Sehmatal: Trails, Railway and Handicrafts

Trail network and trip planning

Sehmatal is a state-recognized health resort. The municipality provides a signposted network of hiking, cycling and ski-hiking trails. This puts three clearly distinct ways of getting around at the heart of trip planning: on foot, by bike or ski hiking.

Railway and longer hikes

The Erzgebirgsbahn from Chemnitz terminates at Cranzahl station; the narrow-gauge Fichtelberg Railway to the mountain resort area also starts there. If you include either route in your trip planning, check the current timetables for your travel dates.

The Bimmelbahn Experience Trail runs mostly parallel to the Fichtelberg Railway between Cranzahl and the resort town of Oberwiesenthal. At 18.8 kilometres, it is a challenging hiking route. You can combine it with a return journey on the steam train; check the current timetable when planning. The route length, level of difficulty and train option each offer a different indication of how the tour might fit into your stay.

Handicrafts in Neudorf

At the “Zum Weihrichkarzl” demonstration workshop in Neudorf, traditional incense cones are made by hand. This craft offers a distinct focus alongside trail and railway planning: the emphasis is on the manual production of a specific product. It is therefore possible to explore Neudorf’s local character through traditional craftsmanship rather than a route description. If you include cultural themes in your travel choices, this offers a separate focus alongside the active routes.

The Erzgebirgskreis as a wider setting

Across the wider destination of Erzgebirgskreis, the signposted hiking network covers approximately 4,500 kilometres. Panoramic trails around the mining towns of Schneeberg, Schwarzenberg and Zwönitz offer views of their historic town centres. One specific circular hike is the Schwarzenberg Panorama Trail: 13.8 kilometres along the heights around Schwarzenberg, taking about 4 hours and 5 minutes. Compared with the 18.8-kilometre Bimmelbahn Experience Trail, this circular route is shorter; it also differs in form from the route between Cranzahl and the resort town of Oberwiesenthal. You can weigh up the length, duration and route type of the two options. The circular hike returns to its starting point.

Cultural and landscape themes also form part of the wider travel context in Erzgebirgskreis. The Ore Mountain Mining Region (Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří) has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since July 2019. Seiffen is considered the birthplace of Ore Mountain folk art. The Seiffen Open-Air Museum of the Ore Mountains showcases historic buildings and workshops from the 19th and early 20th centuries; its centrepiece is the original Preißler lathe workshop, preserved with its water-powered drive, in the resort town of Seiffen. At 1,215 metres, Fichtelberg near Oberwiesenthal is the highest mountain in Saxony. The wider region therefore offers both cultural history and a specific connection to the landscape, alongside the handicrafts of Neudorf.

Discover more destinations: Sehma, Neudorf, Cranzahl, Zwönitz, Grunhainichen, Crottendorf, Mildenau, Blauenthal.

For the wider travel overview: Erzgebirgskreis.