Jakobsweg routes in Southwest Germany?

[mla1]

Hello,
I am trying to plan a 21 day trip in late April/early May this year and I am hoping to walk somewhere other than France or Spain. I am wondering if anyone has experience walking any of the Jakobsweg routes in SW Germany that go over the border to France. I am thinking in particular of routes in the Black Forest region from Würzburg (or Rothenburg) to Strasbourg or down through Freiburg and over the border to Thann. I am wondering about difficulty and accommodation. And, yes, I have already searched this forum for everything related to Germany. And I have found the posts by Kitsambler extremely helpful!
Thanks!
Mary Louise

 

[Marc S.]

I have walked in Germany several times, but not in the South West, so can't be of specific help.

Perhaps you know this website already, but it is a really good starting point for finding information about all German Jakobsweg routes: http://www.deutsche-jakobswege.de/wege-uebersicht.html

If you click through on the map, you will get to more specific information about any particular route.
For example there is a specific website for the Jakobsweg Rothenburg - Thann (with height profiles, accomodation options, etcetera) http://www.jakobswege-nach-burgund.de/Rottenburg-Thann/
(all information is in German though)

 

[mla1]

Yes -- that's the map that got me thinking about the bottom left-hand corner and the paths that go over the border! What an incredible resource.
My German is rusty but I can muddle through -- that's part of the reason I am thinking of these routes!
Thanks!

 

[Shabanna]

If you come to the Lake of Constance, Marie-Louise, please stay in our Albergue:

Pilgerherberge St. Georg in Tettnang

Herzlich willkommen in der Pilgerherberge St. Georg in Tettnang am Oberschwäbischen Jakobsweg In der frisch restaurierten St.-Georgs...

und-die-haare-im-wind.blogspot.com

Greetz from a bar 3 km before Santiago,
Andrea

 

[Kitsambler]

I am wondering if anyone has experience walking any of the Jakobsweg routes in SW Germany that go over the border to France. I am thinking in particular of routes in the Black Forest region from Würzburg (or Rothenburg) to Strasbourg or down through Freiburg and over the border to Thann. I am wondering about difficulty and accommodation. ... And I have found the posts by Kitsambler extremely helpful!

Thank you for your kind words, and I'm glad my "trail of breadcrumbs" is paying off.
Although I haven't walked the Jakobswege in that part of Germany, I have been there on other travels. The terrain was the same gently rolling, with forested hills, I saw in Bavaria. The routes are well-maintained and well-marked, but a map-app is always helpful here, as elsewhere. That is a well-settled part of Germany, so the distances between towns is small, and accommodation is plentiful. The price at Gasthauses was running me EUR 50-60 for a single room with private bath and robust breakfast; dinner was ala carte. I did not seek kitchen facilities so don't know about that situation. On occasion, lodging might be available at monasteries or similar church-related institutions; check the guidebooks and websites for details. I would not expect to find any other walkers in that timeframe, except on weekends near the larger cities.
The ubiquitous little yellow books from Conrad-Stein-Verlag are your most applicable; available from the publisher's website or from Amazon.de or possibly Amazon UK (or every single bookshop in Germany).
https://www.conrad-stein-verlag.de/buecher-shop/jakobsweg-franken-schwarzwald/
https://www.conrad-stein-verlag.de/...e-donau-vacha-fulda-wuerzburg-rothenburg-ulm/
https://www.conrad-stein-verlag.de/buecher-shop/jakobswege-zwischen-schwarzwald-und-vogesen/
https://www.conrad-stein-verlag.de/buecher-shop/deutschland-frankreich-jakobsweg-trier-vezelay/

Germany has suburbs and industrial zones that are no fun for walking; I recommend taking advantage of bus or S-bahn (surface light rail) lines to get to the edge of town. Lots of daily details (in a part of Germany you are not walking, but still useful) in my blog.

