Cochem & Moselle Valley
One of Germany's most beautiful river valleys, where Cochem's Reichsburg overlooks a bend in the Moselle, the village of Beilstein looks like a fairytale set, and steep vineyards produce Riesling white wines.
The Moselle Valley is one of Germany's most beautiful wine valleys. After flowing in from France and Luxembourg, the river winds for about 240 km between the low Eifel and Hunsrück uplands before joining the Rhine at Koblenz. Cochem, in the middle of the valley, has around 5,000 residents and is the seat of the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate. It is the most convenient base for exploring the middle and lower Moselle: the Reichsburg castle towers over the vineyard-covered hill, half-timbered houses line the river in the old town, and the boat landing, train station and plenty of wine taverns are all close at hand.
Upstream from Cochem are Beilstein, the "Sleeping Beauty of the Moselle"; the horseshoe bend at Bremm and the Calmont, Europe's steepest vineyard; Zell; the Art Nouveau buildings of Traben-Trarbach; and the fairytale market square of Bernkastel-Kues. Downstream are Thurant Castle and the "Moselle Cathedral" in Karden. In the hills on either side, you can cross the Geierlay suspension bridge or visit Pyrmont Castle and Maria Laach Abbey. Nearby Eltz Castle belongs to the Middle Rhine Valley destination; it's reachable by train from Cochem to Moselkern followed by a walk of about 1 hour.
The best time to visit is May–Oct; the grape harvest and village wine festivals make Sep–Oct especially atmospheric, and Nov–Dec brings Christmas markets. In winter some castles close and river cruises stop. Getting there: about 2 hours by car from Frankfurt Airport, or around 50 minutes by regional train from Koblenz to Cochem. Trains, buses and summer boats connect the riverside villages, though driving is the most flexible. Allow 2–3 days. Riesling wine, tastings at Moselle wineries and hiking the Moselsteig trail are must-dos.
Top sights
- Reichsburg Cochem – A neo-Gothic castle perched on a vineyard hill, with spires overlooking a bend of the Moselle. It is one of Germany's most photogenic castl…
- Cochem Old Town & Moselle Promenade – Colorful half-timbered houses surround the market square, with a baroque town hall and medieval city gates. The riverside promenade is the…
- Beilstein – A small village known as the “Sleeping Beauty of the Moselle,” with cobbled lanes, half-timbered houses and the ruins of Metternich Castle…
- Geierlay Suspension Bridge – A 360-meter pedestrian suspension bridge about 100 m above the valley floor, crossing a forested gorge in the Hunsrück hills. Walking acros…
- Eltz Castle – A fairy-tale castle hidden in a forested valley, held by the same family for more than thirty generations and never conquered. It is one of…
- Cochem Chairlift & Pinnerkreuz – Ride a vintage two-seat chairlift up to the Pinnerkreuz viewpoint, overlooking Reichsburg Castle, Cochem's old town, and the bend of the Mo…
- Bundesbank Bunker Cochem – An underground vault where the German Bundesbank secretly stored 15 billion marks in emergency currency during the Cold War. It is now open…
- Historic Mustard Mill Cochem – A family mustard mill that still uses a stone mill dating back to 1810 to cold-grind mustard. Visitors can watch a live demonstration and s…
- Wild- und Freizeitpark Klotten – A wildlife park and amusement park on the wooded hillside north of Cochem, where you can feed deer, watch birds of prey in flight, and ride…
- Bremm Moselle Loop & Calmont – The most spectacular horseshoe bend of the Moselle. Beside it lies the Calmont, Europe's steepest vineyard, with a thrilling vineyard climb…
- Ediger-Eller & Kreuzkapelle – A wine village with well-preserved half-timbered houses, and a Cross Chapel in the hillside vineyards that houses a rare stone carving of C…
- Zell (Mosel) – A small town famous for Zeller Schwarze Katz wine, where a riverside promenade, the Black Cat Fountain, and a viewpoint above the river ben…
- Burg Arras – A castle on the hilltop above Alf village, founded in the 10th century and now a castle hotel with a small museum. The main tower offers ex…
- Traben-Trarbach – Twin wine towns facing each other across the river. The Art Nouveau Bridge Gate and wine merchants' villas designed by Bruno Möhring form o…
- Bernkastel-Kues – The most popular small town in the middle Mosel. Its market square is ringed by steep-roofed half-timbered houses, and the Landshut Castle…
- St. Castor, Karden – A Romanesque-Gothic church known as the Mosel Cathedral, with three towers rising by the river. It houses a medieval clay altarpiece and th…
- Burg Pyrmont & Waterfall – A 13th-century castle deep in the Elzbach valley. The waterfall below its stone walls, beside an old mill, forms a classic scene of the Eif…
- Burg Thurant – A twin-tower castle rising above the vineyards above Alken village. It was once split in two after being shared by the archbishops of Colog…
- Maria Laach Abbey & Laacher See – A Benedictine abbey on the shore of a volcanic crater lake. Its six-towered Romanesque church is a landmark of German Romanesque architectu…
Where to eat
- Herbs Restaurant (Hotel Hegenbarth) – TripAdvisor's top-ranked hotel restaurant in Cochem, where the chef reinterprets Moselle regional dishes using ingredie…
- Zom Stüffje – A small tavern in a historic half-timbered house in Cochem's Old Town, where the pork tenderloin with Béarnaise sauce i…
- Alte Gutsschänke – An old-fashioned tavern on the road up to the Reichsburg castle, pairing estate-made Moselle wines with cold cuts and c…
- Lohspeicher Auberge du Vin – A small family-run restaurant in an 1839 building beside the market square, where the chef sets seasonal set menus with…
Itineraries
- Car-Free Moselle Valley – From Eltz Castle to Trier, explore wine villages and ancient Roman ruins at a leisurely pace by train, bus, and boat.
- Rhine, Moselle, Saar & Heidelberg – A grand self-drive loop starting from Frankfurt, winding along the Rhine, Moselle, and Saar rivers to Heidelberg.