The Moselle Cycle Path
- Relaxed cycling through Germany's most famous wine growing vineyards
- Wine tastings at one of the many wine cellars
- Explore the Roman City of Trier, Germany's oldest city
- Wander the half-timbered streets of medieval towns along the way
- Tuck into delicious regional specialties each night
Itinerary
Day 1 Arrive in TrierThe Roman city of Trier is the starting point for your adventure through the vineyards of the Moselle Valley. Founded in 16BC, Trier is arguably Germany’s oldest city and literally overflowing with classical historical sights. The Imperial Thermal Baths (Kaiserthermen) are the highlight but other attractions include the medieval Hauptmarkt square, St. Gangolfs Church, the Red House, the Porta Nigra, the Benedictine Abbey of St. Matthew and the fortified residential towers.
Hotel Zur Post in Trier-Ruwer is a lovingly restored building of the former customs and post office was built in 1612 and has since four generations of family ownership. This historic guest house offers modern rooms, a stylish restaurant, a sunny garden terrace and parking facilities for cars.
Begin your journey on the Moselle Cycle Path by pedalling north east out of Trier, soon passing the town of Schweich. From here you are immersed in a vineyard covered landscape. Reach your destination for the day, Trittenheim. Here a wine nature trail provides you with general information about wine - we would recommend a wine tasting and cellar tour at one of the local vineyards.
Total ascent/descent: 29m/28m
A family run guest house perfectly located in the centre of the wine region of Trittenheim on the Mosel, and just a 5-minute walk to the center of Trittenheim. Enjoy the property's patio with a glass of wine in the evening, with views of the vineyards. Wine tasting can also be arranged here should you arrive at the guest house earlier in the day.
Sip on exclusive Riesling wines from the Moselle region in this family-run manor hotel, including wine from their own vineyard. Wine tasting is also available here. Located in the center of the dreamlike town of Trittenheim, their sun terrace and wine bar is a popular place to meet for the locals.
A family-run guest house and winery located directly on the Moselle promenade in Trittenheim, with views of the Moselle River. The winery has a long traition of producing high-quality Rieslings. Enjoy sipping on the winery's wines on their terrace, or take part in a wine tasting.
Wine-lovers are in for a treat today! This morning cycle through Neumagen-Drohn, the oldest and most famous wine producing area in Germany. The Roman wine press in Piesport is another compulsory stop, as is the village of Bernkastel, well-known for its medieval timber framed houses. The market square makes for a perfect lunch spot. Zeltingen, filled with baroque style buildings, is your destination for the day.
Total ascent/descent: 27m/32m
A friendly traditional family run hotel with a winery, featuring 27 cosy rooms and suites, partly in a romantic half-timber upscale cottage, and partly in a modern wine-style design. The winery offers more than 700 excellent wines and you can enjoy a fresh and regional meal (partly organic ingredients) at their restaurant.
The Moselhotel Sonnenuhr welcomes you in a unique location on the banks of the Moselle, not far from Bernkastel-Kues and with a view of the vineyards. Enjoy a lovely breakfast on the terrace with view to the river and vineyards.
A comfortable family-run hotel in the heart of Zeltingen-Rachtig. The converted old school house has its own restaurant and terrace, as well as a good selection of wines.
Continue through the famous Kröver Nacktarsch wine producing area to Traben-Trarbach, which has many fine examples of Jugendstil buildings. Enkirch, with its characteristic half-timbered buildings is just a little further on before a minor climb over Zeller Hamm to be greeted by the vineyard-blanketed landscape surrounding Zell.
Total ascent/descent: 143m/111m
Located 100 metres from the Moselle River in the heart of the historic town of Zell on its pedestrian zone. It's only a few meters to the Moselle River, where you'll find the boat docks offering boat trips, and the promenade. They have an on-site restaurant where you can dine on its terrace in the pedestrian zone and watch the world go by.
The route today winds through a procession of picture postcard villages. Beilstein and Cochem are both enchanting, as is the 11th century Reichsburg castle. Finally your route brings you to Treis-Karden, another charming town filled with castles, churches and half timbered houses.
Total ascent/descent: 22m/54m
A family-run guest house with a traditional wine bar, offering hearty breakfasts. Guests can dine in the on-site restaurant, which serves German cuisine as well as vegetarian, vegan and dairy-free options. Wine tastings are available, which can be enjoyed with a wagon ride around the vineyards, as well as a spit-roast meal.
Begin your day with a visit to the medieval castle Eltz before following excellent cycle paths to Koblenz. En route don’t miss the oldest timber-framed house in Germany, the Abteihof in Kobern-Gondorf, which dates from 1320. The ‘Deutsche Eck’ (German Corner), with its monumental statue of Emperor William I at the confluence of the Moselle and Rhine today celebrates German reunification and is a suitable highlight to bring your trip to an end.
Total ascent/descent: 29m/57m
The family-run hotel in the city of Koblenz is located by the station in downtown Koblenz just a few minutes cycle from the Moselle Cycle path and the famous Deutsche Eck where the Moselle meets the Rhine.
The Mercure Hotel Koblenz is located in the southern part of Koblenz city center between Koblenz Electoral Palace and Rhein-Mosel-Halle. Set on the banks of the romantic River Rhine, with a view to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley.
