The Rhine Falls are the biggest waterfall in Europe.
This should be of help to all of you especially those in Germany. Also if any of you are planning to visit Munich for the Oktoberfest(biggest beer festival in the world) which had 7 million visitors last year. This year the Oktoberfest is from 17th September to October 3rd.
In Germany we have a special weekend ticket called the SchonesWochenende Ticket(Wonderful Weekend Ticket)(Price 30 Euros which works to 6 euros per person for a group of five persons) using which five persons alongwith kids below 14 years can travel anywhere in Germany and to some places just across the border(ex. Salzburg in Austria and Schaffhausen in Switzerland) on the weekends.
We used this ticket to travel from Munich to Schaffhausen to see the Rhine Falls on Saturday 10th September 2005.
A four and half hour train journey brought us to Schaffhausen railway station in Switzerland. From here we took bus no. 1 to Neuhausen Zentrum(the busstop for the Rhine Falls)( to and return ticket 2 Euros 30 cents).
From there a small walk took us to the various lookout points over the waterfalls - the Rhine Falls being the biggest in Europe attracts many visitors.
We could use our Euros and there was no need to convert our Euros to Swiss Francs.
We crossed the bridge built over the waterfall to the opposite bank and after a not so steep walk up a small hill visited the Schloss Laufen( a palace) . Here there was a wonderful SelfService restaurant where we had a light snack and tea/coffee. Also a wonderful place to pickup souvenirs. From the Schloss you can make your way down to the river bank below(ticket 70 cents) through a private pathway. Along this path there are wonderful lookout points giving one super views of the waterfall.
The highlights of the trip was a trip to a rock at the center of the waterfall by boat. Here at the rock one can climb up a pathway created for easy access to the top of the rock. At the top of the rock it was truly a wondrous feeling with the waterfall gushing all around you. This boat trip costed a reasonable 5 Euros.
After an afternoon meal on the banks of the river - more of a picnic since our group of five had carried our food and drink alongwith us. Some more shopping for souvenirs and then we headed back by bus to the Schaffhausen railway station to catch our train back to Munich.
On the Weekend ticket we need to change trains to reach our destination - Munich to Ulm and Ulm to Schaffhausen and on the way back Schaffhausen to Ulm, Ulm to Augsburg and Augsburg to Munich. The German Railway trains are normally on time and connecting trains wait for the preceding trains to arrive.
My suggestion is do this trip on a day when there is light rain expected as the light rain and mist creates a surreal atmosphere around the waterfall. Also do not miss out on the boat ride to the rock at the center of the waterfall. It does look unsafe from the banks of the river but the boat has very powerful engines and are manoevered very well.
This trip is a mustdo and is different from the boatrides on the lakes and the visits by rail/cablecar to the tops of the mountains.