 

[mla1]

If you come to the Lake of Constance, Marie-Louise, please stay in our Albergue:

Greetz from a bar 3 km before Santiago,
Andrea

Hallo Andrea -- thanks! I may end up going that way. I will put this in my notes! Cheers, ml

 

[mla1]

Thank you for your kind words, and I'm glad my "trail of breadcrumbs" is paying off.
Although I haven't walked the Jakobswege in that part of Germany, I have been there on other travels. The terrain was the same gently rolling, with forested hills, I saw in Bavaria. The routes are well-maintained and well-marked, but a map-app is always helpful here, as elsewhere. That is a well-settled part of Germany, so the distances between towns is small, and accommodation is plentiful.

Hi Kitsambler! Thanks for all this! I have been looking at the various yellow guides -- and also the red ones. Of course they give different routes. For the options that I am thinking of you would need two yellow books but just one red book. And of course the routes each publisher prioritizes are not quite the same. I had originally been thinking of doing the Munschner weg -- but watching videos it looks like a LOT (i'm okay with some) of asphalt. The route you took from Nurnberg could also be an option. I realize any of the options will be pretty solitary. If the scenery is good and the towns are interesting -- I'm okay with that. I had thought about the Via Regia --- with the better pilgrim infrastructure -- but I think I would rather see some forests and more hills. Would you have any sense of whether there would be much difference (in terms of landscape, I guess) between the route that goes through Freiburg and the route that goes a little further north to end up in Strasbourg? I've never been in that part of Germany. Thanks again for the info and advice! ml

 

[Kathy F.]

What a wonderful idea. When I was preparing for my first Camino, we were stationed in Stuttgart. I was in Rothenburg one weekend on a volksmarch. Imagine my shock to view, for the very first time, my very first yellow arrow pointing the way to SANTIAGO (do you know how FAR that is from Rothenburg???!!!) I took a zillion pictures. My companions must have thought I was a crazy person because they did not get the significance and my overwhelming delight in seeing my very first sign of my planned trek which would begin a few months later.

 

[Michael; Camino-addicted]

Hallo Mary Luise,

Unfortunately I could give you only little information about the the Jakobswege in Germany, although I am German. So far I have only walked the Way from Cologne to Trier.

But I know a wonderful hiking trail in southwest Germany - the "Saar-Hunsrück-Steig" (Saar-Hunsrück-climb). The Saar is a river in the border area Germany - France and the Hunsrück is a low mountain range between the rivers Saar and Rhine. It is not a climb in the alpine sense, although it is so called, it is a very natural long distance hiking trail.

It begins in Perl, in the border triangle Germany-Luxemburg-France, runs through beautiful landscapes and ends in Boppard on the river Rhine. You can walk it also in the opposite direction

I have hiked a lot in Germany, but I think this trail is by far the most beautiful of the many beautiful hiking trails we have in Germany, perhaps with the exception of the Alps.

The route runs through the low mountain range and avoids very well paved paths, so it often really goes right through the nature. The marking is very good, there are a lot of villages, so you can organize the stages longer or shorter if you want. The stages on the website are quite short, so it looks like you need more time as it really is.

The journey would be very well possible via Luxembourg or Frankfurt am Main, there is also the "cheap airport Frankfurt-Hahn".

Here is the link.

Saar-Hunsrück-Steig

Erwandern Sie auf dem Saar-Hunsrück-Steig 410 traumhafte Kilometer. Entdecken Sie romantisch gelegene Seen, verwunschene Täler und phantastische Aussichten.

www.saar-hunsrueck-steig.de

Unfortunately I don't know if there is information in English language.

Something for you?

 

[mla1]

Hello Michael,

This is really interesting! I had not seen this. The website is also in English - so much easier for me. I am going to spend some time looking at the site later this evening! Thank you so much! I really like the idea of walking in the border regions.

cheers,
Mary Louise

 

[jl]

from Würzburg (or Rothenburg)

I have walked a number of Jakobweg routes. The one that had the most pilgrim specific accommodation was from Leipzig to Köln. I have walked from München to Rome, but I didn't find much pilgrim specific accommodation there (it was a few years ago). When I walked on the Via Romea Germanica I did not see any yellow arrows in Würzburg, but I did see them in (and a pilgrim statue!) outside Jakobs Kirch in Rothenburg. There is a VERY active amigos group near Donauworth, and a delightful albergue next to the bell tower in Jakobs Kirch in Augsburg. You will find a bit of info from my travels here.