Your trip comes to an end after breakfast, but you may wish to extend your stay in Koblenz or perhaps journey along the Rhine by bike, boat or on foot.
This trip has a carbon score of 8kg per person per night, meaning it’s one of our best trips! For comparison, a carbon count of 8kg is equivalent to 12 pints of local beer at the bar. Here at Macs, we pride ourselves on being a responsible travel company and continue to adopt, develop and innovate ways to positively impact the environment. Find out more information on how we've carbon counted our trips.
Other Information
Is it for me?The Moselle Cycle Path is perfect for families, beginners or regular cyclists looking to combine easy riding with wonderful scenery, beautiful towns and cities, and delicious local cuisine. Don’t miss it!
Classic Routes | If you’re the active, outdoorsy type, who’s interested in taking on the great routes of the world or looking for a challenge, then our Classic Routes are for you. We’re talking the West Highland Way, Tour Du Mont Blanc and the Passau to Vienna Danube Cycle Path, to name but a few!
Leisure Cycling | Leisure Cycling
Solo Travellers, Families with Teens
The minimum age for this tour is: 5 Years
This cycle tour is graded easy. The grade is determined on the basis of the entire trip. Individual days may vary in terms of difficulty, i.e some rides may be slightly more difficult or easier than the overall grade. The route is marked throughout and we supply you with access to the GPX tracks via our Macs smartphone app, route notes and information pack.
The Moselle Cycle Path is very suitable for beginner cyclists with a good fitness, withg distances ranging from 35km to 47km (22-30 miles), which is easily manageable if this is your first cycling holiday. It's perfect for those who wish to take it easy with plenty of time to explore en route; long lunches, museums, wineries and castles. Sometimes there will be an occasional longer day on almost flat terrain and you must be comfortable with riding on consecutive days.
Our Classic Moselle Cycle Path trip includes accommodation in standard ensuite double/twin rooms in small family-run guesthouses and hotels, with most of them having their own vineyards and wine tasting sessions. Each is carefully selected for their warmth of welcome and character. It's also possible to upgrade to 3-4* hotels.
Twin room requests - in Germany most hotel rooms are double rooms (one large bed frame with separate mattresses and bedding). Twin rooms with separate beds are not common. If you require fully separate beds, it is recommended that you book 2 single rooms.
Accommodation Location
We work with a number of accommodations along the cycle path, so all distances are an approximation of the recommended routes. You may be accommodated up to 5km away in the surrounding area.Single Rooms & Solo Cyclists
Single rooms are available although a supplement is payable. As this is a popular route it's ideal for solo cyclists.
- 6 Nights in hand-picked accommodations
- 6 Breakfasts
- Baggage transfer (20 kg bag per person)
- GPS tracks with the Macs Adventure smartphone navigation app
- 24/7 Emergency telephone support from our UK & US offices
- Travel to Trier / from Koblenz
- Bike hire (standard, tandem or e-bike)
- Lunches, dinners, drinks & snacks
- Personal equipment
- Travel insurance (required)
- Upgrade to hotel accommodation
- Bike hire (standard, tandem or e-bike)
- Additional nights accommodation along the way
This tour is available to start on any day of the week from mid-April to mid-October. The price changes according to the season and during the summer months the trip is more expensive.
NOTE: If you are planning to travel between late August and end of September, then we recommend that you book early due to various wine festivals in the area, which can mean hotels are fully booked well in advance.
By Air: Trier is easily reached by train from Frankfurt airport (2h50) and Cologne-Bonn (2h30) airport, which are served by a variety of low cost and international airlines.
By Car: Trier is approximately a 4 hour drive from Calais.
By Air: From Frankfurt and Cologne-Bonn airports (served by a variety of low cost and international airlines), it is just a 1h30 train ride direct from Koblenz with Deutsche Bahn.
By Car: Koblenz is 4.5 hour drive from Calais.
Daily door to door baggage transfer is included in the price of your trip. We ask you to keep your baggage to a maximum of 1 bag per person (maximum weight 20kg).
Bike hire is not included in the tour cost but good quality hybrid/touring bikes are available for rental. Also available are e-bikes and tandem bikes. Hybrid bikes are available in both male and female frame styles, while e-bikes are a standard frame shape. Hybrid bikes (no suspension) come equipped with 1 rear pannier bag, puncture repair kit and pump, set of lights and bike lock.
Please note helmets are not included - we recommend you bring your own as it will be more comfortable.
It is a requirement of booking this tour with Macs Adventure that you have suitable travel insurance which covers you for the activity, emergency evacuation and hospital care.
Please refer to the sections "Grade & Terrain" and "Experience & Fitness" under the "Tour Info" section.
You can start the Moselle Cycle Path on any day of the week between mid-April and mid-October. High season occurs between the last week of August and the end of September, when prices increase slightly due to the wine festivals along the river. If you are planning to travel during the high season then we recomend early booking (ideally in December or January).
You will need comfortable sports shoes, comfortable clothes for cycling, waterproof jacket and trousers, a helmet and a sunhat. We supply a detailed packing list with your information pack.
We can arrange bike hire as an optional extra. You can rent comfortable touring bikes, or upgrade to an E-bike. For further information and bike images, see the Trip Info area for this tour. Please note that bike hire does not include helmets, we therefore advise that you bring your own.
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