Looking for the best things to do in Cochem, Germany? Cochem is the pick of the Mosel river towns. It’s dominated by its extravagant fairytale Gothic Castle, and has a beautiful, rather underrated Old Town below and along the riverbank.
It makes a great base for exploring the Mosel region, or day trips to the nearby Rhine Valley. The fascinating city of Trier is also an easy day trip from Cochem.
Having recently spent a couple of weeks exploring both the town and the Mosel River, I’ve compiled this guide to the top attractions in Cochem. From hidden gems to local favorites, read on to discover experiences you won’t want to miss.
- Cochem is one of the most picturesque towns of the stunning Moselle Valley wine-growing region in western Germany.
- The Cochem Reichsburg is one of the most famous landmarks in Germany, a multi-pinnacled fairytale Castle overlooking the town of Cochem.
- Cochem also has a gorgeous Altstadt – Old Town – between the Castle grounds and Mosel river.
- Cochem is an excellent base for exploring the Mosel, whether by bus, train, car or, best of all, on a Mosel river cruise.
- Cochem is busier than most of the nearby Rhine River towns, except for Rüdesheim, so it’s livelier at night and better for it.
- In Cochem you’re only a short train ride or drive from the Rhine Valley in one direction, and the stunning Roman city of Trier in the other.
All in all, it’s one of the best places to visit in Germany.
The History of Cochem
The Cochem area was inhabited by the Celts in pre-Roman times. Its first documentary mention was from 866 AD, when it was referred to as Villa Cuchema. It has had a similar name ever since, albeit with numerous variants in the early Middle Ages.
Its name is pronounced ‘Ko-khem’, with a short ‘o’ sound as in ‘rock’ or ‘sock’. The ‘ch’ is sounded like the ‘ch’ in the Scottish ‘loch’.
The Imperial Castle (Reichsburg) was founded in the early 12th century. The town remained an Imperial Estate until 1294, when it was given to the powerful Electorate of Trier. Cochem remained under the rule of the Electorate of Trier for an astonishing 500 years. The French ransacked the town during the Wars of the Palatine Succession in 1689, and stayed longer when they returned in 1794.
At the 1815 Congress of Vienna, Cochem came under the rule of the Kingdom of Prussia. The Reichsburg was rebuilt from the 1860s onwards, and the first bridge over the Moselle River at Cochem was completed in 1927.
The town suffered severe damage in Allied bombing raids in the Second World War, and was subsequently restored and rebuilt.
What To Do In Cochem
1. Visit Reichsburg Cochem
The Reichsburg – Imperial Castle – is the largest of the Mosel Castles, and a wonderful landmark and symbol of the town. What we see now is very different to the medieval castle that preceded it. The restored – or rather rebuilt – Reichsburg is as fairytale as Schloss Neuschwanstein. It was rebuilt in the 19th century by Louis Frédéric Jacque Ravené, a Berliner who made his fortune in iron and steel.
The Castle, a no-expenses-spared extravaganza with turrets and pinnacles, is one of the most famous Romanticist buildings in Germany. It was the work of Hermann Ende and, later, Julius Carl Raschdorff, who later designed the Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral).
The exterior is classic 19th-century Gothic Revival, but some of the interior rooms have other influences. This includes the Baroque-style vaulting in the Knights Hall.The mosaic on the north face of the main octagonal tower depicts St Christopher, the patron saint of travellers.
You can take a guided tour of the castle.
2. Explore Cochem Altstadt (Old Town) and the Medieval Marktplatz
Most of the pictures of Cochem that you see are of the Reichsburg and river, but the Old Town (Altstadt) is just as beautiful. It doesn’t take long to wander around the streets of Cochem, Cochem town centre is very small. It’s the perfect place to spend half an hour over a coffee on the Marktplatz (market square), surrounded by tall half-timbered townhouses.
This is the traditional Germany people travel halfway across the world to see and a very beautiful place. You’ll find more weinstuben – wine bars – around the side streets, including the intimate Zom Stuffje (pictured). I also enjoyed exploring beyond these, finding a footpath up to a small section of town walls including the Balduinstor. It’s one of Cochem’s original fortifications, and older than the Reichsburg.
Apart from the Reichsburg, the main Cochem landmark is the tower of the Martinskirche (St Martin’s Church). The tower is very impressive, but there isn’t much to see inside the church, which was restored after World War Two.
3. Stroll on the Mosel promenade
The Moselpromenade is the street and walkway along the riverside, and it runs from the Old Town to the Reichsburg and below it. You can stroll the length of it or make it a café or bar crawl – entirely up to you.
