Germany’s River Rhine – Mainz to Cologne

Arrive during the day in Mainz. We recommend timing your arrival so that you have time to explore this 2000-year-old city. Visit its churches and sacred buildings, excavation sites from Roman times, the historical town center, or some museums.

Your first bike tour of the trip takes you into the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley and you travel through wine country, past traditional winemaking towns like Eltville. We recommend a side trip to the former Cistercian Convent Eberbach, where the movie “The Name of the Rose” was filmed. Later you reach Rüdesheim, an excellent town for some wine tasting. Take a stroll through the world-famous “Drosselgasse”. A ride in the gondola up to Niederwald monument offers an excellent view over the Rhine Valley and the “Binger Loch”.

Before reaching the legendary “Loreley” rock, you bike through the Rhine valley with its many castles to Kaub, which is uniquely located between the Rhine and the steep rocky hillsides of the Rhenish Massif. Castle Gutenfels towers above the valley, while Castle Pfalzgrafenstein sits in the middle of the river.

Today you cycle further along the Rhine passing Boppard a winemaking town. Alongside pretty, colourful truss buildings you reach the “Bopparder Hamm”, the largest loop of the Rhine. On the other side of the Rhine, you can see the Marksburg, a well preserved medieval castle. Via Lahnstein and the Lahn estuary you reach Koblenz, where you spend the night. The “German Corner” on the Mosel estuary, the Electoral Palace and Ehrenbreitstein Fortress are only a few of the attractions in Koblenz.

You cycle downstream through Andernach, passing “Mariendom” Abbey and the world’s highest cold-water geyser, before reaching the idyllic spa town Bad Breisig. Along the Golden Mile, an area with an especially mild climate where wine, fruits, and vegetables are grown, you follow the river to Remagen. In the town of Remagen near a famous bridge is an information center showing its history from the 2nd world war. Then continue to Rolandseck which has many historic buildings to admire.  If you want to take an extended break in one of the many wayside restaurants, you can take a boat for the last part of the way to Bad Godesberg.

On your last day cycling along the romantic Middle Rhine you approach Bonn. You continue to Cologne on an old Roman road. In Rodenkirchen the Cologne Cathedral comes into view. It is the largest gothic cathedral in Northern Europe. You have time for a tour through Cologne, which is full of sights and attractions. Apart from the cathedral, the town is famous for its Carnaval and “Kölsch” beer.

Depart after breakfast.