BarbaraAllison7911

Joan: Regarding your apartment in Cochem, did you mean Apartment Sonnenchien? I could not find Apartment Sonnenberg. What page should it be listed on?

Macross

We spent one night in Cochem, walked all over. The drive to get there was beautiful. We laughed at the gps because it kept looking like the car was going off the mountain. A lot of switchbacks. We walked up to the castle and it was very beautiful from that view but already closed. I loved looking at all the vineyards around there. Very quiet once the day trippers got back on their cruise boats.

joan

Hi Barbara, there are two apartments in the one building (well, there are more but these two are managed by the same lovely couple), Sonnenberg and Schlossberg.

Here is the website link. I did not use this website to book, I used booking.com. Perhaps your dates were not available and that is why both apts were not shown? When I check the link, it shows both. Schlossberg is smaller and does not have a balcony.

http://www.haus-moselpanorama.de/index.php?lang=en

OK, posters. I did not say Cochem was bad, I was comparing to Riquewihr. I liked them both very much, but if you've been to both, you might agree they are quite different.

PalenQ

OK, posters. I did not say Cochem was bad, I was comparing to Riquewihr. I liked them both very much, but if you've been to both, you might agree they are quite different.>

Yes Cochem is a largish town - Riquewihr a tiny village - Cochem is on a gorgeous river valley - R is not - I would be bored in R but not Cochem, a town I have stayed in dozens of times - Beilstein, a small R-like village just upstream from Cochem maybe more what you like and the Haus Lipmann there is famous on Fodor's:

http://www.hotel-haus-lipmann.com/

Fussgaenger

"Beilstein, a small R-like village..."

There may be some similarities in terms of structures with Rothenburg, but IMO they're quite distinct. In fact, Rothenburg is a metropolis compared to Beilstein, which is probably less than one football field in length:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...2-08_CN-01.jpg

Rothenburg:

https://www.nuernbergluftbild.de/ima.../j0523174c.jpg

Stayiing in tiny Beilstein would require an approach to travel that I lack. I find Cochem far more interesting for a stay of a few nights.

Fussgaenger

Oh... I see R-like meant Riquewihr-like. In my personal cyber-lexicon of abbreviations, "R-" always refers to Rothenburg. But Rothenburg really makes no sense in this thread - alas, I haven't made much sense either.

PalenQ

In your lexicon Fuss Cochem kind of an R-like town! (Though I think Cochem far more scenically situated - the slopes of vineyards opposite town across the Mosel make it so so sweet. But, R as a town has perhaps more there there than Cochem!

Cheers!

BarbaraAllison7911

Ok......I think we will go with Cochem. Although I like quaint, I also like to have more sights to see things when one gets home for the day!

Any thoughts on villages in Germany of interest for a day or two on the trip from Riqueweir to Cochem if we end up renting a car?

BarbaraAllison7911

Fussgaenger: Thanks for your suggestions re stopping enroute in southern Germany. I found this article from a traveller.


http://www.thetraveltester.com/gengenbach-germany/

PalenQ

Any thoughts on villages in Germany of interest for a day or two on the trip from Riqueweir to Cochem if we end up renting a car?>

Well you could follow the Alsace Wine Road north to the German border and then drive along the Rhine gorge area to Koblenz and Cochem.

But renting a car in France and returning it in Germany could result in a steep drop-off fee for so doing.

PalenQ

To avoid the two country car pick up and drop off extra fees - from Riquewihr - bop over to Germany and rent there- via Strasbourg which to me is one of Europe's most overlooked large cities - stop there for some hours and take the train over the Rhine to Germany and pick up a car and head along the Rhine to Cochem.

BarbaraAllison7911

PalenQ. Our thoughts at the moment are to land in Frankfurt and as you suggested take a train to Mainz, spend the night and then rent a car from there and drive to Cochem. Spend a week or so and tour the area than drive to Riquewihr. After spending a week or so there, driving back through Germany, and as a suggestion by Fussgaenger thought we may stop for a night in Gengenbach or maybe I will check Koblenz. Then return to Mainz and return the car.

Do you think that a week is too much in Cochem and Ricquewihr.

http://www.thetraveltester.com/gengenbach-germany/

PalenQ

Do you think that a week is too much in Cochem and Ricquewihr.>

For most yes- I would cut each in half. That's just my opinion -others may differ.

