The Triberg Waterfall is a popular attraction in the Black Forest, it’s located in Triberg, Germany. It’s close to Dorothees Glass Hut and Sommerrodelbahn Gutach (summer toboggan run). So all can be easily done in 1 day. It’s also open on Sundays which is a huge plus for people like us who like to travel and do stuff on this normally ‘off day’ in many German areas.
It’s also Germany’s largest [Read more…]
Sommerrodelbahn Gutach is an awesome summer toboggan run is located in the Black Forest! It’s only 7 mins from Dorothees Glass Hut in Wolfach, Germany. It’s also only 23 mins from Triberg, Germany. Also note it’s open on Sundays, which is great!
We checked this out on a Sunday but it also happened to be the weekend of a German holiday so I think it was more crowded than it normally would be. Since [Read more…]
Dorothee’s Glass Hut in Wolfach, Germany located in the Black Forest is a neat little place to stop and visit. We went on a Sunday, which is great that they are open on Sunday’s but it was also a German holiday weekend so I think it was a bit more crowded than it normally would be. My Tripadvisor review is here as well.
It’s only 7 mins from the Sommerrodelbahn Gutach, which is tons of fun! And [Read more…]
Trying out the Chair Lift in Vianden, Luxembourg has been on my list for awhile now! When we first went to see Vianden castle it was during the winter season so the lift wasn’t running but we just went this week to check out Indian Forest Ropes Course, which was amazing and a post will be coming! So after the ropes course & lunch we decided to check it out, despite the fact that Mr. B is not [Read more…]
The Ulm Cathedral (Ulm Münster) in Ulm, Germany is the world’s tallest cathedral. While that is amazing in itself you can walk clear up to the tippy top of it! It’s an amazing experience but not for the faint of heart or those out of shape.
While checking out the cathedral is free it does cost €5 to climb to the top. Know what your getting into before buying, it’s 768 steep spiraling stairs up and [Read more…]
Visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, Netherlands has been at the top of Bea’s bucket list since she found out we were moving to Europe. This spring break, April 2015, we were able to cross it off the list! It is a fascinating visit and worth it for both those who have read her book and those who haven’t.
Tickets for the Anne Frank House sell out months in advance BUT being persistent pays [Read more…]
Recently a friend and I were headed down to Garmisch and I was looking for something to do on our way back when I found the Highline 179 Pedestrian Suspension Bridge in Reutte, Austria! It’s the longest Tibet-style pedestrian suspension bridge according to the Guinness Book of Records! So we just had to go check it out.
There is quite a bit of parking, you buy a parking ticket from one of the [Read more…]
I had heard good things about the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam so we decided to check it out. I will say that trying to find out if it was a family friendly event was a bit challenging. The websites were a bit confusing so I used TripAdvisor and found out that it was not only family friendly but that kids enjoyed it. I was recently told by one person they missed out because she said the website [Read more…]
June is a busy month with lots to see and do! There are June Things To Do around Spangdahlem (and Ramstein!) for everyone! Some include Trucks, Bikes, & Harley Events, Strawberries & Rose festivals, Battle of Waterloo reenactment, fireworks and & more! There has got to be one that you will find interesting and want to check out! Again these are generally no more than 3 hours away, although I may throw in one or two further away ones if I think that they are something to consider.
I’ve also included a printable file at the bottom so that you can print it out and easily see what is going on. Some of the events are this weekend so if you don’t get to them this year you can always add them to your list for next year. I’ll also be blogging about the ones that we get to visit so check back and see if they are worth taking a trip to.
Below is a list of upcoming Things To Do, please note many of the websites are in German only so use Google Chrome and it will translate the page for you. It will include the festival, website, dates, and how far from Spangdahlem & Ramstein.
