Travel in SW Germany
 

My wife and I are travelling by train probably from Basel to Frankfurt where we will fly out.

Would you suggest staying in each of:

Frieburg
Baden Baden
Heidelberg
Strasbourg

Are there any other relatively small, picturesque places we should go to, albeit we are train oriented? How long would you suggest we need to look around in each?

We fly out of Frankfurt but were preferring to stay in Mainz.

How easy is it to find accommodation upon arrival in these German locations rather than booking ahead? Any recommendations on accommodation? Is it possible to seek accommodation in any castles?

We would also like to undertake a one day cruise on the Rhine, for example to and from Mainz in a day. It would be great if the scenery included castles and vineyards. Do these trips operate?

I would try to stay somewhere up the Moselle/Mosel

Of the ones you have listed, I would recommend Strasbourg. If you want to stray off the track a bit, then Rothenburg. How much time do you have ? http://www.rothenburg.de/index.php?get=121

A couple of places (small, picturesque) you could stay at near Baden-Baden are Freudenstadt (www.freudenstadt.de) or Alpirsbach (www.alpirsbach.de). Both are accessible by regional train.

Probably the best section of the Rhein to cruise is from Bacharach down to St. Goar. You get to go past the Loreley and that mid-river toll castle, the Pfalzgrafenstein. You from Bacharach to St. Goar, with the current (40 min) rather than the other direction (70 min). The Mosel is also nice, but too far away.

If spending the last night in Mainz, I would recommend Hotel Königshof (www.hotel-koenigshof-mainz.de) right across the Bahnhofsplatz from the Mainz Hauptbahnhof.

Rheinfels castle in St. Goar is a ruin; Stahleck in Bacharach is a hostel; the Marksburg in Braubach is a museum. Most others are private except for Auf Schönburg in Oberwesel. Schönburg is a hotel, very $$$.

Many thanks for this advice. I am sure there will be more questions. In the meantime.......Mainz. We are likely to stay there rather than Frankfurt. Is Mainz a place worth exploring in iteself?