I also recommend the walk along the opposite riverbank, especially in the morning when you get superb views of the Town and the beautiful castle.
4. Enjoy An Evening Of Wine Tasting By The Mosel River
Cochem is full of wine and weinstuben – wine bars or cellars – with several along the riverside. This is the best place to sit outside in the summer months. Here you can enjoy the beautiful scenery and watch the boats go by (they arrive around dusk).
We had dinner – along with a glass or three – of wine one evening at the Weinhexenkeller, next to the town’s main bridge. The views of the Castle from there are fantastic. We also enjoyed the tour boats arriving in Cochem and doing a few twirls in the river before berthing for the night.
5. Take A Mosel Boat Trip From Cochem
There are a whole range of Cochem boat trips you can take. This local one-hour boat trip down and back up the river at Cochem is a wonderful way to see the town, and runs throughout the day.
Cochem is a popular tourist destination and boat cruises run in both directions along the river. The landscape is similar throughout nearly all the way to Koblenz, so it’s gorgeous whichever direction you opt to travel in.
One of the popular local Cochem boat trips is to nearby Beilstein – much slower than the bus but what a way to savour it. Boats from Cochem also run downstream towards Koblenz, passing wine villages with hilltop castles along the way.
It’s a stunning landscape, and a boat trip from Cochem is a wonderful way to appreciate it.
6. Take The Mosel Cable Car To The Pinnerkreuz Viewpoint
The Cochem Sesselbahn takes you high above the town, a 15-minute ride to the top of a ridge offering spectacular views of the surrounding area. It’s a 200-300-metre walk to the best viewpoint, the Pinnerkreuz lookout point, marked by a large cross.
From here you get an outstanding view over the town, Reichsburg Castle and river, and along the side valley to the romantic ruin of Winneburg Castle.
7. Canoe On The Mosel River
We spotted a few canoe and kayak groups on the Mosel during our stay in Cochem, and it’s another fantastic way to see the area.
This canoe trip includes a few hours on the river, followed by lunch at a local winery or brewery. Kit and dry bags are included in the package. These start from Cochem and upstream at Traben-Trarbach.
8. Enjoy An Afternoon Trip To Stunning Beilstein
Several buses and boats a day make the 11-km (7-mile) journey to tiny Beilstein, one of the most beautiful villages in Europe. It’s a classic Mosel wine village, a cluster of half-timbered houses wedged between steep vineyards and a ruined medieval castle.
I visited at the height of summer, a wonderful time with all the restaurants open and tables out on the squares and streets full of people enjoying the local wines. It’s popular on weekends with cycling groups who stop for a glass or two before heading on their way.
You can see most of the Mosel villages in a couple of hours or so. Take a walk up through the village, climbing the Klostertreppe staircase to the former monastery church. Continue beyond to Burg Metternich, the hilltop medieval castle with a restaurant in the courtyard.
9. Hike To The Winneburg Castle Near Cochem
You don’t have to travel far in the Mosel to find a ruined medieval castle. There’s one just around the river ben – Coraidelstein – above the village of Klotten, and another a couple of miles north-west of Cochem.
Burg Winneburg is a classic romantic castle ruin overlooking the tributary Endertbach valley. You can start at the bottom or take the Chairlift to the top, then make your way west towards the Wackelay viewpoint. Eventually you descend to the valley before another climb to the Castle.
Some of you may prefer to make your way to the path to the Castle, but you do have to work off some of that wine, after all. Winneburg Castle is worth the climb for the superb views it commands. It was founded around the 13th century, but destroyed by French forces in 1689 and never rebuilt.
10. Visit The Bundesbank Bunker Cochem
The Bundesbank Cochem bunker is a fascinating corner of Cold War history. It’s hidden away where no spy would suspect, beneath a house in a pleasant Cochem suburb.
Back in the day the West German government feared their counterparts in the former Eastern Bloc might flood the country with counterfeit currency. Trying to stay a step ahead of the Stasi and KGB, the government kept a stash of 15 billion deutschmarks in this underground bunker. So if the Communist-inspired economic emergency ever transpired, they had a back-up plan.
It’s an intriguing glimpse into the recent past, and a reminder of how much the world has changed since the fall of the Iron Curtain. The same activities are going on to this day, but suburban buildings like this no longer conceal secret bank vaults, but bot farms. One of the most unusual things to do in Cochem.
11. Cycle Along The Mosel River
The Mosel Valley is steep and spectacular, whereas the cycling there, like along the Rhine, is flat and easy. The B49 road follows the Mosel between Treis-Karden and Alf, and progress is easy. The B53 then continues all the way to Trier. The views all along the route are outstanding – it’s a great way to explore the area.
