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Routes Germany Eifel Eifelleiter (Bad Breisig- Adenau)
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Long-Distance Hiking Toprecommended route

Eifelleiter (Bad Breisig- Adenau)

· 10 reviews · Long-Distance Hiking · Eifel
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  • Hohe Acht
    Hohe Acht
    Photo: Tourist-Information Brohltal
Aussicht Fichtelhütte Photo: Tourist-Information Brohltal
Rodder Maar Photo: Tourist-Information Brohltal
Photo: Tourist-Information Brohltal
m 1000 800 600 400 200 50 40 30 20 10 km Panoramarundblick 360° | Hohe Acht Hohe Acht mit dem Kaiser-Wilhelm-Turm
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The Eifel Ladder leads hikers from the Rhine over the top summit of the Eifel, the Hohe Acht, to the picturesque town of Adenau. Along roughly 53 km, you can experience the whole variety of the Rhine and Eifel landscape here.
moderate
Distance 52.8 km
Duration19:48 h
Ascent1,439 m
Descent1,190 m
Highest point715 m
Lowest point53 m
The starting point is the Rhine, with the well-known spa town of Bad Breisig, one of the very few green areas of the Middle Rhine close to the river. Further along, the Ladder winds through the charming Brohl valley with the natural spectacles Hufeisenkrater Bausenberg, Rodder Maar and magnificent views of the medieval castle Olbrück. The route continues up the Ladder to the opposite pole, the High Eifel, whose highest mountain, the Hohe Acht, will be the destination of the Eifel Ladder conquerors, before the route then ends on the historical market square in Adenau. As preferred by hikers, the route seeks closeness to nature over long stretches and offers ample opportunity to escape often stressful daily routines.

 

Highlights along the trail:
•    Spa town Bad Breisig with Rhine promenade and Roman thermal baths
•    Natural monument Hufeisenkrater Bausenberg
•    Rodder Maar with view of the medieval castle Olbrück
•    Adventure forest Steinrausch
•    Historic narrow-gauge railway Vulkan-Expreß
•    Eifel forests in the direction of the Nürburgring
•    Hohe Acht, highest mountain in the Eifel
•    Winter sports area Hohe Acht/Lützelacht
•    Emperor William Tower
•    1,000-year-old town of Adenau with historic market square
•    Way of the Cross Adenau

 

Stages (please click to get to the stage)
Eifelleiter: Stage 1: Bad Breisig - Niederzissen
Eifelleiter: Stage 2 Niederzissen - Spessart/Kempenich
Eifelleiter: Stage 3 Spessart/Kempenich - Adenau

Author’s recommendation

Ready for "trial tours"?

Along the Eifel ladder, two circular hiking trails invite you to explore other facets of the region on a half-day or full-day tour away from the ladder. One tour leads through the "Breisiger Ländchen", one through the "Vinxtbachtal".

Profile picture of Sarah Stein Tourist-Information Vulkanregion Laacher See
Author
Sarah Stein Tourist-Information Vulkanregion Laacher See
Update: August 04, 2022
Difficulty
moderate
Technique
Stamina
Experience
Landscape
Highest point
715 m
Lowest point
53 m
Best time of year
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Track types

Show elevation profile

Safety information

Please stay on the designated paths.

Tips and hints

Tourist-Information Bad Breisig (im Kurpark)Koblenzer Straße 3953498 Bad Breisig

Tel. (+49) 2633/45630

 

Tourist-Information
Ferienregion Laacher See
Kapellenstraße 1256651 Niederzissen
Tel. (+49) 2636/19433

 

Tourist-Information Hocheifel-Nürburgring
Kirchstraße 15-19
53518 Adenau
Tel. (+49) 2691/305122

  

www.eifelleiter.de

Start

Bad Breisig, Rheinpromenade/Kurpark (56 m)
Coordinates:
DD
50.510812, 7.300887
DMS
50°30'38.9"N 7°18'03.2"E
UTM
32U 379527 5596806
w3w 
///solve.misused.pastel
Show on Map

Destination

Adenau, Marktplatz

Turn-by-turn directions

The EIFEL LADDER (first stage) starts at the Rhine promenade in Bad Breisig and then leads the Ladder hikers out of the spa gardens past the Roman thermal baths into the tranquillity of nature in the direction of Mönchsheide, where gliders can be observed on the weekends at the local airport. On the way there, it’s worth looking back over your shoulder for incredible views of the Rhine valley. Thanks to the characteristic landscape of the Breisiger Ländchen, the Ladder at the game reserve offers the opportunity to take a short breather and watch the deer.

