HAS ANYONE TRAVELED THE GERMAN WINE ROAD NEAR THE RHINE RIVER AND FRENCH BORDER? WE ARE GOING OVER TO HEIDELBERG ON 7/2 FOR A WEEK AND WERE THINKING THAT MIGHT BE A FUN TRIP FOR THE WEEKEND. THANKS!

cmeyer - though I have not traveled the length of the wine road I have stayed at some towns on the road. Bad Durkheim and Deidesheim are picturesque towns. Farther North (and closer to Heidelberg)are the Nahe, Mosel, and Rheingau. I would guess my suggestion for a weekend would be Cochem on the Mosel, making sure to visit Burg Eltz. I am sure you will have a wonderful weekend!

This is a nice drive on a summer day. The Bad Duerkheim vicinity is probably one of the best stops. It has several wine probes to stop in and do some wine tasting. Much more crowded during the harvest in Sept. Although, I would probably forego the the wine road in july and opt for visiting Speyer and taking a tour of the brewery the Domhof. They have excellent German food BTW. You can purchase specialty bottles of the beer and eat well!

Clea

Funny you should mention the wine road. I was just there about 2 weeks ago.
I went over for a friends wedding and one of the places we visited was Wachenheim on the wine strasse. They were have a wine fest up at the castle that day. Really had a great time with the wine, food & music.
I have been on the wine road many times and really enjoy this area. Although it is touristy, it is a lot less touristy than the Rhine, Mosel, Bavaria, etc... Seems to be more German tourists than anything else. The tiny villages all with wine vines growing over the streets on suspended wires, the wine probes along the way and the cobble stone streets all make the wine road a very worthwhile day trip.
You might even consider continuing south and spending a few hours in Strasbourg, France. The old town and and cathedral are all in one central area and easy to see in a few hours. Really an under rated city as far as I'm concerned.
Have fun!

On July 5, there's a "Rhine in Flames" show in Bingen and Ruedesheim that you really ought to work into that weekend - burning castles, fireworks, lots of refreshments - just head down to the boat docks and join the crowd.

http://www.firework.rhine-river.com/

Several years ago we dropped in on an international Folk Festival in Krov on the Moselle River. It is the first weekend in July. We were the only Americans. Dance troups from Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Slovenia, England and Mongolia. There was a carnival, huge tent for beer,food and performances, plus another stage out on the river.

Thanks so much for the tips - I assume the concierge at the hotel can direct us to whatever the first stop should be. I'll also get a detailed map this afternoon to figure out the routing. We'd planned on doing this July 5-6 so the timing for the festivals sounds perfect. Doubt there will be any fireworks on the 4th!