Rhine River Cruise: The Gorge & Rüdesheim

Our morning started bright and early sailing into the Rhine River Gorge (aka Upper Middle Rhine Valley, a 40-mile section of the Rhine between Koblenz and Rüdesheim). 

Some history:

In 2002, this area was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site for “its natural beauty, importance as a route of transport across Europe, and the unique adaptations of the buildings and terraces to the steep slopes of the gorge.” The steep valley has been terraced for vineyards for over 1000 years and features 40 hill-top castles and fortresses. Most were abandoned during the wars of the 17th century. During the 19th century's "Romantic Movement," many were restored and/or reconstructed. 

Ama provided us with a map that listed each of the castles we passed (which I have since misplaced), so here is a link to a page with AmaWaterways’ favorite castles along this stretch of river.

As you can see from my photos, the weather was glorious, and the staff did a fantastic job of keeping us hydrated. 

In the afternoon, we docked in Rüdesheim. Since we were on a wine cruise, we chose an excursion that visited the tasting room of a local, family-owned winery, Weingut Adolf Stoerzel, which specializes in Reisling and Pinot Noir. The tasting took place in the Bassenheimer Hof, whose wine cellars—carved several meters into the mountain—go back to the late 1400s.

After the tasting, we had time to explore the town on our own. We met up with our new friends Dan and Benny to check out the Christmas shop (Käthe Wohlfahrt, a name we’d see in every town we visited) before we separated to wander the streets on our own, including the Drosselgasse, a narrow pedestrian-only corridor of Rudesheim that features several different wine shops and restaurants (it also features hundreds upon hundreds of tourists and was somewhat overwhelming). We stopped in one shop looking to purchase wine but had the oddest experience when the proprietor became aggressive with us about sugar in wine. Obviously, we are not winemakers, but we drink a lot of it, and we’ve visited several different wine-growing regions across the globe, so I like to think we know at least a little bit about it, but this guy obviously thought we were morons. Naturally, we did not buy any wine from him. In fact, we didn’t buy any wine while stopped in Rüdesheim. Instead, we strolled back down to the river and hopped back on the boat for a bit before dinner. 

After dinner—which was a very good schnitzel—we had the opportunity to visit a cafe for a traditional Rüdesheimer Kaffee, a drink created in the 1950s. To make it, Asbach Uralt brandy and sugar cubes are added to a cup that is specially designed for this beverage. The brandy is then flambéed, and coffee is added before topping it with whipped cream and chocolate flakes. We typically don’t drink coffee after 12 p.m., but when in Rome—err, Rüdesheim as the case may be. 

While some folks—including many of the ship’s staff—sought out evening entertainment in town, we ventured back to the boat, where we grabbed a cocktail and enjoyed the lovely weather (until mosquitos chased us back indoors).