Insider tips - Hiking

Hiking can be so wonderful!

Discover new places away from the well-trodden paths with our insider hiking tips. There are many hidden gems that are still relatively unknown among the many hiking routes in North Rhine-Westphalia. We’d like to introduce them to you!

When nature wakes up from its winter hibernation, it is high time to lace up your shoes and enjoy the fresh air. Hikers in North Rhine-Westphalia have over 50,000 kilometres of well-managed hiking paths to choose from, with new offers being added every year. Away from the Eifelsteig and Rheinsteig trails, you’ll find exciting insider tips for hikes in Your NRW.

Hiking and relaxation

One very special experience is yoga hiking. There are several opportunities available in Your NRW, such as the three yoga hiking routes in Bad Meinberg in the Teutoburg Forest. Panels have been set up for hikers in places with particularly spectacular views, showing simple yoga exercises. But the routes are beautiful even without yoga breaks, leading past a baroque spa park and through the moor region where the medicinal Meinberg sulphurous moor mud is collected.

www.hornbadmeinberg.de

Anyone who wants to try out more yoga after their yoga hike can pay a visit to the Haus Yoga Vidya in Bad Meinberg, the largest seminar and training centre of its kind outside India, with a range of offers that are unique in Europe.
For fans of healthy living, the “Vitalwanderwelt” vitality wonderworld in the Teutoburg Forest is also well worth discovering. Here, physiotherapists or specially trained hiking tour guides accompany the guests and show them movement and relaxation exercises at specially arranged points along the way. Thanks to telemedicine, anyone who wishes to can also stay in contact with their doctor during the hike.

www.vitalwanderwelt.teutoburgerwald.de

Ahrsteig Trail

A hiking trail that links the Eifel with the Rhine

At 90 kilometres, the Ahrsteig is one of the shorter long-distance hiking trails in Germany. But when it comes to variety it can more than hold its own.

Level of difficulty: intermediate

Cicular Hiking Trails in the Maas-Schwalm-Nette Nature Park

Wandering through a landscape of streams and water meadows

With its rivers, lakes and streams, the Maas-Schwalm-Nette Nature Park in the Lower Rhine is a watery wonderland for hikers.

Level of difficulty: easy

Trails of art in Neanderland

Sculptures paths and art trails in the Mettmann district

Whether Neanderthal silhouettes or mutant animals, the Mettmann district offers plenty of art in public spaces.

Level of difficulty: easy

Copper Trail

Today golden-yellow calamine pansies still bloom along the route to Stolberg

For a long time, metal extraction and processing were traditional trades in Stolberg near Aachen. The Copper Trail leads directly into the past.

Level of difficulty: intermediate

Way of St. James

On historic pilgrimage routes through Münsterland

Even hundreds of years ago pilgrims were crossing what is now NRW on the way to Santiago de Compostela. One of these historical routes passes through Münsterland.

Level of difficulty: intermediate

Hanseatic Trail

Panoramic views and salt water springs on a hike through the Teutoburg Forest

Panoramic views, salt water springs and Marta Herford: the Hanseatic Trail in the Teutoburg Forest offers hiking with plenty of nature, relaxation and cultural highlights.

Level of difficulty: intermediate

Kindelsberg Trail

A circuit offering exceptional views and historical insights

The Kindelsbergpfad (Kindelsberg Trail) in Siegerland-Wittgenstein combines idyllic nature with information on the region’s mining history.

Level of difficulty: intermediate

Bergisch Wanderings

One-day expeditions

Forest myths, half-timbered houses and Heinrich Böll: the Bergische Streifzüge (Bergisch Wanderings) trails offer 24 half- and full-day themed tours.

Sauerland High-Flyer

A hiking trail for peak climbers

The Sauerland Höhenflug (Sauerland High-Flyer) crosses the summits of Sauerland and offers bird’s eye views of the valleys.

Level of difficulty: intermediate

Roman Canal Hiking Trail

Following the footsteps of the Romans from the Eifel to Cologne

Some sections of the hiking trail are not passable after the storm in July 2021. Where the Romans once directed fresh water from the Eifel mountains to Cologne, tourists and walkers can now marvel at ancient relics on the Roman Canal hiking trail.

Level of difficulty: easy