Weekend Drive from Frankfurt
 

Hi All - I land in Frankfurt Saturday morning. I don't have to be in the office until noon on Monday although my hotel is paid for beginning Sunday. I am going to be in Frankfurt all week, so I'd like to get outside of the city for the weekend. Last month I did this too, and I ended up in Cologne for the night.

If you were me, where would you go? I'm pondering Zurich or Luxembourg, but although I have been to neither country so I'd love to add some new country stamps. I'm also thinking of Prague since it was one of the highlights when I backpacked through Europe a few years ago.

And yes... planning is not my favorite so I have waited until the last minute to figure this out. I don't need an answer until I pick up the rental car since I know there are some rules about what makes you can take into other countries.

Thanks for any help you can give me!!

Oh... I'm a single woman. I love pretty much everything from sitting in a cafe watching the people go by to castle tours to dance clubs at 4AM. I do like to meet people and have partners in crime, so any suggestions for meeting people along the way wherever I end up?

Thanks
Erin

Driving to Koln is relatively easy compared to some of your other thoughts. With normal speeds, I think you can make it to Lux in 4 hours, but there could easily be a weekend slow-downs or an accident that would make a long drive after a trans-atlantic (if that is indeed the case) flight agony.

Are you talking about this coming weekend? I don't want to be an alarmist, but May 1st - Labor Day in many European countries, such as Switzerland (Zurich) - has seen confrontations between hooligans and police.

Why do you want to drive so far for 1 night in the first place? Do google "Bad Kreuznach". It's a charming spa town with great appeal & history through the centuries. You'd have a chance to relax, stroll along the river and eat at nice restaurants in addition to evening entertainment.

Heidelberg? Munich? Even Berlin... Zurich is a little far...and no matter what anyone says, I'm living proof that speeding tickets are passed out on the autobahn. Have a good time and keep racking up those airline miles...

Driving after a trans-Atlantic flight is dangerous IMHO. Either stay near-by, or take a train. You aren't going to get a stamp in your passport anyway, when you go to these countries.

You could take the ICE to Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, or Munich for example.

I would not be the least bothered whether there are confrontations between police and anybody on 1 May. Why would that be your problem? We are still talking about very civilised parts of Europe, after all.

As you don't state anything about your interests, I'd look into Brussels, Bruges, Ghent (all good for a day, Brussels might deserve more, but 1 day is ok), Strasbourg (and the adjacent Alsace region), Baden Baden if you'd like a spa treatment and would like some peace and quiet, Zurich (good for a day), Wuerzburg or Bamberg. Or stay even closer to Frankfurt and explore the wineries in the nearby Rheingau (some of the best Rieslings are being made here) and Rheinhessen regions. Maybe spend the night in Mainz, Wiesbaden or one of the smaller wine towns such as Eltville, Oestrich-Winkel etc. You could also combine this with a quick detour South to Heidelberg.
I would not recommend Berlin, as it definitely deserves more than 1 day to get a reasonable impression of the city.

Some practical thoughts:

Next weekend ends the week after Easter. Many people have taken this week off, so you can expect some heavy traffic on both Saturday and Sunday on any major autobahn. Don't expect to hit the gas and zoom anywhere.

May 1st is infamamous for years now for riots between police and demonstrators at night. This has nothing to do with the official May 1st demonstrations and public speeches of unions' reps or politicians during the day. It affects only certain parts of Berlin (or Zurich) - which are not the tourist hotspots, though. Nevertheless, if you decide to go to Berlin, you should make sure to know where not to go that night May 1/2.

If a rental car is a must, I'd stay in the vicinity of Frankfurt (and also expect major crowds along the Rhine and Mosel) - or try to get reservations for a train if you want to travel further away to most of the destinations mentioned above.

Ok.. will take your thoughts into consideration, especially holiday traffic. Relaxing is out, as I spent much of my trip last month relaxing and meandering in/near Frankfurt. I did miss out on the wineries. I generally enjoy being on the move and exploring new things unless I have good company. I'm solo this trip... Call me crazy, but I regularly drive long distances just for a two day trip. I also really enjoy being able to just stop and check out little small towns that look interesting on the side of the road.

To those concerned with the driving after a transatlantic flight....I'm a great airplane sleeper especially on overnight flights. I generally sleep 90% of the trip and wake up already adjusted to the new time zone & jet lag free.

Ugh.. now to figure out traffic problems.

Why not drive to the closer-by towns of the Rhein, like Bingen, Bacharach, Ruedesheim or St. Goar? Or even slightly further afield onto the towns of the Mosel River (Winnigen, Cochem, Trier)?
All within 4 hours and quite scenic, with plenty of wine cafes and castles!

A weekend trip up the B42 through the Rhine River valley would facilitate both driving, scenery and wine. I have made the drive in winter snow and summer shine. Stop and see the Marksburg Castle on the way to the "German Corner," the confluence of the Mosel and Rhine Rivers at Koblenz. Leaving Koblenz, cross the Rhine and head back east to Schloss Braunfels (as in New Braunfels, TX). Then mosey down 456 or try A5 back to FRA.

I love Trier and if the OP is really willing to drive all the way to Lux, then I would recommend the oldest city in Germany first. And while we're on the Mosel, from Trier, northeast to Burg Eltz, then to Rhine B9 (west side) or B42 (east side) back to FRA.

Lots of possibilities for someone willing to hit the road running.

VolCrew... I like your advice, although if I stop along the way, I might end up not making it to Lux. Where would you recommend I stay? I definitely want to stay somewhere I can meet people in the evening.

Here is where you need more advice than I can give. ALong the way, I stayed at Lauterbacher Hof in Kaiserslautern once and the Altstadt Hotel in Trier. Both are kinda Deadsville.

Potential weekend destinations, in no particular order: Bamberg in Upper Franconia (easy by train, but not a difficult drive either), Mosel River (we love Hotel Haus Lipmann in Beilstein), or Vianden Luxembourg.

Drive time from Frankfurt to Bamberg about 2 hours. To Beilstein about 1-3/4 hours. To Vianden about 2-3/4 hours.

You could also drive some of the Mosel River valley on the way to Vianden and not increase the driving time very much.