Hi everyone. I will be taking a train from Paris on June 29 to ???. I have to be in Bonn on July 1 and Berlin on July 4 due to events that I am attending. This is where I need help. I was planning on picking up a car once I arrive in Germany and dropping it off once I get to Berlin so travel is not based on train schedules. My partner and I love resiling wines and want to spend some time touring the mosel area. We like quaint towns over big cities. For those familiar with Tuscany the Val d'Orcia area not San Gimignano. Perhaps a castle or 2 would be nice. We do not need to spend all of our time at wine tastings, but do want to include 2 or 3 if possible. Pretty drives and scenery with stops at a few picturesque towns and vineyards would be perfect. So what town should I arrive at from Paris that will be near a rental car location? Where should I base myself for these few days that will allow me to get to Bonn on July 1? In my little bit of research I do not feel like I need to spend a lot of time in Bonn (not big museum people and yes I know its a big year in Bonn) but since I am here would like to walk around a bit so lets say I should plan to be there by 2pm. Then the next piece of the puzzle is what to do the next 2 days? Although I have to be in Berlin on the 4th I think I would like to get there on the 3rd to have some more time to sightsee. So where do I go on the 2nd? Aachen seems interesting and I have a work collegue there, but its in the wrong direction. Cologne is not that appealing and also not really getting me closer to Berlin. Open to all suggestions and thank you in advance!

What about Koblenz? It's at the confluence of the Rhine and the Mosel and this makes it ideal for you to get to Bonn, and also with easy access to the Mosel and its towns. Bonn is pretty but probably you wouldn't spend more than a day or two there, but you can use it as a base for a day trip to Aachen (which I would give 5 stars), or Cologne (or further afield, Maastricht; Trier might be better from Koblenz). Cologne itself is not so attractive (war damage badly rebuilt) but you should not miss the Cathedral and if you are a museum person you might find a bit to attract you as well. The Thalys goes from Paris to Cologne and from there you can easily transfer to a local train for Koblenz. Of course if you like castles there is no end of them along the Rhine and Mosel, but as I am not a big castle person I will let someone else contribute on these!

Lavandula

From Paris, take direct TGV towards Frankfurt to Saarbrücken (2hrs).
Not all TGV services to Frankfurt go via Saarbrücken, so look for the direct trains that require no connection.
Saarbrücken is an easy, bit more than 1hr drive to the Mosel river valley near Trier - via motorway A1.
Saarbrücken proper is so ghastly that you don't need to worry that you won't about visiting. But it is a major city, so you will find the rental car locations you're looking for.
You can start your trip in Trier proper if you want.
Or head directly to, for example, Bernkastel-Kues or Cochem (two of the usual suspects along the river)

Even by German standards (compared to the huge distances in the US, Canada or Australia), any place on the Mosel is not a long drive away from Bonn. The NE "terminus" of the river at Koblenz is about 1 1/2 hrs to Bonn, the SW "end" of the Mosel near Trier is 2 1/2 hrs from Bonn (add 30-60 minutes or more for possible delays in traffic on the autobahn).
If you want to see something different than the freeways and/or you can spend more time on your travel day Mosel-Bonn on the road, you could take any of the regular highways through the Eifel region (and/or race the Nürburgring, just kidding, you must not do that with a rental car).
https://theculturetrip.com/europe/ge...volcano-route/
I wouldn't bother trying to see all or most places mentioned, just a rough guidance what is there - except for Maria Laach abbey, which is quite a sight if you're interesting in Romanesque architecture.

Well Koblenz and Trier are big towns / cities for the area and Cochem is a bit tourist town.

Not sure about all train links but I'd aim for Trier and drive say to Bernkastel or Urzig for the full wine village experience.

From Berlin catch a train down to Leipzig or Dresden

Bernkastel-Kues, Beilstein (hotel Haus Lipmann) or Traben-Trarbach would have my preference. Cochem is very touristy.

Castles:
Burg Eltz in Wierschem
Reichsburg in Cochem
Burg Thurant in Alken

For a very scenic road trip, just follow the meandering Mosel River all the way from Trier to Koblenz. When you look at the map, it is road no. 52 / 53 / 49.

Thank you everyone! Question Cowboy1968 - is there a reason why I should go to Saarbrücken and drive to Trier rather than train to Trier direct? It seems like there are car rentals in trier - I just dont know how far from the train station they are. I am assuming there will be cabs at the train station correct?

Bernkastel-Kues seems to be the popular vote as a hub. It looks beautiful! If I stay on the 52/53/49 road and just stop when something strikes me will I hit some vinyards or does this need to be much more planned out and rservations made for tastings?

Wine tasting and driving do not go well together. Please take that into consideration.

Some wineries have shops and tasting rooms with fixed opening hours. Others want an appointment in advance. Most wineries are small family businesses who can't afford having someone permanently for a shop. The top class ones are like locked fortresses and getting an appointment for a tasting there needs thorough preplanning and expert knowledge. Depends what level you are on. Qualities differ widely, a lot depends not only on weather and soil but also on the skills of the winemakers. As a rule of thumb, the smaller the winery and the more difficult it is to get an appointment, the better the wines.

The local tourist offices could be of help about addresses and opening hours or even tasting events. I also recommend googling "Weinfest Mosel" and your travelling dates, there is hardly a weekend in the warmer season without a wine festival going on somewhere.

*Whispers* And please learn to spell "Riesling" ;-)

There is no major reason why you shouldn't train to Trier. Saarbrücken is just a bigger city, and I was expecting more choices (rental car companies) than in Trier. In addition, you may also want to check rail fares: It can be cheaper to take only the TGV (saver fares) than to have a mix of TGV plus national regional rail from Saarbrücken or Luxembourg to Trier. But you can just check that on the respective websites.
Trier is a big enough city and railway station that there will be taxis.
If you want to know the location of the rental car companies, just search for the respective city and town with Google maps. Then use the "nearby button" and enter "rental car".
At first glance it looks as if only Europcar would be directly in or near the railway station in Trier. While Saarbrücken has Sixt and Europcar directly on the premises of the railway station.

If you train to Trier via Luxembourg, you could also think about leaving your luggage there at the station for the day and explore the city if you want.
The old town is pretty cute and the fortifications interesting to visit. It's a great place to spend a few hours... and you can roam around for free ;-)
https://www.mobiliteit.lu/en/tickets/free-transport/

You will hit a lot of vineyards!

Just about every wine town will have easy access to wineries. Obviously there are places more touristy than others. Bernkastel has a wine-library where you pay roughly E15 and are let loose with a glass and 125 wines.