Bad Sassendorf: Salt History, Routes and Nature
Accommodation in Bad Sassendorf
Bad Sassendorf offers several distinct themes to consider when planning a stay. Salt and brine use is at the heart of the Westphalian Salt Worlds and the Sassendorf Salt Trails; other highlights include a medieval church, routes through the town, activities in the spa gardens and the Woeste nature reserve. Depending on whether you focus on places of cultural and historical interest, route itineraries or landscapes, your visit can take on different emphases.
Salt History in the Collection and on the Trail
In cooperation with the Westphalian Salt Worlds Support Association, the Westphalian Salt Worlds exhibit a collection of Westphalian cultural artefacts. Their focus is the history of salt and brine use in the Hellweg region. The Hellweg region gives the subject a geographical context, while salt and brine use form the thematic focus.
The Sassendorf Salt Trails present the same subject in a different way: this circular route leads from Hof Haulle to historic sites of the salt industry in the salt-making village and to modern locations in the spa town. The stops document Bad Sassendorf’s local salt history and the use of brine for therapeutic purposes. While the Salt Worlds present a collection, the trail leads to places with historic and modern connections to salt history.
Public guided tours of the Sassendorf Salt Trails are offered on Saturdays at 11 a.m., as well as bookable group tours. Check current dates and group tour options before travelling.
Church and Views over the Spa Gardens
The Protestant Church of Saints Simon and Judas Thaddaeus is in the heart of Bad Sassendorf and is a medieval church. As such, it provides a historical feature distinct from the subject of salt and brine use.
At the Bad Sassendorf graduation tower, a lift leads to the viewing platform on the second floor. From there, you can look out over the spa gardens. Bad Sassendorf thus offers two distinct features: a medieval religious building and a viewpoint overlooking the park.
Routes and Activities in the Spa Gardens
Two routes offer different points of reference: Hiking Trail A1 passes through Heppen, a district of Bad Sassendorf; the Westphalian Way of St. James from Höxter to Bochum also runs through Bad Sassendorf. Heppen is the local reference point for the A1, while Höxter and Bochum are the named endpoints of the Way of St. James. Check the Way of St. James route markers on site.
The Bad Sassendorf spa gardens include a barefoot path. The activity park in the spa gardens has a low-rope course and outdoor exercise equipment.
Woeste and Soest
Woeste is a lowland bog and nature reserve in the Ahse valley between the Bad Sassendorf districts of Bettinghausen and Ostinghausen. As a landscape feature, it differs from the activities in the spa gardens: the focus here is on the lowland bog and its protected status. Its location between the two districts places the area within a specific landscape.
In the wider destination of Soest, the Osthofentor Museum provides an overview of the town’s more than 1,000-year history and topographic development through information panels, large-format texts, photographs, graphics and a town model. The LiebesLeben_Museum in Soest offers a different approach: as a modern science centre, it focuses on participation, interaction, experimentation and learning, and welcomes people of all ages, from 5 to 95.
Discover more destinations: RĂĽthen, Soest, Lippstadt, Erwitte, Ense, Werl, Lippetal, Wickede.
Back to the main travel overview: Soest.
