Upper Rhine River, Day Cruises and/or Ferries
 

I am visiting this area in June. Are there day cruises to tour the historic/scenic 70 km stretch.
Is there a ferry service that I can travel from one town to another?

I think it would be really helpful if you were to tell us your definition of the "upper Rhine."

I understand Upper Rhine to be the area between Basel / Zürich and Mainz, where the Main splits off. Mostly this is not considered a picturesque area, but many longer cruise ships include it in the itinerary, particularly those going to Vienna on the Main and Danube. I don't know of any day trips on it, because the Middle Rhine is considered to be more interesting and that's where all the day trips are, but I'm happy to be proved wrong. As for car ferries, here is a list of the Rhine ferries. 'Hochrhein' is the area around Basel, 'Oberrhein' is the area north of that, up to about Wiesbaden:

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_Rheinfähren

Even though it's all in German you should be able to pick out city / town names, especially with the help of a map.

I have seen the area around the Loreley described as 'Upper Rhine' but to me that's still part of the Middle Rhine Gorge. The best part is between Mainz and Koblenz, and that's a generous estimation.

Lavandula

Thank you Lavandula, and my mistake, I did mean the middle Rhine (gorge/scenic/castle) area, from Koblenz to Bingen. So, my same questions applies...are their ferries to take me from one town to another?
Sorry for the confusion

Yes between Rudesheim/Bingen, the best part of The Rhine - the Rhine Gorge is part of the trip to Koblenz. www.k-d.com will show the company with the most sailings - yes they serve nearly every town en route and you can get on and off as you like - I recommend going downstream so it is shorter than going upstream - simply because on most cruises I've taken many folks seem to get rather bored after a few hours.

Check these sites for more on The Rhine Gorge and boats - do not neglect the nearby Mosel Valley that me and many thing is far more gorgeous than the gorgeous Rhine itself - Cochem is a favorite fairy-tale town base for both the Rhine and Mosel - excellent train service and also boats. - for more infor scour - www.ricksteves.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.seat61.com.

Hi, just a word of further explanation: the list I gave you is just of the car ferries that cross from one side to the other, where there are no bridges. I misunderstood what you were wanting. If you are looking for a cruise to take you on the river, PalenQ's advice is sage. There are other companies, but K-D does most of them. The train is also a valid method of travel up and down the Rhine, and if you have a railpass that can work for you rather well, or a mixture of train and cruise boat.

Lavandula

"Is there a ferry service that I can travel from one town to another?"

Besides the KD line, the Bingen-Rüdesheimer Line also runs cruise boats.

http://www.bingen-ruedesheimer.com/r...ise/index.html

Travel downstream (south to north) as PalenQ suggests.

Generally, an early start will allow you to get off for an hour in one town, then reboard. But hopping off and on more than once is generally inconvenient since boats do not run as often as the whim to move on might hit you.

Bingen to Boppard (2 hrs., 20 min.), or Bingen to Braubach (2 hrs, 50 min.) will provide a thorough cruise of the scenic part. Braubach, on the east bank just south of Koblenz, is home to Marksburg Castle, which provides the best castle tour in the area. Boppard is a convenient terminus if you want to explore the town itself and return to the south, visiting the other villages south of there on the west bank by train (St. Goar. Oberwesel, and Bacharach are the most interesting.) Trains run hourly or better, making coming and going much easier than by boat. If you end your cruise in Braubach, southbound trains will take you along the east bank to Kaub and Rüdesheim, the most interesting towns on that side, IMO.

The Rheinland-Pfalz ticket (daypass) allows for train and bus travel in the area at very reasonable prices. It's also good on the St. Goar - St. Goarshausen ferry:

http://www.vrminfo.de/en/tickets-and...-pfalz-ticket/

and if you have a railpass that can work for you rather well, or a mixture of train and cruise boat.>

and railpasses and valid rail tickets for trains along the Rhine are valid in full on K-d boats (not other lines nor special night entertainment cruises but the regular boats - just flash your pass when boarding. I do not think the Lander or regional day passes are valid on the boats but not sure of that.

PalenQ writes, "...railpasses and valid rail tickets for trains along the Rhine are valid in full on K-d boats..."

Railpasses allow free KD passage. Rail tickets do not; they provide a 20% discount. If you try flashing a rail ticket as you walk on, you'll be directed back to the ticket kiosk.

"I do not think the Lander or regional day passes are valid on the boats but not sure of that."

The R-P ticket, like normal rail tickets, provides a 20% discount on KD cruise boats.

ECCanadaGuy: It's possible to use the cruise boats to return to your starting point (I suggested Bingen) and a round trip costs only a little more than one way. BUT... the return trip is dreadfully slow (4 hours Boppard to Bingen) and uses up time you might spend visiting the villages.

You might not require a train daypass (like the R-P ticket) at all. If you DRIVE to the Bingen docks, cruise from Bingen to Boppard and return to your car by train, the standard train fare for Boppard-Bingen is only 9.40€. Buy that ticket in Bingen before boarding your cruise boat, and use it to get your 20% discount on the one-way cruise.

But the R-P ticket could be useful if you are traveling with a friend or two and using the train not only to return from Boppard to Bingen but also to reach Bingen in the first place (from a hotel stop in Mainz, for example, or other cities within the region) and to return to that town or city - which is what lots of visitors do. A regular ticket from Mainz to Bingen is 6.40€, and returning from Boppard to Mainz is 14.80€. So two people would pay about 42€, but the R-P ticket would cost only 26€ for 2. With 3 travelers, regular tickets would cost about 63€, but the R-P ticket only 30€.

Railpasses allow free KD passage. Rail tickets do not; they provide a 20% discount. If you try flashing a rail ticket as you walk on, you'll be directed back to the ticket kiosk.>

thanks for rthe update on the rail tickets - not long ago they were fully valid - the last time I rode the boats but have changed. Thanks for the correcto and will make a note of it!

Many thanks to all - this is VERY useful information