Strangely enough, I lived in the Rhineland-Palatinate for two years while serving in the US Army, but I never took a Rhine River cruise. My husband and I were too busy trying to visit as many other European countries as we could! So on this visit to Germany to rediscover my old stomping grounds, I thought it was high time to rectify that oversight. I traveled south by train, with lots of lovely views of the river, from Brussels to Frankfurt. These photos, however, are mostly from a day trip to the wine country villages of Bacharach, St. Goar (also spelled Sankt Goar), and Oberwesel. I’ll add Rhine River cruise photos at a later date.
My friend Mona drove over to meet up with me yesterday. We explored Bacharach, Oberwesel and St Goar, all picturesque wine-growing villages along the Rhine River.
Above us is what’s left of the Werner Chapel, built mostly in the 14th century. It was once a pilgrimage church until it was destroyed in the 17th century. Its dainty stone tracery can be seen from the river.
Below, Mona is standing at a lovely spot along the Rhine River with Burg Gutenfels in the background. The castle on the right is Burg Katz and you’ll see a Burg Maus in another photo. Yes, I was amused to see both Castle Cat and Castle Mouse in the hills above Sankt Goar.
Pfalzgrafenstein Castle, the white building on Mona’s right (where the cruise boat is heading) is a unique toll castle erected c. 1327 by King Ludwig of Bavaria. It functioned as a toll-collecting station for many years. There would have been a chain across the river to force ships to submit. Note that this island is the Kaub point where the Rhine River levels sank to record lows in 2026, forcing freight to go by truck instead of by river. This photo was taken in 2023 when the water was at a normal level.
And here’s Burg Maus.
Bacharach is one of the cutest towns on the Wine Trail, with lots of half-timbered buildings. I stayed in a pretty historic inn there.
Is this statue saying that wine makes fools out of men? Seen in Oberwesel.
Yummy pastries on display in Bacharach.
St. Peter’s Church in Bacharach. Note all the half-timbered buildings in the city center.
Me with Burg Katz, the Rhine River, and the village of St. Goarhausen behind me.
I love all the business signs that let you know exactly what you’ll find in the shop. Yep, this is a wine shop in Bacharach.
Oberwesel has a an annual Wine Festival in September of each year. That’s one big wine glass!
Mona had Black Forest cake, her favorite. This one is Frankfurter Torte, which was a yellow cake with layers of cream and some cherry filling.
I had to try federweisser (new wine) and zweibelkuchen (onion tart) one more time before leaving Germany. In St. Goar. By the way, St. Goar has a wonderful cuckoo clock shop that I’ve described in my post entitled “Cuckoo! Cuckoo!”
The Brezel (pretzel) indicates a bakery, although the cafe also had a few entrees as well as baked goods. In St. Goar.
Whelp, you know what they sell here — beer and plenty of it!
Burg Katz up on the hill, now a private residence.
Burg Stahleck. That castle holding a commanding position on a hill above Bacharach was built in the early 12th century on the orders of the archbishop of Cologne. Burg Stahleck guarded the Loreley Valley until it was destroyed in the late 17th century. It was rebuilt in the 20th century and now serves as a hostel with an amazing view.
A different view of Burg Stahleck.
Bacharach, which was my base for this day’s explorations, is about an hour’s drive (90 km) west of Frankfurt, or about 45-50 minutes (50km) south of Koblenz. However, I arrived by train. Bacharach has good connections to other parts of Germany.