Aull: Lahn Meadows, Old Castle and Oranienstein Palace
Accommodation in Aull
Aull offers travelers a variety of points of interest: Lahn meadows, the Forest and Meadow Trail, and historic buildings in Aull and Diez offer something for different interests.
Landscape, cycling routes and playground
The Lahn meadows define Aull’s landscape and invite visitors to linger. From Aull, you can enjoy a view of Oranienstein Palace in Diez.
The Forest and Meadow Trail passes through Aull. Its return section, Diez–Hambach, is about 12 km long, has moderate inclines, and runs mostly along a separate cycle path. In Diez, the Lahn Valley Cycle Route follows the river downstream.
The Hambach playground in Aull has climbing equipment, swings and sand, as well as shaded seating, picnic tables and water play by the Hambach stream. For a stop focused on play and picnicking, it is an alternative to the Lahn facilities in Diez, which have a canoe rest area and a motorboat landing.
Old Castle and Oranienstein Palace
The Old Castle is a former moated castle, probably built in the 12th century; it likely served as a road toll station. The main building dates from the Late Middle Ages and has two half-timbered upper floors and a half-hipped roof. The two-story extensions with gabled roofs date from the mid-16th and mid-17th centuries. The Old Castle is privately owned and can only be viewed from the outside.
Oranienstein Palace was built in the 17th and 18th centuries as a residence for a widowed princess; direct ancestors of the Dutch royal family once lived there. It can only be visited as part of a guided tour, which must be booked by phone in advance. Tours include visits to historic rooms and the Nassau-Oranien Museum; the museum documents the history of the Dutch royal family.
The two buildings differ both in age and in their former use: the Old Castle likely served as a road toll station, while Oranienstein Palace was a residence for a widowed princess.
The wider Rhein-Lahn region
The wider travel destination of Rhein-Lahn includes the Rhein-Lahn district, which covers the area on the right bank of the Rhine at the mouth of the Lahn, the Lahn Valley as far as just before Limburg near Diez, the southern foothills of the Westerwald descending toward the Lahn Valley, and the northern uplands of the Taunus between the Rhine and the Aar. The Roman Limes runs through the district; remains that are still visible today are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes.
The right-bank section of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, from Kaub to Lahnstein, lies in the Rhein-Lahn district. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Upper Middle Rhine Valley covers 65 kilometers between Bingen, RĂĽdesheim and Koblenz, with historic small towns, terraced vineyards and castle ruins. In the wider travel destination of Rhein-Lahn, the cycling options around Diez include the Lahn Valley Cycle Route, the Aar Valley Cycle Route and a well-developed network of local cycling routes.
Marksburg Castle is in the Loreley collective municipality in the Rhein-Lahn district and is the only medieval hilltop castle on the Middle Rhine that has never been destroyed.
Discover more destinations: Holzappel, Steinsberg, Gückingen, Heistenbach, Altendiez, Dörnberg, Hirschberg, Birlenbach.
For the wider travel overview: Diez.
