Medieval Middle Rhine Cruise

TRAVEL
VIP door-to-door travel service from anywhere on the UK mainland
Included travel insurance
Return coach travel via Eurotunnel or ferry

ACCOMMODATION
Complimentary Wi-Fi onboard

EXPERIENCES
Cruise Host
Cruise Assistant on board
Entertainment and activities on the ship
Tour of Trier

FOOD & DRINK
32 meals: 11 breakfasts, 10 lunches and 11 dinners
Free bar open 12 hours a day
Wine, beer and soft drinks with lunch and dinner
Drinks reception and Captain’s dinner

Travel by coach from Folkestone to Cologne via Eurotunnel or ferry. The 430km journey will take approximately five hours.

Embark Rex Rheni and enjoy a welcome reception and dinner on board.

Set sail for Koblenz early this morning. Its origins date back to Roman times and the city is a delight to explore. You may prefer to join an optional excursion that tours the city and visits Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, reached by cable car. Cruise to Winningen where you moor overnight.

Depart Winningen this morning and cruise towards Cochem.

Look out for terraced vineyards and attractive villages as you continue upstream to Cochem, arriving at lunchtime. This small town commands the most beautiful of settings and has a romantic neo-Gothic castle which towers above the river and crowns a hill cloaked entirely in vines. Although most of the castle was rebuilt in the 19th century, the original 11th-century keep still survives. You might like to explore it on an optional tour and take in magnificent views of the Moselle.

Sail to Zell this evening, a famous wine town located on one of the most beautiful points on the Moselle. From the ship you may be be able to spot parts of the old walls and charming gabled houses.

Mid-morning, sail from Zell to the captivating and charming town of Bernkastel-Kues. It's one of the prettiest small towns in Germany where colourful Renaissance houses line the market square. Perhaps join an optional walking tour and trip on the panoramic train.

Moor here overnight.

Depart Bernkastel-Kues early this morning and spend an afternoon in Germany’s oldest city, Trier, founded in 16BC by Emperor Augustus. It retains many relics of its illustrious past as you will discover on an included tour to see the spectacular Porta Nigra, one of the best-preserved Roman city gates in the world, and the cathedral.

Take in the stunning scenery as you leave Trier, and admire the dramatic landscapes of the Moselle as you cruise to the ‘twin towns’ of Traben-Trarbach which straddle the river, linked by a bridge. Moor here in what was once the second-largest wine-trading centre in Europe, after the French city of Bordeaux. You will be struck by Traben-Trarbach’s contrast with the half-timbered architecture of other Moselle wine villages. Many of its buildings are in a smart art nouveau style, known in Germany as Jugendstil. These include a number of grand villas built for wealthy wine merchants by the Berlin architect Bruno Möhring.

Perhaps join an optional wine tasting to sample more great wines.

Enjoy a leisurely day cruising along the beautiful Moselle to the picturesque town of Boppard Boasting more than 2,000 years of history, this picturesque town is located in the valley of the mythical Lorelei.

This evening you can go ashore and explore the town. The Rheinallee along the waterfront is an attractive promenade, and the Gothic Carmelite Church is famous for its 15th-century choir stalls. Alternatively, enjoy an optional wine tasting at a local winery. You remain moored in Boppard overnight.

Depart Boppard this morning and sail south past the famous Cat and Mouse castles.

Shortly after you will pass the Lorelei rock, where legend has it that a siren sang to sailors, luring their ships onto the submerged rocks where the men drowned. As you approach the base of the rock, keep your eye out for her bronze statue perched on a narrow strip of land. On arrival in the fascinating town of Rüdesheim, explore streets of charming half-timbered houses, head to the wine taverns of the Drosselgasse or sample the excellent coffee, served in ceramic goblets, for which this town is renowned.

Alternatively, join an optional wine tasting or optional visit to Siegfried’s Museum of Mechanical Music, to see and hear extraordinary self-playing musical instruments. Your ship remains moored overnight in Rüdesheim.

Arrive in Mainz this morning and enjoy time to explore independently. The capital of Rheinland-Pfalz, Mainz has a large Romanesque red sandstone cathedral, which retains its cloisters. Behind the cathedral in Gutenbergplatz square is a statue of Johannes Gutenberg, the father of modern printing. During lunch, continue to Andernach, where the old town reveals part of its medieval fortifications. Perhaps join an optional excursion to see the geyser there.

The ship sails from Andernach early this morning and continues downstream to the small town of Königswinter, arriving after breakfast.

Here, you might like to travel by rack-railway up the hillside to the ruined castle of Drachenfels on an optional excursion. Dating from the 12th century and immortalised by Wagner, it was here that Siegfried slew the dragon and then bathed in its blood to render himself invulnerable.

Arrive in Bonn after lunch. One of Germany's oldest cities, and its provisional capital city between 1949 and 1990, it remained the seat of the German federal government until as recently as 1999. Enjoy exploring independently, and see magnificent baroque palaces and historic buildings from the 16th century. Alternatively, join an optional city walking tour with a local guide.

Depart Bonn before breakfast and arrive in Cologne mid-morning.

An optional city tour offers a great way to see some of the city’s main attractions. Arguably most famous for its eponymous brand of perfume, which has now become a generic term for men's aftershave, Cologne was founded by the Romans and has long been an important trading centre. The vast Gothic cathedral that towers over the surroundings was started in 1248 as a pilgrimage church to house the relics of the Three Magi. The two spires are 157 metres high, and were not completed until 1880.

Your ship returns to Königswinter to moor overnight.

Disembark your ship after breakfast and start your return journey to the UK.