Cologne, a 2,000-year-old city spanning the Rhine River in western Germany, is the region’s cultural hub. A landmark of High Gothic architecture set amid reconstructed old town, the twin-spired Cologne Cathedral is also known for its gilded medieval reliquary and sweeping river views. The adjacent Museum Ludwig showcases 20th-century art, including many masterpieces by Picasso, and the Romano-Germanic Museum houses Roman antiquities.

Cochem is the seat of and the biggest town in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With just over 5,000 inhabitants, Cochem falls just behind Kusel, in the Kusel district, as Germany’s second smallest district seat. Since 7 June 2009, it has belonged to the Verbandsgemeinde of Cochem.

Trier is a southwestern German city in the Moselle wine region, near the Luxembourg border. Founded by the Romans, it contains several well-preserved Roman structures like the Porta Nigra gate, the ruins of Roman baths, an amphitheater just outside the center and a stone bridge over the Moselle River. The Archaeological Museum displays Roman artifacts. Among Trier’s many Catholic churches is Trier Cathedral.

Bernkastel-Kues is a town on the Middle Moselle in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a well-known winegrowing centre.

Koblenz, spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and of the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman military post by Drusus around 8 B.C. Its name originates from the Latin cōnfluentēs, meaning ” confluence”

Boppard, formerly also spelled Boppart, is a town and municipality in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, lying in the Rhine Gorge, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town is also a state-recognized tourism resort and is a winegrowing centre.

Rüdesheim am Rhein is a town in the Rhine Valley, Germany. It’s known for winemaking, especially of Riesling wines. In the center, Drosselgasse is a lane lined with shops, taverns and restaurants. Nearby, Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Cabinet is a museum of automated musical instruments. Medieval Brömserburg Castle is home to the Rheingau Wine Museum, exhibiting wine paraphernalia from ancient times to the present.