Whether you're young or old, there's an adventure for everyone in the Rureifel. Families can look forward to a diverse mix of nature experiences, exciting recreational activities, and kid-friendly destinations.
The indoor pool for the whole family in the copper town of Stolberg
13-metre-high observation tower with 76 steps at the Eifel view "Burgberg".
Directly below the hiking trail along the Schleebachgraben, near the "Im Todt" parking lot, lies the community's wild boar park, which covers around 5 hectares. A refuge and numerous benches invite you to meet the black smocks in a wonderful location.
Walk through nature with alpacas, celebrate children's birthdays and have fun. This is what we offer for you.
Explore Rursee and Obersee by boat
The salt inhalatorium for adults and children in the Rureifel.
SternenBlick in Heimbach: "Cosmic energy"
Discover your alpaca-donkey experience!
With a 20 cm depth of snow, a horse sleigh with 2 Belgian draft horses will travel from Mützenich through the Fens.
The Nideggen National Park Gate welcomes visitors to the Haus am Tor at Zülpicher Tor in the historic town centre of Nideggen.
Shinrin Yoku with lamas and alpacas- from spring untill fall. Do you love the forest? Do enjoy spending time surrounded by nature? How do I active all my senses? Do you want to escape your daily routine? You are right where you need to be. With a group of up to six people, we walk with lamas and alpacas. In addition to long phases of silence, we try exercises for body and soul. You are welcome to bring a small snack.
In the National Park Gate in Rurberg, you can get information about the Eifel National Park region and visit the exhibition “Nature's Lifelines”.
The Abenden leisure pool is located in the Rur valley directly on the Rur and is surrounded by wooded mountain slopes. A spacious sunbathing area invites you to sunbathe and relax and the large swimming pool allows carefree bathing fun. The large, gently sloping non-swimmer area is ideal for families with small children. There is a sheltered playground on the grounds with a slide, nest swing and much more, as well as an adjacent beach volleyball court, basketball hoop and table tennis table for sporting activities. The kiosk offers drinks, ice cream and food at reasonable prices. The outdoor pool is just a 2-minute walk from the Abenden Rurtalbahn train stop.
SternenBlick in Monschau-Höfen: "Night owls"
Climbing fun on the Obersee
At the National Park Gate in Höfen you will find a Tourist Information Centre, the exhibition on "A blaze of yellow daffodils and changing forests", a digital model of the area and National Park films.
Located in Schmidt near Nideggen, right next to the Eifel National Park, the wildlife park is home to native wild animals, tame domestic and farm animal species and a naturally preserved plant world. The species-appropriate keeping of the animals and the very personal contact with our visitors are particularly close to our hearts. We want you to feel at home with us - at home in the Eifel.
Set in a dramatic landscape of woods interspersed with water, the Eifel National Park will allow you to experience the fascinating natural diversity of a wilderness at first hand. For in this large protection area some 65 kilometres southwest of Cologne, nature has been left once more to its own eternal cycle of growth and decay.
Various courses with many alternating elements and ropeways with a total length of over 800 m make a visit to the Hürtgenwald high ropes course a special experience. The focus is on the high-altitude adventure course.
Monte Mare is an indoor swimming and wellness institution. The swimming are offers swimming fun on 1000qm.
Carefree family bathing fun in the Obersee
The forest playground in Obermaubach invites young and old to take a break.Übersetzt mit DeepL Translate
The heated outdoor pool in the town of Heimbach is located directly on the Rur in the Eifel National Park. Family-friendly, it offers its visitors a wide range of activities with a water temperature of 24°C and spacious outdoor facilities.
A "multi-generational playground" for cyclists and skaters
... a day at the beach, feeling the sun, capturing the serenity of the vacation mood and feeling like you're in the south...
Get up close and personal with Lamas and Alpakas.
Freibad Hürtgenwald UG (haftungsbeschränkt) has been operating the renovated outdoor pool in Vossenack since 2015.
The Heimbach National Park Gate welcomes visitors to the old railway station in the beautiful town of Heimbach.