I saw quite a few cyclists indulge in a glass of wine before continuing – not something I suggest!
12. Take The Kids To Klotten Amusement Park
Freizeitpark Klotten is a great amusement park in the hills above Cochem. It’s brilliant for kids up to the age of 10 or 11, with a selection of rides and around 50 species of animals to see.
Many of the animals are small – plenty of goats, ibex, alpacas, and also birds (from owls to emus) and boars to brown bears. It’s somewhere that, as we have with Prague Zoo, if we lived close by, we’d return there many times.
It’s quite difficult to reach – you can drive or take a taxi. Otherwise you can take the cable car and walk a mile uphill. With kids, I’d take the taxi!
A family of four visit would cost €106.
13. Visit Romantic Burg Eltz
Burg Eltz has become one of the most famous castles in Germany in recent years, a secret that has slowly slipped out.
This astonishing Castle is located above the Mosel roughly ten miles north-east of Cochem. It has been in the same family for 900 years, and can be visited on a guided tour between 1st April and 1st November.
You can reach it by road or by bus 365 from Hatzenport station. Once you alight or park, you have a walk of between 800 and 1200 metres from car park 1, or 2 km from car park 2.
Visiting Cochem in December
Cochem has a small Christmas market from 24th November until the 17th December 2023 and a wonderful nativity play at Reichsburg Cochem castle on December 9 and 10 which features historical actors and live animals. (double check the castle website for details and dates).
The Mosel River towns are beautiful at Christmas with their storybook half-timbered towns. Trier is an easy day trip from Cochem and has one of the most beautiful Christmas markets in Germany.
Top attractions in Cochem for kids
For a fun day, take the kids to Klotten Park for rides. You can also rent bikes to ride along the river or take one of the many boat trips along the Mosel.
If it’s hot, the cool Bunker Museum is a neat place to learn history and may be something older kids will like.
Cochem Castle has special ghost tours for kids. For swimming, go to Moselbad with its slides and pools. At night, follow the Cochem night watchman for a fun walk.
Check the local Cochem tourist office for online maps of hiking trails and great walks in the area.
Amazing Places To Visit Near Cochem
Cochem is an ideal base for exploring this amazing part of western Germany. The Mosel Valley is breathtaking, and made as strong an impression on me as the more famous Rhine Valley a short drive away.
1. Towards Trier – Upstream From Cochem And Into Saarland
The twin villages of Bernkastel-Kues are among the most beautiful villages in Germany. This has long been a bit of a photographers’ secret. Back in the 2000s I knew some who remained tight-lipped about revealing this location, not wanting others to tread on their turf!
You’ll find several Mosel towns and villages with double-barrelled names – this is because they have amalgamated. Kues is the larger of the two settlements, but Bernkastel is where you’ll find most of the gorgeous half-timbered architecture, especially around the Markt, the main square.
There are enough things to do in Trier to keep you there for a few days. This exceptional city would draw far bigger crowds if it were closer to some of the more popular areas.
It was a provincial Roman capital, the Empire’s most important city north of the Alps. The Porta Nigra Trier – a city gateway that became a pilgrimage church – is one of the most impressive Roman monuments in Europe.
There are several other fine Roman buildings in Trier, and mighty Trier Cathedral is the oldest in Germany. We also cannot say enough good things about the Roscheider Hof Open Air Museum. This sprawling collection is a mixture of re-created houses, rooms and shops near the town of Konz, a few miles from Trier.
From Trier, it’s a 60-80 minute ride down the scenic Saar Valley to another UNESCO World Heritage Site, Völklingen Ironworks. It’s one of the less-known UNESCO historical sites in Germany, but one of the most impressive. The Ironworks were closed in 1986 and are entirely intact.
Top tip: You can climb the labyrinth of stairs to the top of the towers for an amazing view of the great rusty towers.
The regional capital Saarbrücken is a few miles further down the track near the French border. It’s a pleasant small city, and I wouldn’t go out of my way to see it. However it’s a very useful stopover, particularly if you’re crossing Germany overland and heading to Paris as we did. And the Ludwigskirche is stunning, one of the finest Protestant Baroque churches in Germany.
2. Cochem To The Rhine Valley
The train journey from Cochem to Koblenz is quick, taking around half an hour. I wouldn’t suggest spending too long in Koblenz, but it’s a convenient transit point for the smaller Rhine river castles and towns upstream.
