This guidebook provides 14 stages of route description to cycling along the Moselle river, a route that offers stunning scenery, plentiful accommodation and places to eat and drink, and straightforward cycling throughout. A well-waymarked, generally downhill 512km route, it is mostly off-road and on well-surfaced cycle tracks (mainly asphalt) with virtually no gradients, and the majority is along the riverbank or on canal towpaths. From its source in the Vosges Mountains of eastern France, the Moselle flows through the French region of Lorraine and crosses into Luxembourg then into the German Rheinland region before it reaches its confluence with the Rhine at the west German city of Koblenz. Suitable for both veteran long-distance cyclists and for newcomers to cycle touring who wish to start with an easy-to-follow journey, the route can be completed in a week by fit cyclists, cycling two stages per day. Two weeks allow for alternative stages and optional excursions through the Saar and Rhine gorges and to visit the Boucles de Moselle and the city of Luxembourg, and give enough time for sightseeing and a leisurely riding pace.

Map key
Overview map

Introduction

Background
The route
Natural environment
Preparation
Getting there and back
Navigation
Accommodation
Food and drink
Amenities and services
What to take
Safety and emergencies
About this guide

Stage 1    Col de Bussang to Remiremont
Stage 2    Remiremont to Épinal
Stage 3    Épinal to Charmes
Stage 4    Charmes to Nancy
Stage 4A    Charmes to Toul
Stage 5    Nancy to Pont-à-Mousson
Stage 5A    Toul to Pont-à-Mousson
Stage 6    Pont-à-Mousson to Metz
Stage 7    Metz to Thionville
Stage 8    Thionville to Remich
Stage 9    Remich to Trier
Stage 9A    Remich to Trier via Luxembourg City
Excursion 1    Konz to Merzig: the Saar Valley
Stage 10    Trier to Leiwen
Stage 11    Leiwen to Bernkastel-Kues
Stage 12    Bernkastel-Kues to Zell
Stage 13    Zell to Cochem
Stage 14    Cochem to Koblenz
Excursion 2    Koblenz to St Goar: the Rhine Gorge

Appendix A    Route summary table
Appendix B    Language glossary
Appendix C    Useful contacts
Appendix D    Principal tourist offices
Appendix E    Youth hostels
 

Seasons

route can be cycled at any time of year, but best between April and October

Centres

route from Col de Bussang to Koblenz, passing through Nancy, Metz and Trier, with extra excursions from Konz and Koblenz

Difficulty

a straightforward cycle ride, mostly off-road on well-surfaced (mainly asphalt) cycle tracks with little ascent; suitable for all levels of cyclist, on all types of bike, although racing cyclists may wish to use the alternative routes described in the guide to avoid a few short sections of gravel.

Must See

the Vosges Mountains; Lorraine; Luxembourg; the German Rheinland; the great cities of Nancy and Metz; the spectacular Mosel gorge; the Hunsrück and Eiffel Mountains.

There is no specific series of maps that provides comprehensive coverage of the whole route. For France, sheet 516 of the Michelin map Alsace, Lorraine (at a scale of 1:200,000) or sheets 314 and 307 (at a scale of 1:150,000) give an overview of the route across Lorraine without specifically showing cycle routes. As the route is under development, things change frequently and the best way to ascertain the up-to-date position is via the Lorraine tourist office, which publishes a map showing sections open, those under construction and those planned (http://lorraine.voie.verte.free.fr).

For the latter stages between Metz and Koblenz, Esterbauer Bikeline publish a cycling guide (see below), which includes strip maps of the route along both sides of the river at 1:75,000. The stretch from Schengen, on the Franco–Luxembourg–German border, to Koblenz, is also covered by a laminated folding strip map of the Mosel-Radweg (sheet 198), published by Publicpress publications (www.publicpress.de). They publish a similar map for the Saar-Radweg (sheet 617). Although these are at 1:50,000, they contain less detail and are less accurate than Bikeline guides.

Various online maps are available to download, at a scale of your choice. Particularly useful is Open Street Map (www.openstreetmap.org) which has a cycle route option showing the route in its entirety, including the planned but not yet constructed stages. This can be a little misleading, as when a track is built it does not always take the exact route originally proposed, and moreover it leaves you to make your own choice of alternative road routes to bypass missing sections.
 

November 2022

Travelling with a cycle on Eurostar

December 2020

Author updates

October 2020

Doing the route on a tandem

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