), no one was around, the place was shut tight for the night (we had a key). When we got up and were getting ready to leave the next morning, at about 8:30, there was still no sign of life...so we just left our payment on the counter with a note and walked out. <BR><BR> 4. Kamp-Bornhofen is on the "inconvenient" side of the Rhine; most of the villages you will probably want to see are on the opposite side, so there's the matter of ferrying back and forth across the Rhine at Boppard or wherever. That can be fun, but it's something to be aware of when planning your day, since it's definitely going to add a lot of travel time into it. <BR><BR> Now, all this said, things may well be very different at Burg Liebenstein in high summer. (We were there in late September.) Nonetheless, it is the one<BR>property that we stayed at on the Europe trip that I would definitely not stay at<BR>again. <BR><BR> Sorry if I've disappointed anyone, but I *really* wish I'd had this information before we took our trip last year. It really was the one sour note in an otherwise perfect vacation.

Laura: Just for the record, I have also read a positive review of Castle Liebenstein on Rick Steves chat line, from last summer. They reported that they loved the location and accommodations. You can try searching to find it. Maybe it is better in high seasons!?

Since I am looking for a place to stay in that region. Does anyone have a suggestion for a hotel? Something in the 60-80 Euro range? <BR><BR>Thanks