Open a GPX file

Calais to the Mosel and the Rhine gorge

Through Wallonia to Dinant and Bouillon, over the Luxembourg Ardennes at Vianden, down the Mosel valley from Bernkastel to Cochem, up the Rhine gorge from Koblenz to Bingen, then home over the Hunsruck, the Luxembourg Moselle and the French Ardennes.

Distance
825 miles (1,327 km)
Type
Loop
Where
Mosel and Middle Rhine

At 150 to 300 miles a day, this is 3 to 6 days of riding. Set your own daily distance and add rest days.

Plotted by us, not yet ridden

Starts at Calais ferry port

Download GPX Plan this tripBook this trip
Book this tripCrossing Eurotunnel Le Shuttle, P&O Ferries, DFDSBeds from Calais, and each nightCover insurance and breakdownSee it all

Click a dot for details. White dots are the stops, each with a bed search. Yellow dots are places to see.

Main roads

D119D943D943E1D928D210D211D942D642D916D253D188D947D122D945N

From the map

Longest gap between fuel
30 miles
Fuel stations near the line
241
Curvature
104 ° a mile
Campsites within 2 km
206
  • The longest stretch with no fuel station within 1 km of the line runs from mile 309 to mile 339. Check it against your range with the fuel range calculator.
  • The twistiest 20 miles run from mile 336 to mile 355, at 292 degrees of turning a mile.
  • Countries: France, Luxembourg, Germany.
  • 54 motorcycle shops are within 3 km of the line.
  • More routes from this port.

Measured on the route line from OpenStreetMap data, which can be missing or out of date. Curvature is degrees of turning a mile, measured every 100 metres. On our routes they run from 6 on the E19 to 701 on the SP638.

Before you go

  • There is no bridge over the Rhine between Koblenz and Bingen. The line keeps to the west bank. Car ferries cross at Boppard, St Goar and Bacharach if you want the east bank.
  • Mosel villages are busy with coaches and cyclists on summer weekends.
  • The line keeps off motorways and toll roads by design.

On the way

  1. Calais
  2. Saint-Omer
  3. Tournai
  4. Mons
  5. Dinant
  6. Bouillon
  7. Vianden
  8. Bernkastel-Kues
  9. Traben-Trarbach
  10. Cochem
  11. Koblenz
  12. Boppard
  13. St Goar
  14. Bacharach
  15. Bingen
  16. Idar-Oberstein
  17. Saarburg
  18. Remich
  19. Montmedy
  20. Charleville-Mezieres
  21. Hirson
  22. Cambrai
  23. Calais

Split it into days

Pick the miles you like to ride in a day. Each day ends at the named place on the route nearest that distance, and you get a GPX file for each day.

This is your pace, not our estimate of how long the riding takes. Day lengths vary because each day ends at a named place.

Ready to ride it?

Book this trip

Plan it with dates in the tour planner

1Getting there

This route starts where the boat or train lands at Calais. Book the bike as a motorcycle, not a car.

Compare every crossing

2Places to stay

Split the route into days above and each day gets its own bed search for where it ends.

Back to the days

3Cover

Check your bike insurance covers riding abroad, get travel insurance that covers motorcycling at your engine size, and breakdown cover that recovers a motorcycle in every country on the route.

What to check before you buy cover

The 3 countries on this route

What GOV.UK says riders need for each, checked 05/11/2026. Rules change, so read the official page before you go.

France

Money
Euro
Ride on the
Right
  • Riding into central Paris, Lyon, Grenoble or another low emission zone? You need a Crit'Air sticker. Buy it only from the official site (official site)
  • Some mountain areas require winter tyres or chains from 1 November to 31 March: check which vehicles and areas it covers (official site)
  • The drink-drive limit is a third lower than in England and Wales, with regular roadside checks

Luxembourg

Money
Euro
Ride on the
Right
  • Carry your licence, registration document, insurance certificate and MOT certificate (if the bike needs one), or face a fine
  • Winter tyres are required in winter conditions such as ice, snow or frost: check what applies to motorcycles
  • The drink-drive limit is lower than in England, and lower again if you have held your licence under 2 years

Germany

Money
Euro
Ride on the
Right
  • Some city centres are low emission zones (Umweltzone): check whether your bike needs a sticker to enter
  • Riding a bike that is not yours? You may need written permission from the registered owner

On every trip abroad: your licence, insurance that covers riding abroad, the V5C and travel insurance with medical cover. The tour planner turns all of this into a checklist each rider in your group can tick off.

Places to see on the way

Castles, passes, viewpoints and more within easy reach of the line, in the order you reach them. Yellow dots on the map.

Place details from Wikidata. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each card.

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