The Düren Biological Station has converted the old goods shed of the former Nideggen-Brück railroad station into the permanent natural history exhibition "Rur and Rock".
Farmer's golf has its origins in our neighbors in the Netherlands, where there are now many farmer's golf courses. For some years now, this "Dutch fun sport" has also been available at Bosselbacher Hof.
SternenBlick in Nideggen-Schmidt: "Night nature"
Bubenheimer Spieleland - the all-weather destination for the whole family.
With a water temperature of 28.5 degrees, the 25 metre pool with a springboard and a 3 metre tower offers 4 lanes. A learning swimming pool and a children’s pool are also available.
Explore your alpaca experience
The Kölschkier forest adventure course in the Perlenbach Valley is an adventure play-ground for real outdoor enthusiasts and an ideal day out for the whole family in the Eifel. Kids and grown-ups alike can explore the forest habitat with all their senses at the nine different stations of the course. The adventure course is a playful way to spark educational learning processes, teaching visitors how to treat the natural world.
From the smallest mouse to bears and lions, you can go on a journey of discovery here. Experience a tour through nature as it once was or can still be found today. The Nature Learning Experience Museum displays over 1000 specimens on approx. 200 square meters.
Circular hike through the Drover Heath - 12 km
Circular hike / 3.4 km
Discover the landscape of the red sandstone cliffs near Nideggen on the Effels circular hiking trail, LENI red. The hike is particularly suitable for families with children.
Circular hike / 7 km
The 4.0 km long educational soil trail leads along a 700 meter long boardwalk directly over the sensitive soils and through the source area of the Weiße Wehe.
Hiking with panoramic views on the Rurseeblick circular trail [50] with approx. 6.5 km along the Rursee.
Oak forests - sometimes like this, sometimes like that - 7.7 km hike Starting point: Alter Schlachthof hiking parking lot
Romantic Rur Valley - 7.4 km hike Starting point: Dreistegen hiking parking lot
Length: 4.0 kilometers Duration: approx. 2.5 hours Difference in altitude: 140 meters
Length: approx. 2.8 kilometers Hiking time: approx. 1.5 hours Difference in altitude: 89 meters
Circular route / 8 km
A family-friendly circular tour without any major inclines. On the northern bank there is a small leisure facility with boat and canoe hire, which also invites you to linger.
Tour length approx. 4.4 km Starting point: National Park gate parking lot
Where the sawmill stamps - 3.8 km hike Starting point: Rohren church parking lot
Paradise in the Perlenbach valley - 3.6 km walk Starting point: Hiking parking lot Gut Heistert
"Wilder Kermeter - 2x wilderness for all" hiking trail in the barrier-free nature experience area
The new Kaiser-Karl-Weg - sections of 4 to 8.6 km partly barrier-free, adventure loop for families with children Starting point: hiking parking lot Konzen, church
Length: approx. 4.5 kilometers Duration: approx. 2.5 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 45 meters
Hiking route around the town of Kreuzau. Follow the number 82.
The level hiking trails through the open Drover Heath, across meadows and sparse woodland, some of which lead over wooden footbridges, offer special insights into the habitat of rare flora and fauna.
Discover and experience six works of art on a short walk.
Length: approx. 3.2 kilometers Duration: approx. 1.5 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 100 meters
On this hike, you can experience the famous hedgerows in Eicherscheid. Distance: 8.0 km Starting point: Bachstraße in Simmerath-Eicherscheid
Tour length approx. 5.3 km Starting point: Hiking parking lot "Am Ehrenmal"
Length: approx. 2.2 km Duration: approx. 1 hour Difference in altitude: approx. 62 meters
The watercourses and their floodplains are a typical and ecologically valuable part of the Rureifel with a great wealth of flora and fauna. This diversity is thanks to the farmers who have mowed the meadows for centuries. When modern forms of farming close to villages made haymaking in the valleys no longer worthwhile, spruce trees were planted there. Efforts are currently being made in many places to restore the original floodplain vegetation. The characteristic terracing can be seen in many places along the hiking trail. This occurs when a river is no longer able to transport its debris load and deposits it in the floodplain. If a river deepens again due to a change in climate, it cuts through the previously formed terrace. The formerly swampy valleys of the Eifel only acquired their function as traffic routes after the river regulation at the beginning of the 20th century.
