Will be in and around Frankfurt December 25-27 and our family is looking for things to do. We will going to the Titus Thermen on the evening of the 27th before boarding our plane for USA on the 28th. We can stay anywhere within 1 hr or so of Frankfurt and was thinking the Mosel Valley ( Mainz/Weisbaden) area. But not sure of what to do since it is winter time.. Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks in advance...

If you click on my name and look at my trip reports, you will see two about my times in Frankfurt, when for 3 weeks and then for a week I filled up many many days with day trips. However, as you are there in winter and on a holiday, I don't know what to suggest. Usually I'd suggest the Rhine river area (several castles to choose from), Mainz, maybe Heidelberg, plus some time in Frankfurt. But you will have to investigate what is closed, etc. And you don't say who is in your family, which might make some difference.

I love the Mosel river valley, but Mainz and Weisbaden are on the Rhine. The Rhine and the Mosel come together at the Deutsches Eck.

Nevertheless, I'm not sure what will be open on the 25th, but there should be some nice Christmas markets in both towns.

Let us know if you really meant the Mosel so we can give you more help.

"I'm not sure what will be open on the 25th, but there should be some nice Christmas markets in both towns."

From the 25th to the 27th, it will be quite tricky finding Christmas Markets, nearly all of which are over by the 24th. Your best option might be in Speyer, where the market normally re-opens on 12/27 and stays open into the first week of January (but is closed on New Years Eve and New Years day, usually.)

"Usually I'd suggest the Rhine river area (several castles to choose from)"

Rheinfels and Marksburg are the two major castle destinations. Rheinfels closed last winter on Nov. 11, offering tours only to pre-booked groups of 10 people or more. Marksburg stays open all year but is closed Dec. 24 and 25.

http://www.marksburg.de/english/frame_nj.htm

Gelnhausen is an old-world town only 35 minutes from Frankfurt's main station by direct train. From there, you'd also want to visit Büdingen, and even more spell-binding town 15 minutes by train from Gelnhausen. Just wandering through the streets of these towns is a great pleasure - and although shops and cafes might, streets never "close" for Christmas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtCzNK12U3U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EX0yo8dtbEI

And I'd suggest staying in Frankfurt, where on Christmas you might be able to find some food at major hotels or at the railway station. The Christmas holiday is taken pretty seriously in Germany in smaller places, and eateries of all kinds will be closed.

In that area I don't believe there are any Christmas markets open as I think they all close on the 23 - 24th; 24th is the actual celebration of Christmas, and the 25th is called the first Christmas day (erster Weihnachtstag) and the 26th, the second Christmas day (zweiter Weihnachtstag). Most businesses are closed - you might find the petrol stations open and some restaurants here and there, but more will be open on the 26th.

If you will visit Wiesbaden, you might like a fancy lunch for a few hours - the Nassauer Hof has 4 and 5 course menus in either the Orangerie or the Ente restaurants. The cost is over EUR100 per head, but it might be a splurge for you. I think the price is OK for a 5 course menu. I would probably not stay at that hotel with my personal budget, as it's a very costly venture - I would probably prefer the Hotel Oranien (hotel-oranien.de) (where you could have a festive lunch as well).

You might also think about a church experience as something different and unique, as they are open for business! The Marktkirche is the main church at the market square in Wiesbaden. It's a bit early to say what is arranged for Christmas at individual churches.

After lunch you might like to walk it off - either a stroll around the Kurpark, or maybe get in the car and drive to Biebrich (where Wiesbaden meets the Rhine) or Eltville, the gateway into the Rheingau. At Biebrich you can walk along the Rhine or go for a walk around the grounds of Schloss Biebrich (a stately Baroque palace); at Eltville is the ruins of a castle and that is quite pretty and interesting too. Of course this is subject to the weather being acceptable. If the weather is bad, just stay in the car and visit the small towns of the Rheingau. On 26th Dec Kloster Eberbach (a former monastery / winery / museum, where the Name of the Rose was filmed in part) is open from 13:00 to 17:00. This is also in the Rheingau.

If you speak German, there is a performance of Der Kleine Prinz (the Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery) on the evening of the 25th in the Velvets Theater (www.wiesbaden.de (Leben in Wiesbaden > Freizeit > Veranstaltungskalender)). If you have children travelling with you (I don't know who is in your party), you could read the story in English before going.

Lavandula