Interesting town near Frankfurt - Bingen, Mainz?
 

We are still trying to find an interesting town to spend our last night before our flight back from Frankfurt. I've gotten mixed recommendations for Mainz. How about Bingen? It's on the Rhine and is within a 45 minute train ride from Frankfurt. I haven't found too much else on it, otherwise.

Any thoughts or other suggestions?

Not sure what you're looking for exactly. Bingen has a very scenic situation at the southern end of the Rhine gorge; Rheinstein Castle, just north of town, makes for a quick diversion, and Bingen is a nice place to embark from on a Rhine cruise downstream if you have a couple of hours. The town itself is just okay. It's a lot smaller than Mainz, if that's what you're looking for.

I used to live in Mainz and know the place well. If you've gotten bad reports, it may be that those individuals stayed where the bulk of the hotels are, near the main train station. This is a bad choice, as a rule - the area is noisy, a bit dismal, and always under construction. It's much better to stay somewhere near the cathedral (Dom) and the Marktplatz, where there's a very pleasant pedestrians-only area, lots of shops and restaurants, and the only pre-war section of Mainz you'll find (behind the Cathedral along Augustinerstrasse.) The Stadtpark isn't far from the Dom either - a beautiful place to relax and enjoy some refreshment (in the beer garden at the Hotel Favorite inside the park.) Mainz is of course only 20-25 minutes from the airport, making it especially convenient too.

Try the Hof Ehrenfels for a hotel right in the old town area. The Ibis is south of the old town area a few blocks, just north of the Stadtpark.

janebell,

You might want to take a look at Assmannshausen. It's across the Rhein from Bingen and about 9 kl from Rudesheim. Hotel Post is a very nice family operation with an excellent restaurant. You can also take a cruise from almost in front of the hotel.

You are then on the right side of the river to get to Franfurt without the ferry crossing.

We loved Assmannshausen and the Post.

Curious

janebell - Bingen is a small town on the west bank of the Rhine, a short distance North of Mainz. It is directly across the river from Rudesheim. If you are at all interested in the History of the Middle Ages, it is the site where Hildegard von Bingen established her Abbey. She is described as "one of the most important figures in the history of the Middle Ages". There is an excellent museum in Bingen devoted to her life and accomplishments. Truely a remarkable women. Just North of town and visible from town is the Mausturm (Mouse Tower)- apparently the good citizens of Bingen sought refuge in this tower during a flood, only to be driven out by the rodents as they also sought refuge. If you decide to stay in Bingen take the ferry across the river to Rudesheim and have dinner at one of the Weinstuben on the Drosselgasse. In either Mainz or Bingen, I am sure you will have a wonderful time.

Try the Schloss Hotel Hornburg located just a little south of Heidelburg.It's located on a forested hilltop overlooking the Neckar in the town of Neckarzimmern. You can stay in one of the "original" rooms in the main building or in a room in the newer addition. This castle hotel has its' own vineyards and you can sample and purchase wine. Dinner in the dining room, overlooking the vineyards and the river is absolutely beautiful. The drive up to the airport would be about 2 hours.

I'm sorry....I forgot to post the URL.

http://www.castle-hotel-hornberg.com/neckar/index.html

Hi

take a look at Bad Homburg.
An old town with roman remains, and hot springs, etc.

Peter
http://tlp.netfirms.com

We stayed at the Hotel Schwan in Mainz and were totally charmed!! It is right next to the Dom (Catherderal) and there was lots to see and do. Very safe, very pretty and very European! Plus it is a very quick hop to Frankfurt.

http://www.mainz-hotel-schwan.de/

We were in Assmannhausen for 2 nights last fall and I would agree that an overnight stay in Assmannshausen would be an excellent choice. We stayed at the Hotel Post. Enjoyed it very much for the money they charge. Middle class hotel that offers an excellent value with very friendly owners who serve an adeqaute breakfast.

Keep in mind that there are plenty of choices for hotels. I know that the Krone is a very well reviewed hotel in some of the other Fodor Posts. If money isn't a big issue and you want to really treat yourself for your last night, then stay at the Krone. The Krone is a 2 minute walk from the Post.

There are plenty of restaurants in Assmannhausen that are really good.

I especially enjoyed the chairlift that takes you from Assmannshausen to Rudesheim.(About 35 minute chairlift ride, 45 minute walk through the woods to get to Rudesheim.) The view of the Rhine and the vineyards is excellent from the chairlift. There is a short walk from the end of the chairlift down the hills to Rudesheim. Very easy walk. There is also a huge monument that you'll get to see when walking from the end of the chairlift to the town of Rudesheim. Can't remember what the monument is for, but it is definitely something to see.