Alternatively, if you’re driving, you can take the B49 to Koblenz and the B9 or B42 along the Rhine. Another option is to take the A61 autobahn (motorway) and take the exits for Boppard, St Goar or Oberwesel.
The first of these is Braubach, a sleepy half-timbered haven beneath the magnificent Marksburg Castle. If you only visit one Rhine Castle, make it this one.
The most beautiful of the Rhine villages is Bacharach. It’s a gorgeous place, half-timbered houses huddled beneath steep vineyards, overlooked by a fine Castle, Burg Stahleck. Its town walls are just as impressive, and the views will make you swoon like Victor Hugo did when he visited.
Bacharach is also close to of the best Rhine castles to visit, the island fortress of Pfalzgrafenstein Castle, and romantic Rheinstein Castle, near Rudesheim at the head of the Rhine Gorge.
Where Is Cochem
Cochem is in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz) in western Germany.
It’s on the Mosel River, 55 km (34 miles) from the city of Koblenz, which is a gateway to the Upper Middle Rhine Valley World Heritage Site.
Here are some other distances from nearby cities to Cochem:
Cologne to Cochem: 122 km (76 miles)
Frankfurt to Cochem: 168 km (104 miles)
Berlin to Cochem: 646 km (401 miles)
Trier to Cochem: 57 km (36 miles)
How To Get To Cochem Mosel
Cochem is easy to reach by train, car or by air.
It is on a major regional train line (Koblenz to Trier and Luxembourg) through the Mosel Valley, and also close to the busy Rhine Valley. So you can also get there via Cologne or Frankfurt by train.
Cochem is well-connected by road – it’s on the main B49 Trier to Koblenz road which then continues up the Rhine Valley.
The nearest airport to Cochem is Frankfurt-Hahn, which is close to the nearby Mosel town of Traben-Trarbach. Frankfurt-Hahn is a major hub for budget carriers Ryanair and Wizzair, so if you’re travelling from the UK or elsewhere in Europe this may be an option. Note that there are two direct buses a day between the airport and Cochem, but you can also get there by travelling to Trier and getting a train from there.
If you plan to fly long-haul, the nearest airports to Cochem are Cologne-Bonn and Frankfurt am Main.
How to get Around Cochem
Cochem train station is at the northern end of the town, close to one of the two bridges over the Mosel.
Cochem bus station is a ten-minute walk or two-minute bus ride south of the train station. Most of Cochem is walkable, but you may wish to save yourself a steep walk if you’re staying in the hilly suburb of Cond, on the opposite bank of the river from the old town and Reichsburg.
Best places to stay in Cochem
There is an abundance of hotels and places to stay in Cochem and the surrounding villages.
Several of the best Cochem hotels are located along the Moselpromenade. Most of them are three-star hotels, and include the Hotel Cochemer Jung and Hotel Karl Muller. We had booked some nights at the latter, but because of a change in plans had to cancel the booking. A pity as we were looking forward to staying there.
There are also two other great options just across the river – the Hotel Zehnthof and Hotel Traumblick. Both have great views of the town and Castle from the front rooms.
Top Hotels in Cochem
€€€€ Flair Hotel am Rosenhügel-Garni – Charming, hotel with fantastic views of Reichsburg castle and the Moselle countryside.
€€€€ Hotel Villa Vie Cochem Lovely terrace with breathtaking views over the Mosel river.
€€€ Pension Heib great budget family guesthouse with superb breakfast
Final Thoughts
We loved visiting Cochem. It’s a bit livelier than many of the villages along the River Rhine, and every bit as picturesque. You could easily stay a week or more and hike the surrounding hills and vineyards. Or meander along the Mosel on the many river cruises. It’s a great part of the world to stay for a while.
Here are some more guides that may help you to explore this beautiful part of Germany.
- Beilstein Mosel – our favourite village on the Mosel. It is a must see.
- Nearby Braubach on the Rhine is steeped in history and well worth a visit.
- Thinking about Trier? My guide lists the best places to see in Trier like the famous cathedral and the UNESCO-listed Porta Nigra.
- If you like open-air museums, Roscheider Hof should be on your list. It’s amazing.
- Headed further south? We’ve also got tips for Saarbrücken and a unique UNESCO site, Völklingen Ironworks.
For more places to visit in Germany, take a look at our Germany travel guide. I hope you enjoy Cochem!
David Angel is a British photographer, writer and historian. He is a European travel expert with over 30 years’ experience exploring Europe. He has a degree in History from Manchester University, and his work is regularly featured in global media including the BBC, Condé Nast Traveler, The Guardian, The Times, and The Sunday Times. David is fluent in French and Welsh, and can also converse in Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Czech and Polish.