Advice please

[maison]

We have travelled extensively all over Europe but, following a bad experience with a very anti-British campsite owner, twenty years ago have never returned to Germany.

At the beginning of August we are heading back to our base in Burgundy, France, but fancy a detour. We are considering heading into Germany, picking up the Mosel valley, following it in the direction of France and visiting some of the riverside villages. There have been several photos of beautiful locations on the Forum.

Now for the advice request :-

I know about the CritAir Certificate for France and know there is a similar one for Germany

What is it?
How do you get it?
Is it necessary if not visiting cities?

Bearing in mind we will be crossing on the Tunnel and then heading into Germany

Where should we look to join the Mosel, allowing us to travel through the valley heading for France?
Which villages are your favourites, preferably with a Campsite or Stellenplatz within easy walking distance?

Knowing that there are many Forum members who regularly visit Germany we thank you in advance for your responses.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

We toured thru the mosel from Luxembourg, down to the Rhine and down to mulhouse area via the Rhine roads and crossed into France, didn't require the German umlatt sticker anywhere we went thru. We have one but saw no requirements to display one.
Lots of stellplatz places to stop at every village, town seems to have one. Some free some a few euros per night.

 

[maison]

Jimbohorlicks
Does that route run through the old, medieval villages frequently pictured on here.

Thanks for the comment re Air quality sticker. Useful.

 

[tacr2man]

Starting at Calais a big loop but takes you back into France via trier , and luxembourg (cheap diesel)

Calais to Koblenz

www.google.com

Re Emissions , unless you are wanting to enter Zones not needed this site will give you areas mandated .


The thread about rolling Mosel meet should give you the info on Mosel , masses of stellplatze , almost all within easy walking , main supermarket on Mosel is at Zell . Shopping (not grocery based) is catered for
in a few towns , some are more touristy than others . HTSH

ps webcams often show towns and stellplatze https://www.mosel-webcams.de/

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

Jimbohorlicks
Does that route run through the old, medieval villages frequently pictured on here.

Thanks for the comment re Air quality sticker. Useful.

Yes, Luxembourg, to trier, along the mosel with loads of stopping places which are close to towns villages, all next to the river. On to Koblenz at the Rhine, we turned right and headed down the Rhine, again lots, of places to stop almost every village, town, not as ni e as the mosel as train track to the left and Rhine to the right, very scenic, lots to see. No environment sticker required. Also have French critair and didn't seem to need that in France.

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[maison]

Jimbohorlicks
Thanks again. Sounds like a plan.

 

[maison]

tacr2man
Thanks.

Will read the recommended thread.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

From Mullhouse we went to Belfort,France which is also worth a visit if you have not been before, the aire is free, with 3kw ehu, water and dump, very nice. 5 mins walk to the town what a fantastic place, a walled citidal, with a huge lion carved in sandstone, museum on top of the citidal walls that surround the town, well worth a visit, lovely town, lots to see and do, we stayed 5 nights. There is a draw bridge entrance to the town over a dry moat not a place to drive your van thru though, but most roads go around, lol.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

Re the umlatt sticker, we just applied on line, cost about 6euros as I recall, had to upload a copy of the v5 doc and received the sticker within 2 weeks, easy really. There is a thread on here somewhere of how to do that.

 

[maison]

Jimbohorlicks
Thanks again.

Belford is on our direct route to Burgundy so will definitely call in. At this rate it will be September before we finally get to Burgundy.

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[GPW]

anti-British campsite owner,

My experience of Germany 20 years ago was that the south were much friendlier toward the british. In particular you may wish to be aware that the british war-crimes of firebombing the german civilians in WWII had not been forgotten back then so I'd avoid certain places like Dresden.

It may be fine, but statistically you may wish to pick your spots.

 

[maison]

My experience of Germany 20 years ago was that the south were much friendlier toward the british. In particular you may wish to be aware that the british war-crimes of firebombing the german civilians in WWII had not been forgotten back then so I'd avoid certain places like Dresden.

It may be fine, but statistically you may wish to pick your spots.

Yes, the Campsite owner was of an age to have gone through WWll.

His attitude was so bad that after our first night we left Germany and have not returned since.

We are no snowflakes but our attitude was “OK. We’ll take our money where it is appreciated”.

I would imagine that there are not too many of that generation left.

(BTW - “War Crimes” are only ever committed by the losing side!)

 

[JohnT UK]

did this route 2 weeks ago mosel - rhine then down via the black forest, we did need the umlatt when we stopped in Frieburg im breisgau

 

[GPW]

the Campsite owner was of an age to have gone through WWll.

His attitude was so bad that after our first night we left Germany and have not returned since.

We had a VERY frosty reception in Hamburg, didn't like us one little bit. I can understand their anger as the victims of war-crimes, but it wasn't us who financed the third reich and pointed it at Russia, that was the international bankers and nice respectable chaps like Prescott Bush!

Southern Germany were far more relaxed, loved Barvaria and the Black Forest.

 

[Camping Gaza]

Yes, the Campsite owner was of an age to have gone through WWll.

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[Lot lover]

maison - your comment about war crimes is oh so true. However looking at the relative prosperity of U.K. and DE now one wonders which side is alleged to have lost 2 world wars.

 

[tacr2man]

maison - your comment about war crimes is oh so true. However looking at the relative prosperity of U.K. and DE now one wonders which side is alleged to have lost 2 world wars.

What do you think the Euro was in aid of ?

 

[Lot lover]

You mean that if UK had joined the Euro gang it would now be as rich as DE?

