The steepest vineyards and one of the loveliest riverside walks on the Middle Rhine, the oldest surviving Roman fort walls north of the Alps and the birthplace of Michael Thonet - Boppard is full of history and cultural heritage and is located in the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, one of Germany’s most beautiful landscapes and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2002.
This is a 3-day route weekend getaway if you have more time you can split the route you can easily stay a half day at one village so you can slow down a bit and relax.
Boppard is the perfect place to stay and discover the romantic area of the Middle Rhine.
Watch the Sunrise from the hill , enjoy the panoramic view over the Rhine river, wandering around the cozy Streets in town, go up the hill with cable car, cross the river with a ferry or take a boat trip to the Loreley , there are many things to do around Boppard
you can reach the Sunrise point by car, foot, bike or cable car, set your GPS to bike park Boppard, during daytime you can reach the point by cable car and relax in the restaurant with a beautiful view over the Rhine river. There are 2 restaurants at the hill Panoramic restaurant and Vierseenblick where the view looks like the name of the restaurant 4 lakes.
Whe had an lovely stay in the appartmenst of the 4 star hotel Bellevue Rheinhotel just in front of the river Rhine the appartments can be found at, Résidence Bellevue“ (150 m from Bellevue Rheinhotel)
Large rooms with a panoramic view over the Rhine river ,breakfast in the hotel and a lovely swim pool sauna, steam bath to relax after a day of hiking and exploring the region.
Whe stayed here for the weekend and love to come back some time to see more of this area.
Bellevue Boppard is a family owned hotel by the family Gawel 4th and 5th generation with friendly staff and great details everywhere in the property like you staying in an old castle.
Boppard is a small town with a Rhine river boulevard , hotels, restaurants a church and some cafes like you see in many towns alongside the Rhine river in this area.
We love Boppard because it's just in the middle of Everything you can reach many interesting places from Boppard in 1/2 hour. Like Rudesheim, Burg Eltz, Cochem, Bacharach, Koblenz, Geierlay brücke
Have you ever heard of the Middle Rhine Valley?
Did you know there is a scenic driving route that runs through the Rhine valley, from Bingen to Bonn, and you’ll get the chance to see over 40 castles from the Middle Ages and some beautiful scenery along the way? It doesn’t get the name romantic Rhine for nothing !
The Rhine's importance to the Romans is nowhere more evident than the town of Boppard where, some 2,000 years ago, they set up a fortress to guard the river. Evidence of this and later Roman fortifications can still be seen in the Roman Camp, widely considered one of the best-preserved late-antiquity fortresses in Europe.
Oberwesel is called the “town of towers and wine”. From afar, those travelling up the Rhine river will recognise the silhouette of the town, with Schönburg castle, the red-stone Church of our Lady, and the impressive town wall with its many towers.
Bacharach
In the historic town of Bacharach, time seems to have stood still. Architecture dating back to eras long gone still proudly grace the area’s skyline. From lazy river cruises to hilltop castles, romantic ruins to sparkling wines, this town comprises all of those things that make a holiday beautiful. Bacharach is one of the most popular stops during a cruise down the Rhine. This castle trail along the Upper Middle Rhine Valley has no match anywhere in the world and has thus earned the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Bingen in Bingen you can travel by car to the other side of the Rhine river with the ferry to Rudesheim. Picture book-like Bingen is the gateway to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Upper Middle Rhine Valley, and is surrounded by rolling vineyards.
Rudesheim am Rhein is a wine-making town under lofty Riesling vineyards. The landscapes are full of drama. This part of the Rhine, not far from the Lorelei Rock, has long had a special place in German hearts: In the 1870s it was chosen for a magisterial monument to German unification and victory in the Franco-Prussian War. You can walk up to the Niederwald Monument through vines and beech forest, or catch a cable car for views of the Rheingau you won’t soon forget.
In Rudesheim, on the Rhine, the cabin cable car takes guests up to the Niederwald Monument. The Germania statue up there symbolizes the foundation of the new German Reich after the German-French war. The cable car has open cabins and you nearly hover over the vineyards up to the 38-meter high statue.
The Loreley Celebrated in song and shrouded in legend – the Loreley rock is a 194-metre-high slate cliff towering above the narrowest point of the Rhine near St. Goarshausen.