Soon, Waldorf with its picturesque church appears in the field of vision. At the end of the first stage, the adventure of geology begins. A dance on the Bausenberg, Germany’s best-preserved horseshoe crater and home to rare plants and animals, makes for a fascinating conclusion to the first hiking stage.

The second stage begins in the expanses of the picturesque and charming Brohl valley with the natural spectacles of Rodder Maar and Königssee as well as magnificent views of the medieval Olbrück castle. Fancy a detour? A round of SwinGolf, the golf sport for everyone, at the Rodder Maar offers deceleration in front of a wonderful scenery. Outside the forest passages, the Ladder offers fascinating perspectives of volcanic outcrops, living witnesses of the past. Along old paths, a main road from Roman times, the “Kohlstraße” leads through the little village of Spessart to the second stage destination, the Steinrausch adventure forest.

The final stage (third stage) first leads to the dreamy Steinrausch adventure forest near Kempenich, before the Eifel Ladder conquerors set off along small Eifel villages such as Lederbach and Hohenleimbach towards the finish, the Hohe Acht. On the way, forest passages offer pure nature and impressive distant views over the unspoilt Eifel landscape invite you to enjoy yourself. Soon, the imposing rock formations of the Hohe Acht appear and all efforts are rewarded by the view from the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Turm. You have the option of continuing along the path to the lively town of Adenau. 

Stage 1: Bad Breisig - Niederzissen (please click to get to the stage)
Distance: 15.7 km
Duration: 4 h
Difficulty: moderate

Stage 2: Niederzissen - Steinrausch adventure forest (Spessart/Kempenich) (please click to get to the stage)
Distance: 15.1 km
Duration: 5 h
Difficulty: moderate

Stage 3: Steinrausch adventure forest - Hohe Acht - Adenau (please click to get to the stage)
Distance: 21.7 km
Duration: 6 h
Difficulty: difficult

Note


all notes on protected areas

Public transport

How to get to the start of the tour:

Traveling to and from the Eifelleiter by public transport offers the advantage of not being able to return to the basin from the (stage) destination to the starting point, but to be able to start straight home from there. Another plus: inexpensive tickets from the Rhein-Mosel transport associations “VRM” (www.vrminfo.de) and Rhein-Sieg “VRS” (www.vrsinfo.de) as well as the Rhineland-Palatinate ticket are valid on all buses and trains.

Start and finish in Bad Breisig and Adenau are best reached by bus & train: in Bad Breisig the regional trains (lines RE 5 and RB 26) between Koblenz, Bonn and Cologne stop twice an hour, some of which also have direct connections to Mainz, Düsseldorf and Wesel offer. From Monday to Friday there are also bus connections with line 806 to Waldorf and the stage destinations Niederzissen and Spessart / Kempenich. In Adenau there is an hourly bus line 863 (every two hours on weekends) to Ahrbrück train station with a direct connection to the Ahr Valley Railway in the direction of Bad Neuenahr, Remagen and Bonn. There are also daily buses back from Adenau to Hohen Acht (line 816 on weekdays, line 815 daily) and to Kempenich (line 815, some call-line service).

