1 Day in the Mosel Area around the renowned Vineyards
1 Day in the Mosel Area around the renowned Vineyards
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Well, the Mosel area is one of Germanys most beautiful places and a must-see when you visit Germany or even live in Germany. From my home its actually only 2 hours away. Crazy how many times we want to travel far away, although there are incredible places directly in front of our homes. There are definitely a lot more places then listed below, but these 5 stops can be done in one long day, as we did a few weeks ago. They are not far away from each other. But keep in mind that castle Eltz is a big tourist attraction for people from all over the world, so be there as early as possible.
The Mosel river starts in the Vogesen mountains of France, after more than 500km of loops, the Mosel flows into the Rhein near Koblenz. Typical for the Mosel valley are the slate slopes, which are full of minerals. Extraordinary tender-fruity Riesling wines with high acid grow on steep schist slopes at the banks of the Mosel, which are admired by gourmets of wine all over the world.
1. Visit the castle “Burg Eltz”
Burg Eltz, built in the 12th century, is one of the most famous castles in Germany for tourist all over the world. Surrounded by the forest, this particularly high and at the same time compact castle looks just like a fairy castle. Be there for sunrise or sunset, in the middle of the day it gets really crowded! You can leave your car at the parking space and walk down the street towards the castle. Walk down the stairs to the little river, cross the bridge and hike up the forest until you reach this incredible viewpoint where you can sit down on slate and will be rewarded with the view over the entire castle.
2. Hike the “Traumpfad Hatzenporter Laysteig”
This 11,9km long, so called dream hike along the vineyards and riverside of the Mosel valley is one of the most beautiful hikes in this area. Leave your car in Hatzenport and climb the stairs behind the train station. The hike starts with beautiful trails through the vineyards, followed by meadows and fields, a little bit of forrest, until you get back to Hatzenport.
3. Take a break at the hanging rope bridge Geierlay
After the last probably exhausting hike, drive to the nearby hanging rope bridge Geierlay. This bridge in the middle of the forrest looks so beautiful. If you want to see this bridge with some mist over the trees you might want to change your schedule, and start the day with the bridge for sunrise or end the day at this bridge for sunset.
4. Climb Calmont viewpoint “Moselschleife”
This 3 km hike at the steep slate slope of Calmont isn’t that long, but really steep. It’s called Calmont via ferrata, but actually it isn’t a fixed rope route. You can go up there as a normal hiker, but bring good shoes, because the trails can be very muddy and slippery. The Calmont mountain is actually the steepest vineyards of Europe, crazy how the winemakers work here right?
Drive your car to the village Bremm, directly at the Mosel loop. From there walk up the hill on the streets until you rech the begining of the hiking trail. 400 meters higher you will even find a summit cross. But actually the view between the trees further down is a lot better than at the summit! Wait there for sunset and watch the light changing on the Mosel.
If you have a bit time left until sunset, like we had, you can take a little walk through the forest at the Calmont mountain and come back to the viewpoint when the sun is setting. Also don’t forget to taste a wine from the Mosel area ;)!
5. Have a dinner in Cochem
On the way back home or back to your hotel, you can stop in the city Cochem. Especially in the evening the illuminated riverside promenade with the view of the castle “Reichsburg” 154 meters higher on the hill, looks really special. The castle was destroyed in the 17th century and rebuilt in the 19th century. Cochem is the most touristic city at the Mosel, but the historic buildings around the marketplace are worth a visit!
More hikes in the Mosel area:
- “Traumpfad Eltzer Burgpanorama”: 12,6 km, circular hike route, through forests, 3.5 hours, view of Burg Eltz
- “Prinzenkopfturm”: 235 m high mountain, near Pünderich, 23 m high viewing tower
- “Pyrmonter Felsensteig”: 11,5 km, through forests and little waterfall, to the castle Pyrmont
- “Traumpfädchen Moseltraum”: 3,4 km, 1 hour, terrasses of vineyards in Winningen, to the “Domgartenhütte”
- “Weindörfer Wanderweg”: 19 km, around 5 hours, circular hike route, starts in Wintrich along the Mosel to Brauneberg, to Mülheim, Veldenz, Burgen, back to Wintrich.
- Long “Moselsteig”: in total 365 km, from the border of Luxemburg/France/Germany along the vineyards to Koblenz
More beautiful villages in the Mosel area:
- Beilstein: cute village with small alleys, half-timbered houses, beautiful stairs in front of the monastery, view of castle Metternich
- Brauneberg: walnut avenue at the riverside promenade, Riesling vineyards Brauneberger Juffer
- Veldenz: known for the Villa Romana
- Winningen: Near Koblenz, historic buildings, big wine festival in the late summer
- Monastery Machern: near Bernkastel-Kues, nice café
More beautiful castles:
- Castle Thurant: located in Alken
- Castle Landshut: oldest one, in Bernkastel-Kues
- Castle Pyrmont: near Roes
- Castle Grevenburg: in Traben-Trarbach
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