Wielen: Border community at the westernmost end of the Uelsen Joint Municipality

Wielen as a border community

Wielen is a small village in the district of Grafschaft Bentheim in Lower Saxony and belongs to the Uelsen Joint Municipality. As a border community, it lies at the westernmost end of the joint municipality. Lower Saxony’s westernmost boundary stone stands in Wielen; several municipal roads from the village also cross the “green border.” These two details give the description of the village a clear geographical reference: Wielen can be located both by its position within the joint municipality and by its prominent border marker. If you are looking for a hotel in Wielen, this information can help you pinpoint your destination within the district.

The history of the school adds a historical perspective to this border connection. In the past, pupils at the Wielen school also came from neighboring Dutch areas, including Hardenberg and Radewijk. Het Schöltien is located in Wielen and is considered the oldest surviving school in the Niedergrafschaft. The old school closed on March 21, 1964, after 58 years in operation. Thus, both a specific site in the history of education and connections across the border are part of Wielen’s story.

Landscape, hiking and cycling in Grafschaft Bentheim

In the wider destination of Grafschaft Bentheim, heathland, raised and lowland bogs, wooded ridges and the Vechte river valley alternate. The Itterbecker Heide is a nature reserve covering around 85 hectares. These landscapes give an impression of the variety of the district as a wider region.

The Grafschafter Spurensuche comprises more than 320 kilometers of marked hiking trails through all the towns and municipalities of Grafschaft Bentheim. The network includes 15 themed day hikes. In addition, the 80-kilometer long-distance trail “In the Footsteps of the Podagristen” connects Bad Bentheim with Coevorden in the Netherlands. This offers different scales of hiking: a regional network with day hikes and a named long-distance route between two towns.

The Grafschafter Fietsentour is a cross-border network of routes. Its main route is around 220 kilometers long and passes through all the district’s municipalities; there are also 25 day loops starting at 28 kilometers. Uelsen Touristik offers six planned circular routes through the Uelsen Joint Municipality. Three rural experience routes in the joint municipality run mostly along rideable gravel paths through meadows, forests and fields. The route types differ: the Fietsentour combines a main route with day loops, while the Uelsen offerings include circular routes and, for the experience routes, also specify the predominant surface. Since route details can change, check the latest information before setting out.

Culture in the wider destination of Grafschaft Bentheim

In the wider destination of Grafschaft Bentheim, kunstwegen extends for more than 180 kilometers through the Vechte valley as an open-air museum of contemporary art, nature and history. More than 80 sculpture projects are located along the route. The project was created through German-Dutch cooperation. Another regional cultural attraction, the Uelsen Bronze Age Farm, offers insights into life in the Bronze Age at Riedberg; it is a reconstructed prehistoric farmstead. The two examples differ in focus: kunstwegen brings together art, nature and history along a long route, while the Bronze Age Farm focuses on the Bronze Age.

Discover more destinations: Getelo, Wilsum, Engden, Laar, Wietmarschen, Schüttorf, Emlichheim, Georgsdorf

To the wider travel overview: Grafschaft Bentheim.