Böttingen: Heuberg, Alter Berg and Winter

Böttingen is situated on the Heuberg plateau in a long dry valley. Alongside this landscape, the climb to the chapel on Alter Berg and seasonal winter activities shape the local attractions. This gives you a way to discover the town through its landscape, culture and opportunities for winter activities.

Landscape and Nature Reserve

The 45.5-hectare Alter Berg Nature Reserve lies south of the town. It protects juniper heaths with nutrient-poor grassland, woodland pastures and stone clearance banks from earlier land use. The stone clearance banks point to past land use; the heath and woodland pasture are also protected landscape features. Two details help put the area in context: Böttingen lies in a dry valley on the Heuberg plateau, and the nature reserve is south of the town.

Stations of the Cross on Alter Berg

Along the climb to the chapel on Alter Berg are Stations of the Cross carved by the Beuron monk Father Tutilo, which continue to adorn the route. The weather-damaged wooden plinths and relief housings were later replaced with tuff stone. This change of material is another aspect of the stations, alongside the carving. For those interested in culture, the connection between the Stations of the Cross and the climb to the chapel is a tangible point of interest in Böttingen.

Winter Activities in Böttingen

Skiing, sledding and cross-country skiing are available seasonally in Böttingen; actual options depend on snow conditions. There is a family-friendly downhill run on the edge of town. Böttingen Ski Lift is the highest-elevation ski lift on the Swabian Alb; it has easy and difficult runs. These provide different points of reference when choosing: the family-friendly nature of the run on the edge of town and the different difficulty levels at the lift.

In winter, the Heuberg plateau also has a network of interconnected cross-country ski trails spanning about 60 kilometers. This figure refers to the wider travel region. For seasonal activities, check current conditions before your trip. This makes it possible to choose between downhill skiing, sledding and cross-country skiing according to the winter activity that suits you.

Tuttlingen as a Wider Travel Context

The district of Tuttlingen covers 734.4 square kilometers and includes the southwestern foothills of the Swabian Alb, parts of the Baar region and the valley of the Upper Danube. The northern part of the district is home to juniper heaths and the 10-Tausender region, with ten mountains rising above 1,000 meters. Other landscape highlights of the district include the Danube gorge and the Höwenegg volcanic crater.

One cultural example in the district of Tuttlingen is the Neuhausen ob Eck Open-Air Museum. It features 25 historic buildings that were dismantled at their original locations, moved there and restored to their original condition. These regional landscape and cultural attractions complement the local points of interest in Böttingen with a broader view of the district’s diversity.

Discover more destinations: Trossingen, Emmingen, Durchhausen, Bärenthal, Renquishausen, Dürbheim, Deilingen, Möhringen

Go to the wider travel overview: Tuttlingen.