My girlfriend and I recently spent a week in Germany and the Baudobriga Rheinhotel was both our first port of call and the standard by which we would end up judging the other hotels in which we stayed as we made our way from the Rhineland to the Black Forest and eventually Bavaria.
Arrival and check-in
It was a drizzly day when we arrived in Boppard and the cheery yellow frontage of the Baudobriga was a welcome change from the grey mist and low level cloud cover which had followed us from Frankfurt Hahn airport. The building itself is an odd mix of an obviously older shell and more recent additions and it was surprising to learn that the hotel has passed through five generations of family ownership.
It has a prime spot - just across from where some of the many river boats that ply this stretch of the Rhine dock – and the sights and sounds of water traffic served as a very real reminder that the Rhine has always been a vital artery for commerce and transport in this beautiful region, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The front door of the hotel is entered by a steep set of steps and wheelchair users would not be able to use them safely. There is a side entrance at street level, but it is narrower and I’m not entirely sure that there’s a lift to the rest of the floors. In my opinion it’s not a hotel for those who use a wheelchair or have restricted mobility.
My
girlfriend’s dad had already checked in for us (the rest of the party had arrived earlier), but we were greeted as new arrivals by the woman who was obviously in charge of the day to day running of the hotel and who managed to remain manically cheerful despite working fifteen hour days.
The dining areas of the hotel and the reception area are clad in dark wood and plenty of light streams in through large plate glass windows. These public areas have a very traditional feel and seem slightly at odds with the steel framed balconies and other modern additions to the front of the hotel. The general décor was decidedly on the rustic side and the furniture on landings etc. was also of the solid dark wood variety and will probably outlast the hotel! Stairwells were well lit with obscured glass panels and a range of indoor plants were thriving in the warm environment.
There is a lift for the use of guests, although it was perhaps the first cousin of a dumbwaiter and we never managed to fit more than three people in it.
Let’s do the Time Warp, yay! (a room with a view)
I’ll be honest and say that my first impressions of our room were mixed. On the one hand, the room was old fashioned (70s-80s), with green chairs, brass lamps and a carpet that made me feel seasick. A chunky TV with a thick glass filter was languishing on a bracket in one corner of the room.
On the other hand, the whole side of the room was made of glass and there was a cracking view across the balcony onto the Rhine, flooding the room with light. The beds were spotless (as was the rest of the room) and the bathroom was beautiful and modern, with a great power shower and water efficient fittings. The price wasn’t bad either (we’d paid roughly €90/£80 a night).
The balcony was a great place to hang out with a glass of wine and while we soon came to realise that the river would be a little noisier than we’d hoped at night, I slept well thanks to the fresh air and the comfy beds.
The aforementioned TV had German channels for the most part (there was an American news channel) and there was an in room phone (although no internet access). I’ve always felt a little sorry for people who feel the need to access the internet on holiday (I do it every day at work so the appeal is minimal!) but thought that I’d mention it for the sake of completeness.
Great food, but something of a Fawlty Towers dining experience
We had dinner at the Baudobriga on our first evening there and while the food was perfectly palatable, the atmosphere left a lot to be desired. The one traditionally dressed waiter looked a little confused by the fact that he had to serve diners and our not particularly noisy party of six seemed awfully large in a dining room where everyone else was in a couple.
There was something of an awkward silence for a while, but our fellow diners seemed to relax a little now that there was a group making any noise in the slightly funereal parlour.
The dinner wasn’t bad (maybe 3.5/5) and German staples with lots of pork, freshly prepared and locally sourced salads, sautéed vegetables and dark rye bread made up the bulk of the menu. Most of our party opted for some variety of schnitzel, although I went for a platter featuring a range of different ‘wursts’, cheeses and shredded vegetables. I can’t really say that there were too many standout choices, but at roughly €15 for a meal (with wine), who’s complaining?
Breakfast was cracking (the Germans do a wicked breakfast) and the usual continental staples of cereal, breads, fruits, and yoghurt were bolstered with re-enforcements of eggs, cured meats and locally made sausages. The coffee was typically excellent for Germany and with a couple of doorstep ham sandwiches in my stomach, a cup or two of coffee and an apple for later, I was a happy man.
Wonderful wine and quiet evenings
The Baudobriga was a great find as it owns its own vineyard and featured corridors lined with dozens of awards and merits for top quality white wines (largely Rieslings). A really good bottle of everyday wine could be picked up for £6-7 and the staff were happy enough to lend you some glasses so you could relax on your balcony as the sun went down. No extortionate room service options here!
While the selection of wines produced wasn’t too extensive, there was a range of roughly ten varieties and the opportunity to sample a variety of these with our dinner let us discover those we liked (and those we weren’t so keen on). The full range of wines was available in the restaurant and could also be picked up from the front desk. They were also happy to provide full crates for guests who’d driven to the hotel and could arrange shipping for visitors with deep pockets.
As well as younger wines, the hotel had a few rarer vintages and I’m hoping that my 1987 Riesling Eiswein is drinkable after I picked it up for a good value €26 (airport prices were nearly double this for a NV equivalent).
The town of Boppard seems to shut down by 10pm and there really isn’t much for young people to do once they’ve had their dinner. I found this to be a welcome change to the drunken chavs of Bromley arguing outside my house on a typical evening, but it may not be to everybody’s taste. The trend made for very relaxing evenings, the quiet of which was broken only by the railway line across the Rhine or the muffled clanks of staff preparing the riverboats across from our hotel.
We thoroughly enjoyed most of our trip and the Baudobriga was an ideal base for exploring Boppard and beyond. Close to the centre of town, it’s easy to reach everywhere you’re likely to visit and we thought that it would be particularly suited to couples and {smaller?} family groups.
Pictures of Baudobriga Rheinhotel, Boppard
Baudobriga Rheinhotel, Boppard
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