My family will arrive in June in Frankfurt scheduled flight arrival at 7am. We have Eurailpasses. How hard would it be to try getting to Koblenz in time to catch a 9:45 cruise departure on the KD line to Cochem. How close to the boat terminal is the train station in Koblenz? How long does it usually take to deplane, get luggage and through any customs? We were in Germany 20 years ago, and it seems that since there is a rail station at the airport, it might be possible, but don%26#39;t want to start the trip off on a nerve racking dash! Thanks !
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%26gt;How hard would it be to try getting to Koblenz in time to catch a 9:45 cruise departure on the KD line to Cochem.
It is challenging but surely possible. Check for train schedules at www.bahn.de
From: FRA airport
to: Koblenz
In the worst case you can take a train from Koblenz towards Trier which follows the Mosel and will quickly overtake the boat.
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I think (but am not totally sure) that the train station in Koblenz is not directly by the river, but a taxi ride away. Perhaps someone else knows about this?
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The Die Bahn site says that the KD Dock is a 2km walk from the train station. There is a bus but it takes 26 minutes. A taxi would probably be the answer.
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en
From: Koblenz hbf
To: Koblenz KD
We have flown into Frankfurt a couple times the last 3 years. It is a large airport. Customs will take little time if you have nothing to declare; but, one of the two years we had a substantial wait at passport control.
We also had a substantial wait for a luggage the first year. Last year we used only carry-on luggage.
Regards, Gary
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You will need to go to the Airport train station desk to validate your Eurail pass (required before use). Go to bahn.de and look at the departures for Koblenz from the airport station...at least 1 hour 12 min, up tp 1hour 30min. Even leaving by 8 am puts you into Koblenz just after 9 am, and that would be a near miracle to get thru luggage wait (unless you carry on, which I do) and then thru passport control.
Also, the cruise from Koblenz to Cochem, though scenic, is upriver, and extremely slow. It will use up a large part of your first day in Germany. I have taken the boat downriver from Cochem to Koblenz, and also many times along the Rhein Middle Valley. The boats on the Mosel to Cochem are much smaller. After a long plane ride, I would recommend spending the night in Koblenz, then continuing on, or even just taking the train to Cochem and then using the boat to visit some of the villages downstream from Cochem, returning by train.
Are you also using the Eurail pass for the K-D boats on the Rhein? If you stay in Koblenz, you could go by boat to Braubach to see the Marksburg Castle across the river, or to other villages nearby, returning by train.
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Just checked the K-D schedule--depart Koblenz 9:45 am, arrive Cochem 15.00 (3 pm). I see that that is the only departure for the day. That%26#39;s nearly six hours, just after many hours on the plane.
The train ride up the Mosel from Koblenz will follow the river most of the way, and give you more flexibility, too. It stops at many villages and gives you a close up view of the terraced vineyards lining each side of the Mosel.
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I know how I feel after an overnight trans-atlantic flight, and doing what you have planned sounds like misery to me. Why the rush? This IS a nerve-wracking dash. What if your flight is delayed or your bags are late, then all you are doing is worrying instead of relaxing on your vacation. Do the cruise the next day, or stay in Mainz overnight and get on the boat there and take it downriver. This is a great cruise in my opinion.
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I agree with the others - this is a mad dash and probability you won%26#39;t make it is very high.
If you absolutely want a cruise on your first day, there is a more relaxed option: Do a river cruise on the Rhine. Take the S-Bahn to Mainz and change onto a local train to, for example, Bingen. Get on board there and cruise the Rhine gorge, which is marvelous - either the whole way to Koblenz or get off at one of the smaller places along the way and back on the train, then continue to Cochem by train. You can then do a Mosel cruise the next day.
Advantages:
- Less distance to cover from the airport to where the cruise departs.
- There are more departures on the Rhine, thus more flexibility.
- The direction is downstream, thus faster.
- You can choose if you want to do the whole length of the Rhine gorge or just a part of it. Local trains to Koblenz run along both river banks at least once per hour. Thgey stop everywhere. In those small villages and towns the way between train station and boat landing is short.
- The train ride from Koblenz to Cochem is about half an hour, compared to six hours on the boat.
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