It became famous for the tale of Loreley, a beautiful but melancholy siren who would sit on the rock and sing as she combed her golden hair. Her beauty and beguiling song distracted passing sailors from the strong currents and their ships smashed to pieces against the rocks. Today, the Loreley is a magnet for tourists from all over the world. In the Loreley visitor centre, an interactive exhibition tells you everything you need to know about the region.
Burcht Katz
astion and military base to protect the Rheinfels Castle. Together they formed a fortified bulwark with a barrier for levying of the Rhine toll. The extended view up to the bend of the river at the Loreley was also of great importance to secure salmon fishing. Due to the intentionally chosen location on the mountain ridge Katz Castle could not possibly be conquered from the valley.
Only after the invention of fire arms, Katz Castle had to be substantially reinforced.
A hiking trail led up from the back of St. Goarshausen, a hamlet occupying a narrow plain between the Rhine and the valley wall it carved from solid stone over eons. The steep, shaded path climbed hillsides and curled through switchbacks, eventually terminating on a flatter plateau above the Rhine River valley. Burg Katz had been built into the same steep hillside.
Marksburg Completely preserved knight`s castle
Between Bingen and Koblenz, in the midst of the UNESCO Upper Middle Rhine Valley, there is a castle every few kilometers. Many of them can still be visited today - no doubt they are one of the crowd pullers in the region. They all have in common, that they neglected over the centuries and have become ruins. As part of the emerging Rhine Romanticism, they were then extensively renovated. Not so the Marksburg! As the only hilltop castle in the Middle Rhine, it has survived the ages intact and gives us an unchanged view in its founding years today.
The importance of the Marksburg is especially its complete preservation as a medieval fortification. The imposing fortress with its buildings dating from the 13th to 15th centuries is graded with keep, several buildings, kennels and bastions on a rock cone above the town of Braubach and allows today - through interesting and typical interiors such as castle kitchen, knight's hall, bower, chapel, armory, wine cellar, battlements and Turmstuben - a trip to the Middle Ages!
Burg Eltz
Burg Eltz is the German castle that has impressed us the most. Even in a region where it is almost impossible to not stumble over some ruined castle, this castle really stands out. Burg Eltz sits in a forested green valley alongside the babbling Elzbach Creek in the Mosel Valley, hidden away from the traffic of the main roads. Walking up (or down) to this magnificent castle provides for a really knockout view, as it looks today much as it did in 1540 when the last major part of the castle was built. Unlike the vast majority of castles along the Mosel and Rhine Rivers, this was one of the few that was not destroyed or badly damaged. Its history is quite fascinating as it has been owned within the same family since at least the 12th century and continues to be privately owned by the Eltz family. Unlike the more popular fairytale Neuschwanstein castle in Bavaria, Burg Eltz was not built as someone’s Romantic ideal of a castle but is a real stone-and-timber medieval castle which served as the home and defensive fortification for three branches of the Eltz family.
Stolzenfels castle Pure Rhine Romanticism
At the gates of Koblenz, located on the left bank of the Rhine opposite to the estuary of the river Lahn and within the UNESCO World Heritage "Upper Middle Rhine Valley", Stolzenfels castle was redeveloped for the German horticultural show 2011 in Koblenz and since then shines in new splendor. On the opposite side of the Rhine, castle Lahneck sits enthroned in the immediate vicinity.
Stolzenfels Castle represents a refreshing contrast to the prevailing toll collect castles and fortresses on the Middle Rhine. The castle differs from the other castles on the Middle Rhine because it is one of the outstanding works of the Rhine Romanticism and has been used in the later years as a summer residence. The Gothic influence in the architecture raises it beyond other castles on the Middle Rhine.
Koblenz
In the UNESCO-listed Upper Middle Rhine Valley, Koblenz is a 2,000-year-old city where the Moselle joins the Rhine. Right at the confluence of those rivers the Teutonic Order founded one of its first commanderies in the 13th century and where the immense Frankish Empire was divided up in the 800s.
To honour that history, a monumental statue of Kaiser Wilhelm I was unveiled here at the end of the 19th century. You could make an epic journey upriver, on the Rhine Castles Trail, where castles and palaces mingle with vineyards on the steep valley sides.
The German Corner is the landmark of Koblenz and a major attraction for tourists. A cable car can be found in Koblenz, where the guests are transported in closed cabins from the “German Corner” to the fortress Ehrenbreitstein. The glass cabins have to be emphasized in particular because they grant a barrier-free view on the Rhine Valley. On sunny days this creates additional Rhine Romanticism.