There are also good connections every day from the stage destinations Niederzissen and Spessart / Kempenich. The best way to get to Niederzissen is with the historic volcano express of the Brohltalbahn (www.brohltalbahn.de). The trains run every day in summer except Mondays, and a limited timetable is offered in winter. In addition, there are daily bus connections from Niederzissen to the train stations Brohl (lines 802, 813, 816), Bad Breisig (lines 802, 806), Sinzig (lines 801, 819) and Ahrweiler (line 813). There are other connections Monday to Friday, including to Spessart and Kempenich. The Ahrweiler and Mayen Ost train stations can be reached daily from Spessart and Kempenich on line 814. During the week there are further connections, u. to Niederzissen / Bad Breisig (line 806) or between Kaltenborn / Hohe Acht and Adenau (line 816). Line 815 connects Kempenich - Hohenleimbach - Hohe Acht - Adenau on weekdays and, since 01.07.18, also on weekends and public holidays (partial call-line service). Engeln train station can also be reached via the signposted feeder route, from where the Brohl Valley Railway trains in the direction of Niederzissen and Brohl am Rhein start.

If you want to take the extra tour in the Königsfeld and Dedenbach area, it is best to start at the Niederzissen train station (see above for information). There are daily connections with line 813 but also directly to the “Bächelsberg junction” (hiking car park), to Dedenbach and to Königsfeld Mitte.

Of course, there are numerous other stops along the route of the Eifel ladder. B. offer to switch to public transport in the event of a change in the weather.All information about the timetables and prices can be found at www.vrminfo.de.

Taxi company in Bad Breisig:   
Grafelmann rental car, Tel. 02633/200333   
City rental car, Tel. 02633/9110   
Bad Breisig rental car, Tel. 02633/8445   
Rhein-Taxi, Tel. 02633/9991 or 02633/9191   
Minibus company Abels, Tel. 02633/1455

Taxi company in Brohltal:   
Taxi Meibus, Tel. 02646/914000

Taxi company in the Hocheifel:   
Taxi at the Ring Nürburgring Avdiu, Tel. (+49) 2691 5760311   
Taxi courier service Hans-Peter Hoffmann, Tel. (+49) 2691 8182   
Friedrichs rental car, Oliver Pletsch Tel .: (+49) 2691 9399822

 

Getting there

Please use the navigable start address in the Parking area to enter it in your navigation device.

Parking

Start:
Tourist-Information Bad Breisig (im Kurpark)
Koblenzer Straße 39
53498 Bad Breisig

Destination:
Hohe Acht bis 53518 Adenau (10 km Entfernung bis zur Hohen Acht)
Tourist-Information Hocheifel-Nürburgring
Kirchstraße 15-19
53518 Adenau

Coordinates

DD
50.510812, 7.300887
DMS
50°30'38.9"N 7°18'03.2"E
UTM
32U 379527 5596806
w3w 
///solve.misused.pastel
Show on Map
Arrival by train, car, foot or bike

Book recommendation by the author

Flyer Eifelleiter

Book recommendations for this region:

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Recommended maps for this region:

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All publications

Equipment

Tragen Sie witterungsangepasste, zweckmäßige Kleidung und für den Weg angemessene Wanderschuhe.
The Most Beautiful long-distance hikes in the Eifel
Germany › Rhineland-Palatinate › Mayen-Koblenz › Dedenbach

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  • Eifelleiter: Etappe 2 Niederzissen - Spessart/Kempenich
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  • Westerwald-Steig Stage 15: Strauscheid - Waldbreitbach (East - West)
  • AhrSteig Stage 7: Bad Neuenahr Center Station to Sinzig (17.6 km)
  • Eifelleiter: Stage 3 Spessart/Kempenich - Adenau
 These suggestions were created automatically.

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Rating

4.1
(10)
Wander Verliebt
November 04, 2022 · Community
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When did you do this route? October 04, 2022
Video: Wander Verliebt, WanderVerliebt
1 comment
Profile picture of Adelheid Bluhm
Adelheid Bluhm
September 16, 2021 · Community
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When did you do this route? September 14, 2021
Comment
Yves Loris 
April 24, 2021 · Community
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When did you do this route? April 24, 2021
Photo: Yves Loris, Community
Photo: Yves Loris, Community
Comment
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Photos from others

+ 8

Reviews
10
Difficulty
moderate
Distance
52.8 km
Duration
19:48 h
Ascent
1,439 m
Descent
1,190 m
Highest point
715 m
Lowest point
53 m
Multi-stage route Scenic Refreshment stops available Cultural/historical interest Geological highlights Summit route

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