From München http://janetthehappywanderer.blogspot.com/2014/06/munich.html
From Leipzig http://janetthehappywanderer.blogspot.com/2015/02/snow-snow-and-for-good-measure-more-snow.html
Rothenburg https://wanderingyetagain.blogspot.com/2018/04/rothenburg-ob-der-tauber-day-32-and-33.html
Augsburg https://wanderingyetagain.blogspot.com/2018/05/harburg-donauworth-augsburg-day-39-40.html

 

[mla1]

Hi jl -- thanks for this! I am afraid I lost some time at work this morning reading through your blog posts. Super helpful. Your photos are good inspiration for a trip to that part of the world!

 

[gittiharre]

Both the Via Baltica and Via Regia in the North East of Germany have a great network of pilgrim specific accommodation.
I understand the Mosel Camino is fab and has some pilgrim accommodation, but also an abundance of commercial guesthouses and hotels.
I met a guy on the Le Puy route, who had walked from Germany to France and through the Vosges. He said it was spooky through the Vosges area. Very sparsely populated, difficult to find places to sleep, long distances and got lost often...he liked it once he got to Le Puy....

 

[mla1]

I understand the Mosel Camino is fab and has some pilgrim accommodation, but also an abundance of commercial guesthouses and hotels.

The Mosel Camino does look beautiful! It is on the list for some point! I think for this trip I have decided to do a route that goes from Würzburg through Rothenburg and Rottenburg (how confusing is that?) and then goes across the Kinzigtäler camino to Strasbourg in France. It is about 21 days - so fits my timeframe perfectly - and is described in this guide book: https://www.rother.de/rother%20wanderf%FChrer-jakobswege-4363.htm

The Kinzigtaler route seems to have a good friends' group: https://www.jakobusweg.com/.

Looks like a fair bit of both pilgrim-specific accommodation (in homes) and guest houses, small hotels.
Easy access to Frankfurt for the airport both coming and going. Hills and a good mix of big and small towns. And the border! All of this appeals!

Thanks for all the info and suggestions!

 

[gittiharre]

The Mosel Camino does look beautiful! It is on the list for some point! I think for this trip I have decided to do a route that goes from Würzburg through Rothenburg and Rottenburg (how confusing is that?) and then goes across the Kinzigtäler camino to Strasbourg in France. It is about 21 days - so fits my timeframe perfectly - and is described in this guide book: https://www.rother.de/rother%20wanderf%FChrer-jakobswege-4363.htm

The Kinzigtaler route seems to have a good friends' group: https://www.jakobusweg.com/.

Looks like a fair bit of both pilgrim-specific accommodation (in homes) and guest houses, small hotels.
Easy access to Frankfurt for the airport both coming and going. Hills and a good mix of big and small towns. And the border! All of this appeals!

Thanks for all the info and suggestions!

Great! Like the look of this myself!

 

[mla1]

I will definitely report! It looks beautiful -- across the top of the Black Forest. I spent a few months in Berlin once -- but I have never been anywhere else in Germany. And even in this small corner of the country - there are a lot of camino options.

If anyone is interested, here's a site for some guide and info about some of the routes: https://www.jakobsweg-team.de/shop/index.htm

 

[lovingkindness]

Hello,
I am trying to plan a 21 day trip in late April/early May this year and I am hoping to walk somewhere other than France or Spain. I am wondering if anyone has experience walking any of the Jakobsweg routes in SW Germany that go over the border to France. I am thinking in particular of routes in the Black Forest region from Würzburg (or Rothenburg) to Strasbourg or down through Freiburg and over the border to Thann. I am wondering about difficulty and accommodation. And, yes, I have already searched this forum for everything related to Germany. And I have found the posts by Kitsambler extremely helpful!
Thanks!
Mary Louise

Hi there, @mla1
There is a lovely trail between Freiburg im Breisgau and Taizé in France which passes through the Alsace (Haut-Rhin), Franche-Compté, Bourgogne + La Saône. It takes three weeks to walk.

