Travelling the Rhine
Listed under River Trips in Cologne, Germany.
There are too many beautiful sections of the Rhine to choose from, but the romantic, green sections with the most beautiful fairy tale castles are along the stretch between Koblenz and Strasbourg. The views on either side of the river are far and away entertaining and changeable enough to keep you in rapture hanging over the side of the boat. The food is hearty, the locals ruddy and the countryside has retained a rural feel despite being so close to major built up centres. Just lovely scenery.
The stretch out of Koblenz, where the Stolzenfels Castle is a highlight, is one of the Rhine’s most romantic portions, past the pretty towns of Oberwesel and Saint-Goar and hillsides lined with vineyards and decorated with a sprinkling of castles afforded spectacular Rhineland views.
Rusheshiem is almost as you expect a German village to be, lively with taverns and restaurants and rather knee slappingly jolly, the marketplace is busy and worth waiting for if you can for the iconic German produce presented in such a traditional way.
This way past the narrow spike of land, the Lorelei Rock, with all its wrecks and mythology of the Rhine Maidens to distract you from the dangerous currents.
Worms has one of the loveliest cathedrals in Germany, and Frankfurt is a wonderful mish mash of modern glass sky scrapers and beautiful old squished in squares with window boxed flowers from each window. A small detour to Heidelberg for its beautiful ruined castle is highly recommended, especially if you have ever dreamed of fairytale castles.
Written by 
Simone Granger.
Other expert and press reviews
“Rhine cruise: a new standard of luxury”
By Colin Nicholson for The Telegraph. First published 13th October, 2008. River cruises have often been seen as the poor relations of "proper" cruises. But the launch of the Premicon Queen in late June has put paid to that notion, with a ship… Read more...
Written by press. See the full article in The Telegraph, 13th October 2008
“Cruising for bargains on the Rhine”
By Sarah Macefield for The Telegraph. First published 3rd Novemeber 2008. ...Shopping might have been the prime objective on this German Christmas markets river cruise, but it really only played a supporting role when compared with the wonderful scener… Read more...
Written by press. See the full article in The Telegraph, 3rd November 2008
Comments, reviews and questions by other travellers
The Rhine
The Rhine provided a physical boundary for the Roman Empire and has been a vital European trade and transport route since that time. It still forms part of the border between Switzerland and Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein and Germany and France.
The area around the Rhine has been squabbled over for hundreds of years, especially by France and Germany, and the public attitude to Germany’s loss of the Rhineland in the WW1 Treaty of Versailles was one of Hitler’s major political platforms in the lead up to WW2.
There are many historic sites along the Rhine’s route, including some well preserved castles, military fortresses (dating from both Roman and more recent campaigns.) and the Mainz Cathedral, which is more than a thousand years old. The region is typified by scenic valleys dotted with traditional villages.
The Rhine’s popularity as a cruising or barging route has added to shipping traffic to make it the world’s busiest waterway.
The Rhine’s water comes originally from the Rheinwaldhorn Glacier in the Swiss Alps and empties through the Netherlands into the North Sea.
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Upper Middle Rhine Valley
The 65km-stretch of the Middle Rhine Valley, with its castles, historic towns and vineyards, graphically illustrates the long history of human involvement with a dramatic and varied natural landscape. It is intimately associated with history and legend and for centuries has exercised a powerful influence on writers, artists and composers.
Copyright © UNESCO/World Heritage Centre. All rights reserved.