Romantic Germany: Spring awakening at Easter time

Koblenz, March 2017: Romantic Germany, Rhineland-Palatinate – Two things are inextricably linked with the federal state in the south-west of Germany: firstly, wine, since 70% of all German wine is produced in Rhineland-Palatinate; and secondly, romantic rivers enhanced by countless castles and fortresses. However, the Mediterranean aspect of Rhineland-Palatinate is very little known. People from the region and beyond have been eyeing a small district of Neustadt an der Weinstraße, memorably named Gimmeldingen, with curiosity for quite some time now. The local wine festival with its unique focus on the almond blossom is the oldest of its kind and regularly opens the wine-festival season in Germany from March onwards, followed by the Moselle Vineyard Peach Blossom Market along the Moselle in April. For many people in Rhineland-Palatinate, this is an unmistakable sign that winter has finally come to an end, ushering in the pleasant things in life. We will show them to you.

Moselle – Germany's oldest wine-growing region and the 'second Rome'
People in Rhineland-Palatinate do not consider the beginning of spring to be a meteorological or a calendar date. For them, and meanwhile also for other parts of Germany, a newly established specific date is the decisive factor: the Moselle Vineyard Peach Blossom Market in Cochem on the 8 and 9 April is a real crowd-puller. A variety of products like teas, sandwich spreads, liqueurs, chocolates and other delicacies produced from this delicious fruit can be purchased between 11:00 and 17:00. Everyone eagerly awaits the grand spring awakening, because it is from this time onwards that life in Rhineland-Palatinate, for both residents and visitors, moves outdoors. Countless wineries throw open their doors for wine tasting. Several activities, such as a hike along the award-winning Moselle trail, a ranger-guided hike in the unblemished nature of Hunsrück-Hochwald National Park, or simply a stroll through the idyllic vineyards surrounding the Great Wine Capital Mainz, are also available to visitors. Or how about a leisurely bike trip? The 25th anniversary of 'Happy Mosel' is celebrated on the 11 June: the pleasure of 85 km of car-free cycling along the Moselle between Pünderich and Winningen. You should certainly not fail to visit the Imperial Castle in Cochem. The opening concert of the Moselle Music Festival in Trier, the oldest city in Germany and the 'second Rome', on the 8 July is perfect for those with a preference for the classical. The Rhineland-Palatinate cultural summer programme, named 'Epochs and Episodes' on the occasion of the Reformation anniversary, opens two months earlier, from the 5–7 May. Genuine nostalgics truly get their money's worth at the new Moselland Museum in Ernst near Cochem: visitors are immersed in the village life of the 'good old days'. This nostalgic experience of the sixties is spread across four floors, with a total exhibition area of about 1,600 m². Some can even fulfil a long-cherished dream and drive a tractor. Tractors are immediately available for hire; the oldest model is a 1951 Fendt Dieselross F15 G.

Surprising Germany
We recommend the German Volcano Route for visitors who would like to experience something special in Rhineland-Palatinate by car. 'GeoSaison', a leading German travel magazine, voted it one of the 10 most spectacular road trips in Germany, together with the German Wine Route and the Rhine Romanticism Route, which both also pass though the region but are considerably better known. The 280 km take you past cinder cones, craters and geysers. The route starts at the Laacher See, a volcanic crater lake formed by an eruption more than 13,000 years ago. A jump into its cool waters in summer works miracles and does so much more than just revive weary hikers.

Enough reason to celebrate?
2017 marks the 200th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone of the fortified city of Koblenz, the only city on both the Rhine and the Moselle. Fort Constantine, Fort Asterstein, Kaiser Franz Fortress, Neuendorfer Flèche and Ehrenbreitstein Fortress are all parts of the Prussian 'Koblenz and Ehrenbreitstein Fortress' city fortifications. Their impressive perimeter of 14 km makes them one of Europe's largest complex fortifications built in the 19th century.

Our service for you:
TourComm Germany is the Rheinland-Pfalz Tourismus–authorised sales and marketing agency for the British travel market. We are available to answer all your questions concerning particular hotels, offers or other matters and would be delighted to do so.
We recommend our website www.romantic-germany.info , which have additional information on the Rhineland-Palatinate waiting for you. You also have access to innumerable images via our picture database at no charge. Should you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Endnote
Top 100 sights in Germany
The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) interviewed over 44,000 visitors from 66 countries about their favourite attractions in Germany. There's now a Top 100 list for 2016, which also includes several in Rhineland-Palatinate: Number 12 (Moselle), Number 19 (Loreley, Upper Middle Rhine Valley), Number 26 (Eltz Castle), Number 28 (Trier, Roman monuments, UNESCO World Heritage Site), Number 32 (Speyer, cathedral, UNESCO World Heritage Site), Number 46 (Imperial Castle, Cochem), Number 53 (Eifel National Park), Number 68 (Coblenz, Deutsches Eck, Ehrenbreitstein Fortress), Number 85 (longest suspension bridge 'Geierlay' near Idar-Oberstein), Number 87 (Neustadt an der Weinstraße, Hambach Castle).

Best wishes,
Your Rhineland-Palatinate Team

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