PalenQ

Actually a week in Cochem as a base could be sweet:

Boat trip to Beilstein perhaps bike back (rentals in Cochem and some hotels provide them too)

Day at Burg Eltz- short drive from Cochem or easy train + bus or hike

Trier - another short enough drive or train - Germany's oldest city and one with lots of Roman ruins including an old Roman Temple now a Christian Basilica

Sweet drives along the Mosel - like to Bernkastel-Kues; Traben-Trarbach and others - all nice wine towns in awesome settings.

And the Rhine Gorge by car or car/boat or train/boast

And I like Kobelnz too though few seem to concur that it is worth a look - especially like the Rhine Ufer - esplanade along the Rhine and Deutsches Eck, one of the most famous places in Germany for Germans - the German Corner at the confluence of the"mother" Mosel and "father" Rhine - symbolic of German Unity- huge plinth with an equestrian statue on it - once had one with Kaiser Wilhelm before the waning days of WW 2 when an American GI from the opposite shore of the Mosel blasted it to bits with fire power (told to me by the campground manager at the camp now occupying this area or at least did until last I knew):

https://www.google.com/search?q=deut...Hb5tAOkQsAQIGw

You can take a cable car or pedestrian ferry across the Rhine from Deutsches Eck and then climb to the top of Ehrenbreitstien Fortress, once said to be the largest fortress in Europe after Gibraltar:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ehrenbreitstein_Fortress

https://www.google.com/search?q=ehre...HdiHA5gQsAQIGw

There is a military museum up top and a youth hostel (or was years ago when I last visited) and sweeping views up and down the Rhine and up the Mosel.

Plus Koblenz has the classic German Altstadt or Old Town with outdoor cafes, beer halls, restaurants and a large pedestrianized shopping zone.

If taking the Rhine boats end at Koblenz and spend some delightful hours there- the boat dock is near Deutsches-Eck - the train station is about a mile from there.

To me Koblenz is a very very pleasant if modern - due to war damage - larger city - a good foil to the touristed wine towns along the Rhine and Mosel.

Macross

Joan, that is a very nice apartment. We found a little path and walked up to the castle from that side and then down another road into the village.

BarbaraAllison7911

PalenQ, while in Riquewihr we plan on seeing Stratsburg for a day as well as Colmar in addition to many of the smaller villages and we could do a daytrip on the Rhine from there???, with that I mind is a week still too much?

joan

Macross, yes that riverfront Cochem apt was a real value, clean and located perfectly - along the beautiful paved Mosel waterway. The hosts lived across the hall and went above and beyond to help us out (I had my purse stolen enroute in Colmar train station and had to make some phone calls), despite a language barrier that was comical. The terrace was charming, furnished better than the pictures, and we even had access to a garage to store our rented bikes. This apt would be great for those with a baby, because there's a "dressing room" which is really a small bedroom which you access through the master, so a plus but not needed in our case.

You should see the Riquewihr apartment, that was even better. Even though no terrace, we set up cocktail hour in the bedroom, where there was a two foot wide sill to sit on, in a giant window overlooking the main street. You could see all the way to the gates of Riqewihr. And the bakery there...

Barbara, my two cents would be: without car, one week in Cochem, half week in Riquewihr. With car, you could easily find wonderful day trips for a full week in Riquewihr.

Have fun choosing!

PalenQ

PalenQ, while in Riquewihr we plan on seeing Stratsburg for a day as well as Colmar in addition to many of the smaller villages and we could do a daytrip on the Rhine from there???>

That part of the Rhine is not worth the day trip - the part near Strasbourg though if car you could easily get over to Germany - trains pretty much via Strasbourg.

Strasbourg and Colmar are great for a day- small villages???

I agree with joan 3-4 days in Riquewihr would be tops for many except Alsace wine aficionados perhaps.

travlsolo2

I definitely agree with PalenQ that Koblenz is worth a look.

PalenQ

I definitely agree with PalenQ that Koblenz is worth a look.>

Yes indeed but to base somewhere I highly recommend a smaller more overall dreamy town or village like Cochem or Boppard, St Goar, Rudesheim, etc.