Rudesheim is a big tourist town, bit too touristy for me but the street called the Drosselgasse is something that eveyone wants to see. A few drinks at any of the dozens of restaurants or bars along the Drosselgasse would be an ok thing to do. Get out of Rudesheim and head back to Assmannshausen for your last night. Walking, taxi, bus, train, or ferry boat will all get you back to Assmannshausen

If you are into it, there is also a very, very interesting torture museum in Rudesheim. Really needs to be seen. It will offend you and disgust you but to see some of the things that they used in mid-evil times to torture people is really quite fascinating.

Have a great time. If you want to reach me, write me at [email protected]

Happy traveling!!!

Winnepeg,

The monument you refer to is Germania. It was built in the late 1800s to honor the collective struggles of the German people agains France. It symbolized German unity. It's quite something to see. It rises some 126 feet high.

The only problem I had with the Krone, was seeing a waiter in a tuxedo serving drinks on the covered patio area. I prefer a more casual approach which you certainly get at the Post.

Curious

We stayed at Hotel Cafe Post in Assmannhausen in June 2001 after reading suggestions here. Assmannhausen is very small. Could there really be LOTS of good restaurants? It was OK for one night, but next time I would stay in St. Goar.

The hotel was OK, but breakfast annoyed me- I felt compelled to eat a boiled egg because it was served to me (I know, my problem) and got probably the worst cup of coffee we've ever been served in Europe!

Elberko,

Assmannshausen is not that small. There are plenty of good restaurants and hotels in Assmannshausen.

We had lunch and dinner in 3 of them. We drank in another 3 or 4 small locales.

Assmannshausen is a very nice small town. There proximity to Rudesheim makes it quite appealing.

As far as the coffee, I don't think I have ever had a bad cup of coffee in Germany. It might be a bit too strong for some peoples tastes, but never is it bad.

As I know Germans, my parents came here in 1957, if any restaurant served what you call a bad cup of coffee they wouldn't be in business for more than a month.

I had a bit of time to kill and ran a search of Hotel Post and you appear to be the only reader that has posted a poor review of Hotel Post.

The Post is not the Krone. In fact, there are probably 10 other hotels or places to stay that would be nicer, but for the money they charge, the Post is more than adequate.

I don't quite know what type of accomodations you are accustomed to, but for a good mid range priced hotel, the Post is an excellent choice.

Thanks for all the great posts. We still have a few weeks before we go. I've written down the possibilities - Bad Hamburg, Mainz, Bingen, Assmauhausen, Castle Hornberg.

We may wait until we are there and pick where we want to go - I hope there will be no problem with reservations. I tend to over-plan everything on vacations. Since we are looking at our final night, I'm sure if we can't find a room in one of the hotels mentioned, we will find something else.

Thanks again for the great leads. Although I am promising my husband to "play it by ear", I always like to have a few recommendations in my back pocket.

Only 10kms up the road from Bingen is the Rheinside walled village of Bacharach-am-Rhein. Picture-postcard in appearance without being too touristy, overlooked by a castle (it's used as a YHA), with good cafes, bars & friendly people. We stayed B&B with Mrs Orth, but there is no shortage of hotels. I thoroughly recommend it.

If you're considering non-Rheinside options, I'd add Limburg to the list. Only a short, easy drive (1 hr) NW of Frankfurt Airport. My top choices would be Limburg or Bacharach.

Thanks for the tip on Bacharach. Although I didn't start out thinking that I would like to stay on the Rhine, the notion is very appealing. We haven't been to Germany before and, for this trip, we are really spending all our time in Switzerland (apt for 10 days is reserved). Maybe a night on the Rhine will whet our appetite for our next trip!

As for Bacharach, we will not have a car as we will be using a Swiss Family Pass for the majority of the trip. I checked the SBB website for train schedules and Bacharach was not there. I assume there is no train stop there? Our plane doesn't leave until 2:00 pm so I guess we could deal with a short boat ride and train trip. What would be the logistics?

I do agree that Bacharach is a charmer. If it doesn't work out, you might do an image search for Miltenberg, which is sort of halfway between Heidelberg and Wurzburg. Miltenberg is a very small town, but very lovely. We spent several nights there and would return in a minute. I think it was an hour from the airport by car, but I do remember a train station.

Bacharach, Bingen, St. Goar, Boppard, Assmanhausen - indeed any town along the Rhine from Mainz to Koblenz is delightful and all with easy access to Frankfurt airport. Hard to choose a favorite. You will definitely want to return. Gute Reise!

What time does your flight leave the airport? If it is early in the morning, you might not want to be too far away and rely on tricky traffic.

Janebell,

Although you didn't find a schedule for Bacharach on the Swiss train site, Bacharach does have a train station. Trains leave hourly (usually at 36 past the hour) for Mainz with a connection to Frankfurt Airport. The trip is a little less than a hour and a half.