2015 June Things To Do
Freegrass Festival – in Frankfurt, Germany June 3rd-12th
A unique shopping experience of vendors set up along a 250 meter road, more info on website
Approximately 2 hours 10 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 39 mins from Ramstein
http://www.frankfurt-fressgass.de/
Magic Bike Rüdesheim – in Rüdesheim, Germany June 4th-7th
Event for Harley lovers! This is paid event but looks like there are combo tickets available, more info on website
Approximately 1 hour 54 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 40 mins from Ramstein
http://www.magic-bike-ruedesheim.com/en/
Eltviller Rosentage – in Eltviller, Germany June 6th-7th
Known as the rose village this festival is dedicated to the Queen of flowers. You can see lots of roses in the castle garden and even try food made with roses, more info on BLURB, more info on WEBSITE
Approximately 2 hours from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 28 mins from Ramstein
http://www.rheingau.de/veranstaltungen/feste/rosentage-eltville
Truck & Bike Weekend – in Wittlich, Germany June 12th-14th
Trucks, Bikes, music, entertainment, activities for kids, food & more, more info on website
Approximately 17 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 18 mins from Ramstein
http://www.truck-bike-weekend.de/programm/
Erbacher Strawberry Festival – in Erbach, Germany June 13th-15th
There is vendors, dancers, and don’t forget to try the strawberry punch, more info on website
Approximately 1 hour 58 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 27 mins from Ramstein
http://www.rheingau.de/veranstaltungen/feste/erdbeerfest-erbach
Battle of Waterloo Reenactment – in Waterloo, Belgium June 18th-21st
This is a bicentenary event and won’t happen again until 2025! You do need to buy tickets for this event but would be a great trip for history buffs, more info on website
Approximately 2 hours 17 mins from Spangdahlem, 3 hours 33 mins from Ramstein
https://www.waterloo2015.org/en
Midsummer’s Eve Fair – in Mainz, Germany June 19th-22nd
Baptism of the apprentice printers & typesetters, entertainment, fair, food, fireworks & more! More info on website
Approximately 1 hour 40 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 13 mins from Ramstein
http://www.germany.travel/en/events/events/midsummer-s-eve-fair-in-mainz-67.html
Nationalfeierday – in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg June 22nd-23rd
Parades, concerts, fireworks & more to celebrate the Duke’s birthday, more info on website
Approximately 57 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 39 mins from Ramstein
http://www.visitluxembourg.com/de/ansicht/specialevents/nationalfeiertag
Cochem Vineyard-Sites Festival – in Cochem, Germany Last weekend in June (27th-28th)
Experience wines and grommet stands set up in the vineyards of the town district of Cond, more info on website
Approximately 54 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 54 mins from Ramstein
http://www.ferienland-cochem.de/Current-Events.htm
Ahrfelsen in Flames – in Schuld, Germany June 13th
Lights, music, & fireworks, also food & drink, more info on website
Approximately 1 hour 9 mins from Spangdahlem, 2 hours 9 mins from Ramstein
http://web.deskline.net/RLPEifel/en/show_event/RPT/4e79e101-43c3-4551-be5d-321c4d5e898b/ahrfelsen_in_flammen__dorfgemeinschaft
The printable has the list of the 10 festivals/events that are within 3 hours or less from Spangdahlem, download it HERE
We will be checking out the some of these, I’m excited about crossing some of them off our list! If you know of a great festival that I missed that you think should be added please email me or leave a comment 🙂 I’d also love to hear your experience if you get a chance to visit any of the festivals!
While planning our Amsterdam trip I found this gem and just had to visit the life sized replica of Noah’s Ark! While we were super impressed with the enormity of it, it was also one of those ‘bust’ attractions for us…I’ll explain shortly. It’s located in Dordrecht, Netherlands. We drove here after visiting Clara Maria on our way back home, it was bit out of the way but I wanted to see it.
I’m a very visual person so it was amazing to see a full sized replica in real life! We were impressed with the enormous boat and that was worth seeing however we didn’t not feel like the visit inside was worth it…for us at least. It was €45 just for the 4 of us! Which may have been ok if I felt like the visit was worth that…it wasn’t in my opinion.
There is a large parking lot and it only costs €1-2 to park for a few hours.
Where you purchase your entry tickets.
The displays were a bit cheesy and fake looking. There were random bible scenes in weird places, like they were trying to fill space. And the mannequins were kinda freaky, LOL.
I wish they had utilized the space better and made it more ‘realistic’ instead of these random scenes. I’m assuming on the real ark there wasn’t a ton of free space.
The fake animal displays did not fully depict how they could’ve gotten all the animals on the ark, I would’ve loved to seen a replica of that.
There were some live animals as well but they were apparently closing an hour early the day we went so everything was put up and they were starting to close stuff down.
Bea making friends.
You follow these prints around but at times it was hard to figure out which way they were going and it was kind of confusing.
Now if you have little kids there were some neat play areas and things to do but for my 11 & 14 year old they were under impressed as were Mr. B & I. But I just chalked it up to a learning experience and us finding that out the hard way so y’all don’t have to 😉
There are quite a few levels and quite a few stairs so you can get a workout if your doing it quickly 😉
The view from the top overlooks the water area, which is mostly industrial.
Overall I’d say it’s worth seeing if your in the area, but may not be worth making a special trip for. Truthfully we would’ve been happy with just seeing the outside & size for free instead of paying the high cost to see the inside, especially with older kids. If you have younger kids a visit inside for a few hours may be worth it for your family.
Know Before You Go
What: Noah’s Ark in Dordrechet, Netherlands.
How To Get There: It’s about 3 hours 13 mins from Spangdahlem, and 4 hours 18 mins from Ramstein. It’s about 1 hour from Amsterdam. GPS address: Maasstraat 14 3313 CR Dordrecht, Netherlands
Parking: Is abundant and costs €1-2.
Cost: €12,50 for ages 13 and up, €7,50 for kids ages 3-12, and free for kids ages 0-2.
Traveling with little kids: There are lots of stairs here so not sure about strollers, I didn’t see an elevator but I wasn’t looking for one either. You may want to call ahead and ask if you need to use a stroller.
How long: Plan on at least 1 hour if your doing a quick walk through, longer if you want to use the little playgrounds, eat, etc. Could easily spend 3-4 hours here with little kids.
