Germany's Mosel River valley is one of the most scenic, serene places in Europe to visit. The river meanders between low-slung mountains covered with row upon row of neatly tended grape vines as it wends its way toward the mighty Rhine. Along the way are fairy tale castles, some beautifully maintained or restored, others ruined from battles lost long ago. Wineries and quaint villages pop up next to the river at every major bend offering excellent opportunities to shop or to just sit in a riverside cafe with a tray of cheese and a bottle of the region's soft white wine.


My Trip...
Our plan was to fly into Luxembourg, pick up a rental car, then drive along the Mosel heading toward the Rhine, we would then hang a right at the Rhine and continue bumming around until we ran out of time. We stopped in almost every town we came to, visiting castles and wineries along the way, stopping at small cafes or pubs for lunch and dinner when hunger pangs struck us, and looking for a place to stay whereever we found ourselves by about mid afternoon. This casual, no-plan method is perfect for traveling the Mosel valley, with its abundance of cafes, wineries, pubs, hotels, castles, and beautiful small towns, all begging for at least some of your attention. Bridges cross the river every few miles, and we often found ourselves doubling back and forth to catch towns or castles on one side or the other.

Trier...
We started our trek by spending a couple days in the city of Trier, very close to the border with Luxembourg and France. Trier calls itself "the oldest city in Germany," having been established by the roman empire in 16 B.C. The city quickly became a political, religious, and economic powerhouse, serving as a sort of "Rome away from Rome" for emperors, bishops, and generals. Today it's a far cry from the center of imperial power that it might once have been, though the city still sports quite a few vestiges of its Roman empire days, such as the amphitheatre, the city wall, the cathedral, and most impressive of all, the city gate (Porta Nigra).

Porta Nigra is a huge black stone edifice right in the heart of the city. At one time it was the gate of the walled inner city, although the walls are pretty much gone now. For a couple marks, you can stroll inside and walk where Roman soldiers once guarded the city.

A few blocks away is St. Peter's Cathedral (Dom Trier). This fabulous cathedral dates back to the fourth century, construction on it having been started in 326 A.D. Much of the building was rebuilt in the 1960s and 1970s, the structure itself having sustained damage during the second world war.

After strolling around the cathedral and Porta Nigra, check out the marketplace. This magnificent square is teeming with people on evenings and weekends, especially on Sundays, even though most of the shops are closed. There are plenty of sidewalk cafes for a light meal or drinks.


Piesport and Mosel Wines...
After leaving Trier we meandered along the river for a few miles until we came to the town of Piesport. Wine is king in the Mosel valley, and if you didn't know it before, you'll know it when you drive through the town of Piesport. Small shops beckon you to stop in and try some of the wines, and the Piesport wines are some of the best known among the Mosel wines (often generically identified as "Mosel-Saar-Ruwer"). We stopped at one of the wineries and got our first winery tour of the trip, and our first lesson in appreciating the white wines that are famous in the area. We were clued in as to what look for on the label, and for what to expect in the various wines that we'd find throughout the valley. Most German white wines are fairly light and somewhat sweet. At many of the Mosel wineries, you'll find wines labelled "Trocken" (dry) or "Halbtrocken" (half-dry). We were told that the trocken wines are generally most favored among the locals, although they are less often exported than the sweeter wines. I thoroughly enjoyed the light dry wines, finding them to be very refreshing and perfect in the mid-afternoon with a light lunch of cheese and sausages.


Bernkastel-Kues...
Another 15 miles up the river are the twin towns of Bernkastel and Kues (usually written as Bernkastel-Kues), on opposite sides of the river. Bernkastel is just incredible! The quintessential German village. If ever a town looked like the kind of place that a Grimm fairy tale took place, it's Bernkastel with its medieval timbered architecture and its narrow twisty roads filled with little shops. From the town market you can follow a stone path up the hill, through a vineyard, to the ruined Landshut castle. I could just imagine some medieval warlord looking out over the valley, keeping a wary eye out for invaders. Fortunately for us there weren't any invaders around, but there was a small cafe at the castle, and we were pretty thirsty and hungry from the hike up the hill.


Bielstein...
The next day we meandered a few miles up the river to Bielstein, which had a very nice shopping area and an old monastery that's now a restaurant next to the river. We sat at the restaurant for at least a couple hours, just enjoying the setting and sipping glasses of locally made wines. We then strolled through some of the quaint little shops in town before looking around for a place to stay for the night.


Cochem Castle...
In the morning we headed up river to Cochem. We were not all that impressed with the town itself, but the imperial castle up on the bluff above the town was awesome! We were quite lucky in that the castle had just opened for the season. One thing to be aware of when traveling to this region is that many of the castles and museums are closed during the winter months. If you go during spring or fall, things can occasionally be hit or miss as to whether tours will be available, so plan accordingly or be flexible.


Berg Eltz...
The castle at Cochem didn't take too long to tour, and we didn't care for the town of Cochem, so we decided to visit Berg Eltz. Just a few miles from Cochem is a place where you pull off and park, then walk a couple miles through the forest to get to the castle. Berg Eltz is worth the walk! Probably the coolest castle in this part of the country, and just a beautiful setting on a hill in the forest. The castle was built around 1100 and we were told that various family members had built their own little mini castles onto the original structure, giving the castle it's somewhat hodge-podge look of lots of small turrets and separate areas. The towers are just incredible. Lots of cool weapons, paintings, and other treasures on display in various rooms.

After the castle tour, we headed over to Winningen for a late lunch and to find a place to spend the night. We wandered around the town for a while in the morning, then drove up to Koblenz.


Koblenz...
What a shock Koblenz was after the serenity of the Mosel valley! Traffic and people everywhere. We got a hotel room downtown and parked the car. In truth, Koblenz isn't that big of a city -- only about 100,000 people. We visited the fort called Ehrenbreistein then went to Deutsche Eck, the point where the Mosel joins the Rhine.


Rhine Valley...
We then spent a couple days going down the Rhine, visiting more castles, checking out the Lorelei, which supposedly sang to boatmen causing them to wreck their ships on the rocks. One night we splurged and stayed at the Rheinfels Castle in St. Goar (one of several castle-hotels on the Rhine). There were some awesome castle ruins at Rheinfels and a great view of the Katz and Maus castles on the opposite river bank.


Bottom Line...
Overall this was an outstanding vacation: Traveling in Germany is really easy. The roads are well maintained and well marked. Even if you don't speak any German, there are always people around who understand English. Prices can be high at chain hotels in the big cities, but in the Mosel valley, rooms are fairly inexpensive and easy to find -- we generally paid around $50 per night (except at Rheinfels, which was about $250). We had no reservations anywhere and had absolutely no problem finding places to stay at reasonable prices. Food, beer, and wine were plentiful and inexpensive everywhere we went. You can often just grab a light lunch at marketplaces in any town. Many of the castles would charge for tours -- usually about 10 marks or so. This was in late April, and the high season is summer, so it's possible that places could be crowded come July.


Recommended: Yes