I am looking at doing Assmanshausen-Niederwald-Rudesheim gondola loop. I am very aware that this is on cruise iteneraries and very touristy.

What is between the two upper gondola stations? (Assmanshausen side and Rudesheim side) It appears they are about a mile apart: do you walk on a side walk on a busy road or is there a decent hiking path with a view of the Rhein?

There seems to be vineyards between two upper gondola stations: which one accepts visitors?

ttt... Has anyone travelled this segment?

greg:
The chairlift from Assmanshausen up is very exposed, and I have a fear of heights, so I took the covered gondola up from Ruedesheim and reversed the walk. Between the two lifts there is forest, with a walking path and not much else. At the Ruedesheim end there is a cafeteria style restaurant with outdoor tables and beautiful views over the Rhein. At the Assm' end there is a hotel (?private). When I went 3 or 4 years ago, no other tourists took this trip...we encountered one lone german native walking his Chow...
all in all, I'd go up at Ru', sit at the outdoor cafe, and go back down, unless you really feel like a level walk in the cool forest and an open chairlift back down at A'.

We did the round trip as you describe and took a boat back to Rudesheim from Assmanshausen. It's been a while so my memory is foggy, but I do know we had lunch between the two gondolas at the top at an outdoor place with a wonderful view. I don't recall the long being very long, but it was quiet, scenic, and pretty, surprisingly quiet for how crowded the gondolas themselves were, so apparently few people do the walk between them.

I've made this loop several times, starting at the Rudesheim end. Look for signs that say "seilbahn" -- that's the lift. The views from the great monument (Niederwald Denkmahl) are excellent. You will encounter no cars or other traffic as you walk through the beautiful woods. The hotel is the Jagdschloss Niedwerald -- a lovely place. Originally, it was a hunting lodge. Beautiful dining room. As I recall, there are some small vineyards near there. Then it's down to Asssmannshausen. In all, it should take you about three hours or so, depending on your pace.

Okay - I need some help with this same subject. I'm traveling with three other people in July.

We arrive in Frankfurt around 0900 on a Saturday. We have to be in Kaiserslautern the next day to start to grueling weeks of work. It sounds like this might be a really nice way to relax after the flight and get some sun and fresh air.

Can someone explain it a little better for me? We're staying at a hotel near the Frankfurt airport (non-negotiable) so we'd be driving from there and returning to there.

How do I plan this? Where do I start and end? Any idea on costs? How do I get back to our car?

Many thanks.

I'm planning on doing this loop as well. Thanks for the info!

I'm topping this for myself.

I contacted the German tourist board (I think) but haven't received any information yet.

Just not sure how this works.

bookmarking

I've done the Rudesheim segment as a roundtrip. I don't remember any particularly high segments of the ride. There was a statue commemorating German unification at the top, along with a system of trails that mostly went through relatively open areas (vineyards, etc.). When we were there, a man was training a raptor to fly away and return to his arm.