Castle · Sankt Goar · Updated on 1 November 2026.
Rheinfels Castle is a castle in Sankt Goar, Rhineland-Palatinate. This place has a story in the app. 1 of the 42 well-known points of interest nearby is within 1 km. Within 960 m you'll find a bench, a public toilet and a bike pump.
Story · Rheinfels Castle
You're standing at Rheinfels Castle, high above the left bank of the Rhine at Sankt Goar. This is the largest castle overlooking the river. And what you see now is only part of it. The complex used to be about five times bigger.
Read the whole story in the Outdoor Pitstop app: check in at this place and it is yours (with Pro; new users are Pro for the first 4 weeks).
Source: OpenStreetMap and Wikidata.
10 photos from Wikimedia Commons. In the app you add your own photo when you are there.
Rheinfels Castle in Sankt Goar is a large castle on a hill above the Rhine. It is the largest castle overlooking the river. What you see now is only part of it, as the complex was once considerably bigger. In 1672, an army tried to take the fortified castle, but did not succeed. In summer, a concert or performance is held here regularly. You will find the castle near Sankt Goar, on the left bank of the Rhine.
The high, square clock or gate tower by the main entrance, opposite the hotel, dates from around 1300. The path behind it runs over the site of the old moat and leads to the remains of a building with pointed gables. Next to that building once stood a tower 54 metres high. It has gone, so you need a bit of imagination to picture it. Beneath the moat path lies a huge cellar. Its vault is considered the largest free-spanning vaulted cellar in Europe. It can hold 400 people, and its walls are up to 4 metres thick. The museum is housed in the old chapel, the only finished room of the original castle, and contains a model of the castle before its destruction. Afterwards, climb a little way up to the medieval inner courtyard, where there was once a bakery, a pharmacy, a brewery, a well and livestock. On the walls you can sometimes still see old, white-painted plasterwork.
In 1245, Diether V van Katzenelnbogen had the first castle built here. Between 1587 and 1589, the vaulting of the great cellar was built. In the seventeenth century, Ernst I van Hessen-Rheinfels turned it into a huge fortress, the largest between Koblenz and Mainz. In 1797, revolutionary troops finally managed to take the fortress. They dismantled it, which is why only part of it remains today. Since 1973, a luxury hotel has been located at the entrance.
Benches are plentiful around Rheinfels Castle. The nearest one is 15 metres away, and there are 31 within 500 metres. The nearest public toilet is 51 metres away at Burghof, and it is free to use. It is also the only public toilet within 500 metres. Drinking water is hard to find near the castle. According to our map, there is no water tap within 1 km, so bring enough water with you. If you are cycling, there is no bike pump within 500 metres. The nearest one is 957 metres away, on Bahnhofstraße.
The nearest pitstop of each kind within 1 km, as the crow flies. No water point or honesty box within 1 km.
42 well-known points of interest nearby, those with an audio tour first. 1 of the 42 well-known points of interest nearby is within 1 km.
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Rheinfels Castle is a castle high above the left bank of the river at Sankt Goar. It is the largest fortress overlooking the river, and what you see today is only part of the complex, which was once about five times larger.
The nearest bench to Rheinfels Castle is 15 metres away. There are 31 benches within 500 metres.
Yes, the nearest public toilet is 51 metres from Rheinfels Castle, at Burghof, and it is free. Within 500 metres, this is the only public toilet.
No, according to our map there is no water tap within 1 km of Rheinfels Castle. Bring your own water.
Count Diether V of Katzenelnbogen had the first castle built in 1245. In the seventeenth century, Ernst I of Hessen-Rheinfels turned it into a huge fortress.
You can see, among other things, a gigantic vaulted cellar from 1587-1589, which is considered the largest freespan vaulted cellar in Europe. There is also a museum in the old chapel with a model of the castle, and a medieval courtyard.
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