UNIQUE CYCLING REGION SAALE-UNSTRUT
The winemaking tradition, practiced since 998, is one you can’t ride past. Vineyards with steep terraces, dry stone walls and vineyard houses characterize the region. Today, more than 50 grape varieties are grown on the 768 acres of vineyards. You could taste a new variety every week of the year and still not have tried them all. Imposing castles and palaces, impressive cathedrals, monasteries and churches recall the period between the 11th and 13th centuries. These include Naumburg Cathedral, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2018. The beautiful traffic-free asphalt roads, the hills and wine tasting make Saale-Unstrut an ideal cycling holiday region.
The many well-developed bike trails lead not only along the eponymous rivers Saale and Unstrut, but also to exciting themes: The “Sky Trails,” for example, take you into the world of archaeology and astronomy, including the world-famous “Nebra Sky Disc.”
Saale-Unstrut surprises and invites you to discover the region by bicycle more than once.
Cycling route 1
Saaleradweg – experience nature and admire the extraordinary castles
The Saaleradweg is one of the most attractive and varied river cycling routes in Germany.
From the Fichtel mountains to the Elbe lowlands, the cycle route traverses a varied landscape with a wealth of cultural monuments, picturesque river valleys and a multitude of towns and villages, from small, dreamy villages to large cities such as Jena and Halle (Saale). The route follows the Saale from its source through the states of Bavaria, Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt to its mouth. In the dam area, the route is especially popular with ambitious cyclists who like to do their interval training on the nasty climbs. From Saalfeld the route flattens out. Besides the impressive landscape, the most beautiful features of the cycling route are the many castles and palaces. In Saxony-Anhalt, the route runs about 180 kilometers from Kleinheringen to where the Saale flows into the Elbe at Barby.
Tip: Wine route Saale-Unstrut
Cycle through the 1000-year history of viticulture along the rivers Saale and Unstrut. With nearly 770 hectares, the Saale-Unstrut region is the northernmost quality wine region in Germany. The Saale-Unstrut Wine Route opened on Sept. 17, 1993, and in its 30 years of existence has developed into a popular adventure route in southern Saxony-Anhalt. The route is about 60 kilometers long and leads past old terraced vineyards to numerous wineries, wine taverns and wine islands. Medieval castles, mystical sites and the charming river landscapes of the Saale and Unstrut rivers characterize the landscape all the way to Bad Sulza in Thuringia.
Bike Trail 2
Himmelsscheibenradweg – Cycle path of the sky disk
On the trail of the Bronze Age
An exciting journey in the history of mankind, back to the Bronze Age, begins at the site where the famous “Sky Disk of Nebra” was found.
The sensational find of the bronze disc with gold applications is considered the oldest depiction of the cosmos in the world (about 3,600 years old). From the current repository of the sky disk, the State Museum of Prehistory in the city of Halle on the Saale, cyclists can follow the footsteps of history to the excavation site on the Mittelberg on this bike trail. From Halle (Saale), the trail leads to the Mansfeld region with its wine-growing area on the Süßen See, then leads you further to Querfurt Castle. This castle is one of the most powerful and special in Germany. The bike route continues through the Ziegelroda Forest to the Nebra Ark visitor and adventure center.
Tip: Get off your bike and experience the Himmelswege.
For thousands of years, people have looked to the night sky to discover the secrets of life. The tourist adventure trail “Himmelswege” also explores no less than the meaning of life, the wherefore and the wherefore. The answer is written in the stars. In southern Saxony-Anhalt, unique archaeological finds of international importance at four “Himmelswege” stations, provide information about the prehistory of a region that was once one of Europe’s most important centers. Then at the fifth station – the solar observatory – go on a journey to the stars and complete the circle! In Halle, Goseck, Langeneichstädt, Nebra and Pömmelte near Magdeburg, you will find these exciting exhibitions about the sky and the earth, or perhaps also: about heaven on earth.
More information about the “Sky Trails” tourist route and the five stations can be found at:
www.himmelswege.de
www.naturfreude-erleben.de/de/tour/fernradweg/himmelsscheibenradweg/1560680/
Info:
Saale-Unstrut Tourismus GmbH
Neuer Steinweg 1 · 06618 Naumburg
Telefon 03445-233790
info@saale-unstrut-tourismus.de
www.saale-unstrut-tourismus.de
