Just a short drive or train from Frankfurt Airport will bring you to the Rhine riverside town of Rudesheim am Rhein. A picturesque town amidst German wine country, this city affords you the perfect introduction to Germany by way of wine, food, history, and castles!
Castle Tour
One of my favorite day trips to do with family and friends is to drive to Bingen/Rudesheim (depending on what side of the river you are on) and grab a seat on the Castle Cruise! The 1.5 hour tour is the perfect length to enjoy a glass (or two) of regional riesling and see the several castle ruins along the river, accompanied by some fun facts about the area.
Getting There
The castle tour ticket is round trip so you can start from either side of the river, Bingen or Rudesheim. If you park in Bingen, you take the castle tour from there and then get off when it comes back around to Rudesheim. In Rudesheim, you will have time to explore the city before taking the car/walking ferry back over (it only goes straight across and runs late in the evening). It is a separate ferry from the Castle cruise but the same ticket works on it. The downside to the car ferry is that it drops you off about a 15 minute walk from where you started the castle tour in Bingen, so if you are trying to make a train, account for that.
It’s best to drive to the closest parking to the cruise start in Bingen (towards Rheinkai 10, 55411 Bingen am Rhein), and then purchase tickets at the Bingen-Rudesheimer Ferry ticket office along the river.
If you are coming by train, you’ll want to get off at Bingen (Rhein) Stadt, and then take the short walk through the gardens along the river to the Bingen-Rudesheimer Ferry ticket office.
The first time I did the drive we navigated to the Bingen-Rudesheimer Ferry itself and ended up driving onto the car ferry itself which takes you across the river from Bingen to Rudesheim….but without the castle tour. Keep an eye out for that, because once you’ve driven down the road that ends in the water (or onto the ferry), it gets tricky to turn around. There are signs, but I just didn’t believe them when it showed a car on the water!
You can also park in Rudesheim (near Bleichstraße 10A, 65385 Rüdesheim am Rhein, but there are other parking areas too) and take the roundtrip castle tour from right there (start and end in Rudesheim). There are two ticket offices right along the water (one is where the ferry parks).
Depending on your drive home, you may still have to buy a round-trip car-ferry ticket if you need to cross the river to get home. If you are coming from Frankfurt, you will want to start/end from Rudesheim, because you wont need to cross the river driving. If you’re coming from south of Frankfurt, such as Mainz, Worms, or Kaiserslautern, you will want to park in Bingen (and only buy 1 round trip ticket per person) or you will end up buying a round trip castle tour and a round trip car ferry ticket (which isn’t much).
Rudesheim
Eat
Once you are in Rudesheim, after the Castle tour, you may be hungry for some lunch! Wander down the riverside until you come across the Drosselgasse, the city’s most famous street. It’s touristy to be sure, with over 3 million visitors a year, but it is worth the wander and a great spot to stop for lunch. Specifically, Breuer’s Rüdesheimer Schloss, a hotel and restaurant that was initially constructed in the 1700s and identified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. It is so cute inside, and outside is often accompanied by live music so it’s really the perfect spot. If you enjoy the wine you have with your meal, they have a winery just a couple streets over that offers wine tastings and bottles for you to bring home!
Cable Car
After your meal, keep making your way up the end of the Drosselgasse, take a right, and you will find yourself close to the bottom of the cable car. Take the ride up and take in the peaceful views of the vineyards and river along the way, it is well worth it. At the top of the ride are some more panoramic views and the Niederwald Monument, a statue created in the 1800s and dedicated to the unification of the German empire. Feel free to walk some of the trails from here, take the long vineyard path back, stop at the café, or return to the town on the cable car.
Drink
You can’t make a trip to Rudesheim without having the famous Rudesheimer Coffee. The art of making this coffee is almost more fun than drinking it. They flambee the sugar cubes and brandy in front of you before mixing the coffee into it and placing the whipped cream on top. Everywhere will have it and advertise it, but it can be hit or miss on if they make it with as much flourish as it deserves.
Short Drive Away
In a short drive from Bingen, you can visit two of the castles you will see on the Castle Cruise – Rheinstein and Reichenstein. Both of these are partially restored ruins which allow you to walk through the rooms and grounds at your own pace. Additionally, you can enjoy a chairlift up the Niederwald Castle in the nearby village of Assmannshausen.
There are so many charming villages along rivers in Germany and Europe that it can be hard to pick which ones are worth your time. You won’t regret picking this trip!
Happy Travels
Xx
Kali
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