Germany's Romantic Rhine and Rothenburg
Cruising the Rhine River, we dodge riverboat traffic and the legendary Lorelei. After climbing castles and descending into dungeons, we relax with Rhine wine. We tour Burg Eltz — a lived-in castle where the noble lady still puts out fresh flowers. Then we enter the walled town of Rothenburg for Germany's best wood carving, a vivid dose of medieval punishment, and a tour with the night watchman of the town's lamp-lit ramparts.
- Read the script from the show.
Travel Details
The Heidrich Family
For a fun, family-run wine shop and Stube in the town center, visit Weingut Karl Heidrich (at Oberstrasse 18, near Hotel Kranenturm), where Markus proudly shares his family's wine while passionately explaining its fine points to travelers. They offer a variety of wine carousels with six wines, which are ideal for the more sophisticated wine-taster (tel. 06743/93060).
Burg Eltz
My favorite castle in all of Europe lurks in a mysterious forest. It's been left intact for 700 years and is furnished throughout as it was 500 years ago. Thanks to smart diplomacy and clever marriages, Burg Eltz was never destroyed. (It survived one 5-year siege.) It's been in the Eltz family for 820 years.The scenic, 90-minute walk up the Elz Valley to the castle makes a great half-day outing if you're staying anywhere along the Mosel — and a fun day trip if you're staying on the Rhine (pick up the free English descriptions at entry, tel. 02672/950-500).
Hotel Haus Lipmann
Marktplatz 3
Beilstein
tel. 02673/1573
fax 02673/1521
hotel.haus.lipmann@t-online.de
Night Watchman
In Rothenburg, this tour is flat-out the most entertaining hour of medieval wonder anywhere in Germany. The Night Watchman (a.k.a. Hans-Georg Baumgartner) jokes like a medieval Jerry Seinfeld as he lights his lamp and takes tourists on his one-hour rounds, telling slice-of-gritty-life tales of medieval Rothenburg (mid-March-Dec nightly, in English, meet at Market Square). This is the best evening activity in town.
For up-to-date specifics, see the latest edition of the Rick Steves' Germany travel guide — or join us on one of our free-spirited Germany tours.