Bonn, the Rhine, the Ahr and the vines

The region of Bonn even offers something for wine lovers: white wine is cultivated in the Siebengebirge, and red wine has a long tradition in the Ahr valley.

The Romans are said to have brought the vines to the Rhine and it is therefore not surprising that wine growing has had a long tradition in Bonn. At the Rheinaue Park, the former place of the federal horticultural show, there are vines still reminding of that. Right opposite, in the Siebengebirge which belongs to the wine region “Mittelrhein”, there are about 20 hectares of vineyards with melodious names like “Rosenhügel” (rose hill), “Goldfüßchen” (golden foot) and “Drachenfels” (dragon rock). In the wine-growing villages Niederdollendorf, Oberdollendorf, Königswinter and Rhöndorf mostly the varieties Riesling, Müller-Thurgau and Kerner are cultivated. In the Ahr valley on the other side of the Rhine one will find red wine most of all, such as the mild and fruity Portugieser or the velvety and heady Spätburgunder. The river Ahr dug deeply into the mountains on its way to the Rhine, so that the grapes on the 520 hectares of vineyards located in this protected valley grow in an almost Mediterranean climate. Engaged winegrowers produce wines which belong to the best wines in Germany. For more than 30 years now the “Rotweinwanderweg” (red wine hiking trail) with its length of 35 kilometres, which leads from Altenahr to Bad Bodendorf through the steep vineyard terraces, has been a very popular hiking trail. Comfortable wine taverns, vintner’s cottages and the cellars of the winegrowers’ cooperatives in the Ahr valley as well as in the Siebengebirge are always open for guests. There are numerous vintage festivals taking place in the individual villages from the end of August until the end of autumn, on the occasion of which wine lovers can improve their knowledge of the regional wines from Rhine and Ahr in a really nice way.

In addition, Bonn has to offer something quite special: it is the so-called Beethoven wine, which is offered in the tourist information. This wine is more than just an advertising product, as it comes from a winery at the river Moselle called Köwerich, the family Beethoven’s mother came from.

Beethoven, Rhine, Drachenfels and Ahr valley are in the focus of an all-inclusive package, which is offered by the Tourismus & Congress GmbH upon inquiry, starting with a price of 117.00 Euro on upwards (per person in a double room). This package contains two accommodations plus breakfast in a standard hotel, a guided city tour with a visit of the Beethoven House and a romantic excursion by boat to Königswinter. Over there one can take a ride up to the legendary Drachenfels ruin with Germany’s oldest rack railway and can visit the Castle Drachenburg. A trip to the Ahr valley and a visit to the Ahr wine forum is also included in this package.

For more information and reservation please contact the Tourismus & Congress GmbH Region Bonn / Rhein-Sieg / Ahrweiler, Adenauerallee 131, 53113 Bonn, Telephone: 0228 / 91041-30, Email: incoming(at)bonn-region.de

For more information or offers for the wines from the Siebengebirge please contact the Tourismus Siebengebirge GmbH, Geschäftsstelle Königswinter, Drachenfelsstr. 11, 53639 Königswinter, Telephone: 02223 / 917711, Telefax: 02223-917720, Internet www.siebengebirge.com

Form more information or offers for the wines from the Ahr valley please contact the Tourismus & Service GmbH Ahr, Rhein, Eifel, Felix-Rütten-Str. 2, 53474 Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Tel.: 02641-977350, Fax: 02641-977373, Internet www.wohlsein365.de