Circular route / 5.5 km
Length: approx. 4.2 kilometers Duration: approx. 1.5 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 35 meters
Through Emperor Karl's hunting grounds - 5 km walk Starting point: Hiking parking lot Dorfplatz
The first stage of the wilderness trail as a family hiking tour leads from the Monschau-Höfen National Park Gate 9.5 kilometers through the natural landscape of the Eifel.
Length: approx. 5.6 kilometers Duration: approx. 2 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 75 meters
Distance: 9.3 km Starting point: Simmerath-Strauch village square
The “Wilde Weg” is a 1.5 kilometre-long nature discovery path in the Eifel National Park.
Length: approx. 5.6 kilometers Duration: approx. 2 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 75 meters
The red thread - through the city of clothmakers Tour length approx. 2 km Starting point: Burgau hiking parking lot
Höfener Heckenweg - 5.3 km hike Starting point: Hiking parking lot National Park Gate
A hiking trail for families in the Eifel
From the hardships of an old path to a fallen rock
Family-friendly circular hike near Heimbach in the Eifel (5 km), always along the water's edge
Tour length 5 km Starting point: Mühlenstraße, Weserbrücke hiking parking lot
Tour length 6 km Starting point: Parking strip at the church
At over 450 m, the treeless Struffeltkopf rises up between Rott and Roetgen
The 1.1 km long village walk shows you the special features of the small Börde village of Muldenau.
The short 3.4 km circular trail through Vlatten shows all the highlights of the village and the landscape.
Length: approx. 2.3 kilometers Duration: approx. 1 hour Difference in altitude: 72 meters
Tour length approx. 4.2 kilometers Starting point: Rohren church parking lot
From the old town to the Eifel National Park - 14 km or 9 km hiking tour Starting point: Monschau market square
Distance: 5.5 km Starting point: National Park information point (Heilsteinhaus), Franz-Becker-Str. 2 in Simmerath-Einruhr
The 4 km circular trail shows all the special features of the small village of Embken.
The small 1.7 km circular route through Wollersheim shows all the highlights of the village.
The 3.8 km circular trail shows all the special features of the village of Hergarten.
Who can find the hidden zebra?
On a day in autumn, when wisps of mist drift through the spruce forests like ghosts, you can sense here on the Ochsenkopf a little of what made the forest battles so eerie for the soldiers on both sides and contributed to the myths and legends of the Hürtgen Forest.
The 5 km long village walk through Nideggen-Rath shows all the highlights of the village and the countryside.
The almost 4 km long hiking trail takes you through the beautiful Börde landscape.
Length: approx. 5.2 kilometers Duration: approx. 2 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 56 meters
Round tour - Obersee lake
4.8 km hike
narcissus route near Höfen, on the edge of the Eifel National Park, offers a great supplement to the Eifelsteig
Length: approx. 6.5 kilometers Duration: approx. 2.5 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 61 meters
Length: approx. 4.2 kilometers Duration: approx. 2 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 110 meters
Tour length: approx. 6.7 kilometers Walking time: approx. 2.5 hours Difference in altitude: approx. 250 meters
The short 3.7 km circular route through Berg-Thuir shows all the special features of the village.
From 05.07. to 12.09.2025 you can set off along the jungle trail in search of over 30 elf houses.
Along the Laufenbach - 3.7 km walk Starting point: Konzen church parking lot
Circular route / 5 km
The circular route leads through the Perlenbach valley near Monschau-Höfen to the "Unterer Steg" footbridge, which crosses the stream, and back downstream to Höfener Mühle.
The second stage of the Wildnistrail as a family hiking tour leads from Vogelsang IP to the Urft dam wall for about 7 kilometers through the nature of the Eifel. The hike can easily be combined with a boat trip.
Circular route / 5.5 km
Circular walk through the Drover Heide bird sanctuary / 5 km