Ockfen: Wine Sites, Views and Trails

Ockfen brings together wine sites, viewpoints and several named trails. If you choose the town as a travel destination, you can distinguish between hikes by their starting points and the stops along the way. Winegrowing and traces of history give the town its own distinctive character.

Hiking Trails and Viewpoints

The 8.7-kilometre short circular route of the Saar Riesling Trail starts at the fishing pond in Ockfen. Its named stops include Bocksteinfels, the Heppenstein viewpoint, the Bismarck Tower and the Geisberg plateau. Another circular hike starts and ends at the Weinhotel Klostermühle. It passes the Ockfen wine estate, the Schoden Bismarck Tower and the Saar riverside path. A stop at St. Valentine’s Church is also included on a local circular route.

The Saar Riesling Trail connects sunny vineyards, deciduous and coniferous forests, and stream valleys. From the car park by the fishing pond, you can follow about 1.5 kilometres of the trail to Bocksteinfels. From there, the view stretches over Ockfen and Irsch, the vineyards and the Saar Valley towards Saarburg. The Geisberg high plateau offers panoramic views across the Saargau towards Luxembourg and Trier. The different viewpoints look out over the landscape in different directions.

Wine Sites and Local Character

The Ockfen Bockstein is the town’s main vineyard site and also its local hill. The 53-hectare site lies directly above Ockfen, by the Ockfener Bach, and is classified as a VDP Erste Lage. Devonian clay slate contributes to the conditions in the vineyards and to the wines’ mineral profile. The Bockstein thus combines specific geological features with the winegrowing for which Ockfen is known. The town is also associated with wine tastings and wine trails.

Traces of History and Winegrowing

Winegrowing in Ockfen is said to date back about 2,000 years. A Bronze Age socketed axe, found in a vineyard, is considered evidence of this. A written record lists Ockfen in 975 among the possessions of the newly founded St. Martin’s Monastery in Trier. A former administrative building belonging to the monastery remains as evidence of this historical connection. Ockfen therefore offers a way to trace both its long winegrowing tradition and the town’s historical connections.

Getting Around and Staying

Schoden-Ockfen station is on the Saarbrücken–Trier DB line. The Weinhotel Klostermühle is also a useful landmark for a circular hike: one of the routes described starts and ends there. The hotel restaurant lists trout from the Leukbachtal on its menu; the drinks menu features a wide selection of Saar wines. Restaurant offerings may change. Check the current menus before visiting.

The Weinhotel Klostermühle has step-free access and an accessible toilet. If these features are important to your plans, confirm the details again before your trip.

Discover more destinations: Biebelhausen, Beuren, Serrig, Hentern, Wincheringen, Butzweiler, Lampaden, Gusterath

See the overview of the wider region: Trier-Saarburg.