Itinerary help please
 

HI, this is our itinerary as of today! How does it look? From Freiburg we head over to France, the Alsace region for another week.
June

6 We arrive, Berlin
7 Berlin
8 Berlin day trip to Leipzig
9 Berlin
10 Dresden
11 Dresden
12 Wernigirode ( Harz Mountains)
13 Wernigerode
14 Cochem ( Mosel Area )
15 Cochem ( day trip to Luxembourg)
16 Cochem
17 Cochem ( may cut this day out ), add to Paris
18 Heidelberg
19 Heidelberg
20 Karlsruhe
21 Freiberg ( Black Forest)
22 Freiberg may do day trip somewhere
23 Freiberg ( may cut this day out ), add to Paris

i might combine Leipzig visit with moving to Dresden. Looks good otherwise

"17 Cochem ( may cut this day out ), add to Paris"

I suggest instead that you visit the UNESCO World Heritage Middle Rhine Valley on this day - and continue to your next destination in the evening.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1066

Marksburg Castle is terrific: http://www.marksburg.de/english/frame_nj.htm

Marksburg is in adorable Braubach, just south of Koblenz:
http://www.romantischer-rhein.de/upl...ltstadt_02.jpg

Oberwesel:
http://s1.germany.travel/media/conte...T_1024x768.jpg

Günderodehaus, view of Oberwesel and Rhine from their outdoor terrace/cafe in the vineyards:
http://www.christiane-geldmacher.de/...in2014-003.jpg

Bacharach: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...arach_BW_9.JPG

River scene near Bingen: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ngen_Rhein.jpg

Rheinstein Castle just north of Bingen:
http://www.uli-franke.de/wp-content/...Rheinstein.jpg

Freiburg ("b-U-r-g) isn't in the Black Forest but a fairly large city at the edge. If you stay in a charming smaller old-world walled town like Gengenbach, you receive a free travel card (Konus card) good for free train travel to Freiburg and many other nearby destinations in the Black Forest.

Gengenbach:
http://www.stadthotel-gengenbach.de/...innenstadt.jpg

Gengenbach is on the Black Forest Railway, one of Germany's most scenic routes, near some other excellent towns and sights. You can travel the route for free with the Konus card.

http://www.black-forest-travel.com/p...t-railway.html

why Karlsuhe? for the tramway?

Are you driving or taking trains? If trains check out the German Railpass Twin if two are traveling together - the more days on a pass the cheaper they get - check www.bahn.de/en - Germany's rail system's official site for regular fares - check for discounted fares if you book early enough to get those limited in number discounted ducats. Passes are great for folks who just want to be able to hop any train anytime - fully flexible tickets allowing that can cost a ton - For travel inside regions check the various Lander Tickets that are valid for unlimited travel on regional trains and S-Bahns and urban transports. For lots of great info on train check www.seat61.com- great info on discounted tickets; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Trier could be an excellent day trip from Cochem - Germany's oldest city and one that has a lot of Roman relics and is just a pleasant city. But yes do the Rhine Gorge by boat or car - by boat go to www.k-d.com for schedules - the best part of the Rhine being between Rudesheim/Bingen and Koblenz - Koblenz to me is a really neat city often underlooked by folks traveling in the area. A few-hour stroll would be sweet - a great pedestrian shopping street.

"But yes do the Rhine Gorge by boat"

The K-D cruise is a sightseeing cruise - a good way to see the most scenic section between Bingen and St. Goar (about 1.5 hours from south to north; going all the way to Koblenz will take nearly 4 hours and is not very scenic as you approach Koblenz.) These boats are not a good means for doing multiple outings from a base town, however. They are expensive, they take a long time (especially upstream) and the schedule is irregular (only a few boats per day. The train runs every hour from before dawn until midnight or so - that's how you get around most easily.

fuss - I agree - thought the OP in the post was not going to spend any day on the Rhine or 1 day at most - if 1 day the boats are neat but if more yes go cheaper and easier by frequent trains on each side of the river and some pedestrian ferries in between (no bridges between Rudesheim/Bingen and Koblenz last I knew.)

Fuss garner,
So much great info. Hope to use it for a trip myself.