Resource (sign in to download):

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/resources/freiburg-im-breisgau-–-taizé-aug-sept-2018.698/

Cheers
Lovingkindness

 

[Purky]

Shout-out to @Michael; Camino-addicted for his post in this thread on the "Saar-Hunsrück-Steig". I was intrigued when he posted about it earlier this year and looked into it further. Back to present day: me and my wife returned yesterday after walking it in just over 18 days. Michael was right, it is a stunningly beautiful walk. We choose to bring a tent, so there was a lot of (wild) camping involved. No major problems and we both enjoyed it enormously. Thanks again, Michael, for mentioning it. I wouldn't have wanted to miss it!

 

[Michael; Camino-addicted]

Hallo Purky,
I am happy that you liked the Saar-Hunsrück-Steig as much as I do.
In the moment I'm hiking on the Natursteig Sieg. It starts not far away from Cologne and goes along the river Sieg, less than two hours away from home. But to be honest - it's not the same "high level" of nice.
Best wishes.

 

[Purky]

Hallo Purky,
I am happy that you liked the Saar-Hunsrück-Steig as much as I do.
In the moment I'm hiking on the Natursteig Sieg. It starts not far away from Cologne and goes along the river Sieg, less than two hours away from home. But to be honest - it's not the same "high level" of nice.
Best wishes.

"High level" of nice is well put. A couple of days ago I found a new muscle group in my calves, courtesy of the Steig...

 

[mla1]

I’m in Canada so Germany didn’t happen for me this year. But great to hear another experience of this trail! Purky if you get a chance to post photos you know we would love to see them!

 

[mla1]

Maybe just a few in this thread?

 

[Purky]

Maybe just a few in this thread?

 

[Purky]

And some more...

 

[mla1]

Beautiful!!! Thanks for posting.

 

[Michael; Camino-addicted]

Very nice photos.

Thank you.

 

[Kitsambler]

post photos you know we would love to see them!

The section of my blog on crossing Germany -- including photos -- begins here:
https://kitsambler.wordpress.com/2012/05/31/30-may-eslarn-to-wildstein/

 

[FirstImpact]

One of the most beautiful destinations I visited in Germany was a small city called Bamberg, located in Bavaria region. We got there by accident, when we were on our way to the Netherlands in 2019. I just need a place to stay overnight and this city was the closest one. During the day we decided to visit it, and we were impressed with its beauty. We stayed a at very nice hotel near a small river. Last year, I actually read a nice article about it on https://www.africanjacana.com/germany/berlin/ which confirmed all our experiences. I don’t know what the situation is now regarding covid, but definitely check it out.

 

[Michael; Camino-addicted]

With Bamberg you have found a real treasure among the cities in Germany. It´s one of the Unseco world heritage places in Germany.

You may not tell the Franconians - yes, Bamberg is in Bavaria, but for them it is the capital of Upper Franconia, an area that Napoleon gave to the King of Bavaria as a gift for his loyalty to the alliance. Just another Bavaria than the one with the Alps.

Upper Franconia is a fantastic region. For friends of a cultivated beer it is heaven. Nowhere in the world are so many breweries in such a small area - in every village the beer tastes different. There are a large number of well-signposted hiking trails including a beer hiking trail.
Many lovely little towns, castles and fortresses ,old churches and very nice landscapes, one we call Frankonian-swiss because of the beautiness.

For people who like to double-track, a combination of Upper Franconia and Lower Franconia is a good idea. Lower Franconia is a very well-known wine region with cities like Würzburg.

My home country really offers a great selection of landscapes and places that are certainly worth visiting.

Nevertheless, I am eagerly awaiting my next Camino in Spain.

People always want what they can't have, and the neighbor's meadow is always a little greener than their own. I am no exception.