 

[Riverbankannie]

We have travelled extensively all over Europe but, following a bad experience with a very anti-British campsite owner, twenty years ago have never returned to Germany.

At the beginning of August we are heading back to our base in Burgundy, France, but fancy a detour. We are considering heading into Germany, picking up the Mosel valley, following it in the direction of France and visiting some of the riverside villages. There have been several photos of beautiful locations on the Forum.

Now for the advice request :-

I know about the CritAir Certificate for France and know there is a similar one for Germany

What is it?
How do you get it?
Is it necessary if not visiting cities?

Bearing in mind we will be crossing on the Tunnel and then heading into Germany

Where should we look to join the Mosel, allowing us to travel through the valley heading for France?
Which villages are your favourites, preferably with a Campsite or Stellenplatz within easy walking distance?

Knowing that there are many Forum members who regularly visit Germany we thank you in advance for your responses.

We were stopped last month at a German police road check near the Swiss border. The police man looked for the sticker and then when he spotted it said OK and waved us on. We were nowhere near a town or city so assume would only have been a warning if we hadn’t had one but for a few euros it’s worth getting one.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

Never had an issue with any German hostility, found everyone to e most welcoming helpful and courteous, well except for one German who told me off for knocking walnuts out of a tree, I think he was telling me they were not fully ripe and to wait till they had fallen lol.
Had a great experience in the small part of Germany that we travelled thru, met several German motorhome peeps and shared ehu with some. All very friendly and helpful.
We are definitely going again.

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[DBK]

I lived four years in the north of Germany and travelled around most of it in that time - although not the East as that was vertbotten ! Never came across anti-British feelings ever*, of course it will have happened but the odd isolated incident long ago doesn't represent the country today.

We did the Mosel and a bit of the Rhine last year, revisiting places we first saw in the 70s. It was overall enjoyable but the MH scene is now very commercialised with some aires literally having several hundred MHs on them.

If you haven't been then go but if you encounter any issues it will be about current political events not those of 75 years ago.

*...er well, there was the farmer we drove armoured vehicles all over his field thinking it wasn't being used for crops - except it had been sown with winter wheat...

But he was financially compensated. The closer you got to the border with the East the friendlier they were.

 

[Riverbankannie]

Take plenty of cash too. The few campsites we stayed in collected the fees in cash and the stellolatz had coin machines for the tickets. Every time we bought a beer or ice cream I paid with 20euro note and saved the change so that I built up a good stash of coins in the cup holder at the front of the van. You soon get through them at up to 10 € night.

 

[Grianan]

The closer you got to the border with the East the friendlier they were.

That’s good to know. Our holiday plans have changed a little and we are going to wander down to Regensburg and thought we’d head back via Czech Republic and old East Germany. We thought we’d do that on way back as we gears not much English spoken there and we’re picking my German speaking 15yo son up in Regensburg.

Not really fancying huge crowded campsites/stellplatz though .... any ideas for a different route down which might be more rural and quiet?

 

[Riverbankannie]

You can expect to get the odd ear bashing in German, from ladies of a certain age, when breaking some unwritten rule or other.

 

[Garfields]

Online-Antrag Feinstaubplakette - Berlin.de

www.berlin.de

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[Themselves]

We bought the clean air sticker from a local garage. Showed them the registration documents, coughed up the small fee, had cup of free coffee, and on our way. I liked Germany apart from the motorways. Worse than the m25.

 

[GPW]

What do you think the Euro was in aid of ?

Getting everyone on the Deutsch-Mark by renaming it the 'Euro'?

You mean that if UK had joined the Euro gang it would now be as rich as DE?

As with all debt currencies rented out by a central bank, the maths is very very, very clear who benefits: The entity that rents it out. I.e. not one of the 400m Europeans owns a single Euro any more than Avis customers own the rental cars they use on a daily basis.
No one ever bothers to do the basis maths however, they just groan about the mysterious growth/inflation and wealth transfer to the banking classes

Never came across anti-British feelings

20 years is a whole new generation, I'd expect it to be a lot better today. i quite fancy visiting this place within the next year:

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

www.google.com

It's where much of the film 'Eddie The Eagle' was filmed, looks rather nice and there's an RV park /spelzplatz just behind by the look of the satellite view. It looks epic.

 

[Riverbankannie]

20 years is a whole new generation, I'd expect it to It's where much of the film 'Eddie The Eagle' was filmed, looks rather nice and there's an RV park /spelzplatz just behind by the look of the satellite view. It looks epic.

That link didn’t open for me but is it the Olympic Stadium at Garmisch-Partenkirchen?
We were just there a couple of weeks ago. The stellplatz by the stadium was heaving when we arrived after lunch but there was another car park that was free just along the road behind the open air swimming pool. We stayed there until 6pm then moved onto the Stellplatz paying 2.50 € the next morning for the day.
There is a fabulous gorge walk to Partnach Gorge best done first thing in the morning so you have it to yourselves. Then keep on walking and maybe get the smaller cable car back down.

 

[GPW]

That link didn’t open for me but is it the Olympic Stadium at Garmisch-Partenkirchen?

Yes!

Sounds awesome, thanks for the info!
Did you get to visit the cafe inside the main stadium area?

 

[Riverbankannie]

Yes we did, although the centre of the stadium being renovated it was still open to walk around the tiered standing area and to photograph the 1936 bits. The ski jumps themselves have been renovated/replaced some time ago. Cafe and it’s terrace still open though.
If we had been fitter, we would have done more walking in the mountain pastures and used the higher cable car that goes up from the stadium. There is a tourist information office at the stadium where you can collect maps.

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