Discover Großschönau

Großschönau offers travelers a range of starting points for planning: guided tours, textile culture, and topics related to nature and habitats. If you are looking for a hotel for your stay, these interests can help you plan when to travel and what to do. The offerings have different focuses—from a guided tour to a look at weaving techniques and nature.

Guided tours in Großschönau and Waltersdorf

The municipality offers seasonal weekly guided tours in Großschönau and Waltersdorf, as well as additional guided hikes in the Zittau Mountains Nature Park. Group tours can also be arranged through the tourist information office. This means several formats are available: a seasonal local tour, a hike in the nature park, or a tour arranged for a group. If a guided tour is to be a fixed part of your travel plans, check the tour schedule before you arrive.

The Weaving School: experience textile culture

The Großschönau Weaving School is a creative textile center offering activities related to weaving, natural fibers, and culture, as well as a concert program. In the open weaving workshop, visitors can watch and handle the materials. By prior arrangement, you can also weave a piece there to take home. This makes the Weaving School a specific destination for travelers interested not only in textile products, but also in how they are made.

Courses and program events vary. If you would like to take part in a workshop, it is therefore advisable to check what is on offer in advance. When planning, you can choose between a visit to the open workshop, a course, and other cultural or concert events; weaving your own piece requires an arrangement in advance.

Nature and habitats in the nature park

The Zittau Mountains Nature Park House has an interactive exhibition about nature, culture, habitats, and people in the nature park. The nature park garden includes a barefoot trail, a panoramic viewpoint, a pond and stream, and play stations for families. The exhibition and garden offer different highlights: the exhibition explores several topics related to the nature park, while the garden brings together paths, water, views, and play stations. As access arrangements may change, it is advisable to check before visiting.

Görlitz as part of the wider travel destination

The following examples relate specifically to Görlitz. The historic old town has around 4,000 architectural monuments and is one of the best-preserved historic ensembles in Central Europe. The Untermarkt is considered the historic heart of the city and is surrounded by townhouses from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The Schönhof, the main building of the Silesian Museum in Görlitz, was rebuilt in the Renaissance style after a city fire in 1526 and is one of the oldest Renaissance buildings north of the Alps.

Religious buildings and their furnishings also shape Görlitz’s cultural heritage: St. Peter’s Church is Saxony’s largest hall church and a masterpiece of Gothic architecture. Its Sun Organ was built by Eugenio Casparini toward the end of the 17th century and can imitate birdsong. The Holy Sepulchre in Görlitz was built between 1481 and 1504; its complex includes the Sepulchre Chapel, the Chapel of the Anointing, and the Adam Chapel. It is a unique replica of the holy sites of Jerusalem and the oldest surviving structure of its kind north of the Alps.

For a different view of Görlitz, visit the city park, laid out in the 19th century, with its extensive meadows, mature trees, and walking paths. ViaThea, the street arts festival, is one of the regular highlights of Görlitz’s cultural calendar; check the dates and program again before your trip. The free SmartGuide app’s “Walk of Görliwood®” offers an individual route from one filming location to another throughout the city. Check in advance whether the app is available.

In summer, explore the Neisse Valley from the water on boat and paddling tours, offering a new perspective on Görlitz and the river’s natural landscape. Check this seasonal activity again before your trip. The Görlitz examples therefore vary by focus and season: the city park and old-town culture sit alongside a digital tour and seasonal excursions on the water.

Discover more destinations: Waltersdorf, Ostritz, Beiersdorf, Jonsdorf, Königshain, Schleife, Quitzdorf am See, Kottmar.

Go to the main travel overview: Görlitz.