Bingen am Rhein Germany Baden-Wurttemberg
Frequently Asked Questions
Along the Kulturufer, the culture bank, a redesigned waterfront promenade running past the centre, dotted with gardens and artworks. Everything is walkable from the gangway: the shopping lanes are a few minutes away.
The Mouse Tower, standing on an islet in the middle of the river. Legend has it that Archbishop Hatto II, who starved his people, took refuge there to escape a horde of vengeful mice that finally devoured him. In the Middle Ages the tower more prosaically collected tolls from passing ships, along with Ehrenfels Castle, whose ruin still clings to the slope opposite.
Yes. The castle crowns a knoll above the rooftops, about fifteen minutes' climb from the quay. Its terrace gives a wide view over the confluence of the Rhine and the Nahe, the gorge, and the vineyards of Rüdesheim opposite.
A museum housed in a former power station at the water's edge, right on the promenade. It has a permanent exhibition on Hildegard of Bingen and displays a set of Roman surgical instruments found locally, a striking record of ancient medicine. The visit fits easily into a port call.
A 12th-century abbess, composer, naturalist and mystic, canonised and named a Doctor of the Church in 2012. She is the great figure of the town, and the Museum am Strom devotes a permanent exhibition to her.
Because it sits at the confluence of the Rhine and the Nahe, exactly where the river leaves the plain and plunges into the gorge. The Romans already had a bridge and a garrison here. This is where the Upper Middle Rhine Valley begins, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Yes, a ferry runs regularly between Bingen and Rüdesheim on the opposite bank, for anyone who wants to wander the other side of the river.
Head up the Rochusberg, the wooded hill bordering the town to the south, barely thirty minutes' walk from the quay. Shaded paths, a pilgrimage chapel and glimpses over the valley make a peaceful interlude, best in clear weather.
The euro and German. Cards work in shops and wine bars in the centre, but keep a few euros in cash for ferries, small terraces and ticket desks. English is understood along the promenade and at the museum.
Yes, it is genuinely worth it. Pulling away from the quay, the ship passes the island tower, salutes the Ehrenfels ruin and enters the gorge where castles will follow one another for hours. Few stretches of river in Europe open as theatrically, and this is exactly where it starts.
