Kyffhäuserkreis: Cave, Mine and Hiking Trails

Kyffhäuserkreis can be explored through a wide range of travel interests: underground geology and mining history, museums with their own themes, and hiking trails with clearly defined routes. You can tailor your stay to whether you want to focus on longer circular routes, a guided underground experience, or cultural attractions.

Caves, mining and underground culture

Barbarossa Cave is an anhydrite cave between the districts of Rottleben and Steinthaleben in the municipality of Kyffhäuserland. Five miners discovered it in 1865 in connection with the resumption of copper shale mining. It was named after the legend of Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa, who is said to return. The rock type, mining history and Barbarossa legend each offer a different way to experience this place.

Guided tours take place year-round at a depth of 670 metres in the Sondershausen Adventure Mine. They include an approximately two-hour truck tour through the underground labyrinth. The approximate duration helps you factor this activity into your day’s plans. The mine is also home to the world’s deepest concert hall, which regularly hosts concerts and cabaret performances. Tours and events therefore offer different perspectives on the same place.

Hiking trails with different route profiles

The Kyffhäuser Trail is a 37-kilometre circular route that starts and ends in Bad Frankenhausen. It is a certified Quality Trail of Hiking Germany, is well signposted and is regularly inspected for defects. Its three stages lead from Bad Frankenhausen to Barbarossa Cave, from the cave to the Kyffhäuser Monument, and from there back to Bad Frankenhausen. This sequence identifies the stops along the circular route without prescribing a particular day-by-day itinerary.

The Forest Adventure Trail offers a different distance: it runs for four kilometres between the Rothenburg ruins and the Kyffhäuser Monument and features ten activity stations. You can choose between the 37-kilometre circular route and a considerably shorter trail with stations. The figures indicate different route lengths; the destinations and trail types also differ.

Museums and historic sites

The Wiehe Model Railway is a model railway exhibition open year-round, with 12,000 square metres of exhibition space. In Sondershausen, the Palace Museum has been housed since 1923 in the former residence palace of the Counts and Princes of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. Its multifaceted exhibition spans three floors. A large-scale model railway display and a museum in a historic palace thus offer two very different cultural experiences.

The Funkenburg Open-Air Archaeological Museum in Westgreußen features Germany’s only reconstruction of a Germanic settlement on a prominent hill spur above the Helbe Valley. Its educational activity programme includes pottery, baking, wool processing, fishing-net making and archery. The reconstruction and hands-on activities give the visit an archaeological and practical focus.

Practical information for getting around

The monument shuttle at the Kyffhäuser Monument is available to people with limited mobility from April to October, on Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., running between the car parks and the ticket office. During the Thuringian school holidays, it also runs on weekdays. If you plan to use this service, check the timetable before your trip.

For bicycle planning, the Kyffhäuser Rad-Shuttle on route 530 is another option to consider: it runs through the region between Sondershausen and Artern and can carry bicycles on a bike rack. Alongside the hiking trails, this named shuttle service and its bicycle-carrying option are useful details to consider when planning.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Ebeleben, Bad Frankenhausen, Sondershausen, Steinthaleben, Artern/Unstrut, Wiehe, Bendeleben, Kyffhäuserland, Heldrungen, Westgreußen, Oldisleben, Gorsleben, Nausitz, Oberheldrungen, Roßleben, Helbedündorf, Clingen, Greußen.

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