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Hiking and Pilgramages

Celle is the ideal starting point for an extensive hiking tour

Celle is surrounded by many hiking trails that lead you to the most beautiful places in the area, through enchanted forests, dark moorland, across picturesque heathlands and river meadows. Regardless of whether you’re planning an exciting walk of discovery, going on an educationally-themed hike, beginning a pilgrimage - or perhaps a Nordic walking tour with all the equipment - the Heidestadt is an ideal starting point for this. Throughout your walking route, there are wonderful sights and interesting things to be discovered along the way.

 

The Walker’s Paradise of the Southern Heath (Südheide)

Discover the Unique Nature of the Region

A total of 23 themed, circular hiking trails, which together stretch over almost 400 kilometres, beckon you to go hiking through the Südheide Nature Park. Each hiking area is signposted with mostly three routes of different lengths - so you can choose individually how long you prefer your hike to be. Information boards, seating areas and good signposting ensure an all-round successful hiking experience. If you want explore nature more deeply, you can choose one of the specially themed trails, such as the "Heide Panoramaweg".

 

Hikers on the move in the Lüneburg Heath

Selected Hiking Routes

in and around Celle

Multi-day Hiking Tours and Pilgrimage Routes

through Celle and the Lüneburg Heath

The Heathland ‚Schnuckenweg‘ route

The ‘Heidschnuckenweg’ route was voted the most beautiful hiking trail in Germany in 2014.  Divided into 13 stages, it stretches over 223 km and if starting from the Hamburg area in the north (Hamburg-Neugraben train station in the Fischbek district), heading in southerly direction, it eventually ends at the beautiful Ducal Palace in Celle - and thus a large part goes through the Celle region.  This route leads through more than 30 areas of heathland - first to Buchholz and Handeloh, on via Soltau and the Wietzer Berg to Unterlüss, on through Lutterloh and to the historic inn “Zur alten Fuhrmanns-Schänke”, founded in 1814 and now a family friendly hotel. From here the hiking trail leads over the 84 metre high Citronenberg peak, through beautiful forests within the Südheide and later along the river meadows to Celle and the famous Ducal Guelph Palace. Signposts along the route are identified with a white ‘H’ on a black background.

Stage 13 of the ‚Heidschnuckenweg‘ route
The Jakobsweg (the Way of St. James)

Some pilgrimage routes go directly through Celle, such as the Way of St. James, the 7th stage of which leads from the Wienhausen monastery (where the oldest known spectacles in the world were discovered during renovation work) into Celle’s Historical Old Town. The subsequent 8th stage of the route begins here, on its way to the town of Winsen / Aller.

The Jakobsweg (the Way of St. James) in the Celle region
The E1 European Long Distance Hiking Route

The E1 European long distance hiking trail currently runs for around 7000 kilometres from the North Cape in Norway, to Salerno in southern Italy - a continuation to Sicily is planned. In some parts of Sweden, Denmark, Germany and northern Italy, the route is marked with a white St. Andrew's cross on a black background (or a red diamond, from Pforzheim in the Black Forest to Feldberg). The German section from Flensburg to Constance, comprises 76 official stages; it is around 1900 km long and runs between Hamburg and Celle through large parts of the Lüneburg Heath.

Long distance hiking trail within the Celle district boundaries:
Within Celle’s district boundaries the long distance hiking trail begins at junctions K13 and K45 between Wietzendorf and Müden,  It continues south via Hermannsburg to Celle, but then leaves Celle’s district boundaries at the L310 in the west, just a few metres behind the L298 and up to an old Guttore (previously an historic manor house with land) and on to the town of Rixförde.

The pilgrimage routes ‘Via Scandinavica’ and the ‘Via Romea’

The pilgrimage routes ‘Via Scandinavica’ and the ‘Via Romea’ also lead through Celle’s district boundaries - under shady pine forests, along picturesque streams, quiet moorlands and heathlands.  Throughout, the paths are marked with a yellow shell on a blue background. The “thin end”, which shows the ‘rays’ grouped together, always points towards the furthest direction.