mwcdem

I'll be in Frankfurt am Main for about a week in late October for business. I have a couple of days for personal travel while there and would like to take some day trips out of the city, as I've already been to Frankfurt many times. I'm looking for places not too far away (within 2.5 hours max train ride). I love history and when I got to a place I generally like to wander the town square, peek inside the main church(es), and maybe see a museum or two. A castle tour would also be appealing. I'm also into photography so picturesque settings are a plus (not hard to find in Germany!).

I have all the guidebooks but what I'm really interested in are any tips about hidden gems or small towns that may not be on most tourists' radars. The only caveat is I need to be able to get there easily by train, and preferably also reach the city center by walking rather than taxi.

I plan on a 1/2 day in Idstein, so I have two other days free. One is a Sunday, unfortunately. Will anything be open in Germany on Sundays?

I had hoped to visit a concentration camp memorial/museum during this trip, but haven't heard of anything in western Germany, other than Hadamar, which appears to be in German only. If anyone has any suggestions for WWII history in this area, that would be of great interest.

And finally, with 3 days of train travel, with some flexibility required, what is my best option in terms of train tickets? I can't decide if a rail pass or just buying the tickets for each day trip individually makes more sense (need to look into this more once the destinations are final though).

Thanks!

tom_mn

There may not be one of the large, infamous camps near Frankfurt, but the whole country was filled with (slave) labor camps of all sizes. There was one right at the Frankfurt airport,

http://www.gg-online.de/html/kz_walldorf.htm

http://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/...-november-1944

As to towns, many here have suggested Miltenberg and Wertheim am Main.

PalenQ

Heidelberg fits your wish list given in your OP - lovely castle high sbove town nestled in Neckar River Valley - one of few cities in Germany not decidemated in WW2 and now modern appearing - Heidelberg suffered virtually no damage (some say because the Allies were planning to use it as their post-war HQs which they did - still a strong American military presence in the area.) But a wondrous city close to Frankfurt.

PalenQ

Will anything be open in Germany on Sundays?>

Not any regular stores unless around Christmas time I think but tourist sights IME are usually open on Sundays - train stations are a refuge for folks needing to buy anything as their small grocery stores have everything needed - indeed I've seen so so many mob scenes in station stores on Sundays and a nights when shops may also be closed that you could hardly get into them.

Speyes is a wonderful smallish old town with a palace or castle or ? on the Rhine - you could twin it with Worms next door and have two night Rhine-side towns - Worms has a great cathedral I believe and a monumenetal city gate:

https://www.google.com/search?q=worm...=1600&bih=1099

flpab

Worms has the Jewish cemetery. Speyer has the aviation museum
http://speyer.technik-museum.de/en/ If you go to the cathedral you can walk to the museum. Nice square and restaurants.

traveller1959

I would recommend the Rhine Valley. There are several sights close to Frankfurt:

- Eberbach Monastery in Oestrich-Winkel - it is from the 12th century and was the place where "The Name of the Rose" was filmed. Besides, it has an excellent winery.

- Rüdesheim - the epitome of a romantic village on the Rhine. It is touristy, but once you are in the cable car above the vineyards you will be in another world.

- Braubach near Koblenz is one of the best medieval castles in Germany.

- Along the Rhine, you find many historic villages like pearls on a string. Oberwesel is one of the best.

You can take regional trains on both sides of the Rhine or you take the boat (https://www.k-d.com/en/home/).

mwcdem

PalenQ sorry forgot to mention I went to Heidelberg last year. Indeed it's everything you said and I loved it! The perfect little town.

PalenQ

mwcdem- I would have suggested the Rhine boats thru the Rhine Gorge but you expressed an interest in a regular town with church and square and such - not many of those on the Rhine but Koblenz where the boats end up is one nice town with an Altstadt full of cafes and restaurants and beer halls -

Spend a whole day on the boats - getting on and off at say Marksburg Castle (called Braubach in post above but correctly Marksburg) - the only castle on this part of the Rhine not ruined (and rebuilt in some cases) from being ravaged by Napoelon or other marauding armies. (Braubach boat dock then lift or walk.)

For lots of info on trains in Germany and K-D Boats and Rhine trip check www.ricksteves.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.seat61.com. Official site: http://www.kdrhine.com/rhineschedule.htm

Fussgaenger

"I went to Heidelberg last year. Indeed it's everything you said and I loved it! The perfect little town."

If H'berg wasn't too big for you, then you'd very likely enjoy Mainz, which is about the same size, but feels smaller in the old town:

https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8517/8...8e0b61f0_b.jpg

"I need to be able to get there easily by train..."

From Frankfurt you can reach Mainz in just over 30 minutes by direct train.

"I love history and when I got to a place I generally like to wander the town square, peek inside the main church(es), and maybe see a museum or two."

Wander: Mainz has a very large number streets turned over to pedestrians only:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4GK8Kr_N6p...dt_CR_700x.jpg

Car-free streets are in pink: http://rheinhotel.com/roseville/pict...mainz600-3.jpg

Town square: http://www.worldtravelimages.net/P1120994.JPG

Cathedral: The Mainzer Dom: http://www.reiseziele-deutschland.ne...ainzer-dom.jpg
Markets on the squares surrounding the Dom

Augustinerkirche: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...he_Innen_1.JPG

Market days on T, F and Sa: http://georg-dahlhoff.de/blog/wp-con...1104020978.jpg

Museums...

Gutenberg museum: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...alatinate.html

Anitique shipbuilding: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...alatinate.html

More to do in Mainz: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...alatinate.html

Mainhattengirl

There is no American presence in Heidelberg as the base closed there as well as in Mannheim a couple of years ago.

Have a look at the Half-Timbered route to find quaint towns near Frankfurt.
http://www.deutsche-fachwerkstrasse.de/uk/index.php

You might want to head up to Celle which is beautiful, and then perhaps visit Bergen-Belsen. The exhibits there are outstanding.

Hadamar has their exhibits in English. It is a very creepy place to visit.
http://en.gedenkstaette-hadamar.de/w...d663ce9/i.html

Betsy

The Chagall windows at the Church of St. Stephan in Mainz are awesome.

mwcdem

Thank you everybody, you've given me a lot to think about!!

Mainhattangirl (love your username, by the way. I work in Manhattan I had read a travel review about Hadamar only being in German, but not sure how long ago that was written. If they definitely have English exhibits now I might give that a look, even though it does sound creepy! Every time I go to Germany I try to pay my respects at some kind of Concentration Camp memorial or museum.

Mainz is looking good too.

Thanks again!