Follow the Pied Pipers' call and the musicians
cycling vacation along the werra river
Begin your journey at the confluence of the Werra and Fulda rivers in Hann.Münden, a beautiful city in the Weser Hills full of half-timbered houses. Follow the signs on the bike route along the river into the Northern German lowland. Depending on your personal cycling preferences, you can experience the Weser in 5 - 12 days and end your vacation in Rinteln, Minden, Bremen, Bremerhaven or Cuxhaven.
Popular Weser Cycle Route
From high to low: from the Weser Mountains to the North German Plain and all the way to the North Sea, the Weser Cycle Path leads to its destination with only a few climbs. It begins in the three-river town of Hann. Münden, where the Fulda and Werra join to form the Weser, and ends at the Kugelbake near Cuxhaven. It has often been voted Germany's most popular long-distance cycle route, and not without reason: you can enjoy rolling along on mostly asphalt paths.
Pied Piper and Renaissance
Along the way is the imposing Weser Renaissance castle in Bevern with its moat and castle garden. High above the river valley watches Fürstenberg Castle near Wehrden with its Renaissance facade. Castles can also be found in Etelsen (Neo-Renaissance) and in Thedinghausen (Weser Renaissance). - On the famous Pied Piper's House in Hamelin you can read the inscription from 1284 describing the children's exodus. The historic old town with its half-timbered buildings is also worth seeing. In the Hanseatic city of Bremen, you roll directly onto the Weser promenade. There is plenty to discover here, such as the town hall and the market square, before heading to the coast via Bremerhaven.
Culture
Theater, culture and concerts are plentiful in Bremen. But there is also plenty on offer in the smaller towns along the Weser: In Rinteln, for example, theater events, concerts and exhibitions. The Nienburg Kulturwerk hosts interesting cabaret performances and exhibitions, while the Minden Stadttheater offers drama, musical theater, children's theater and cabaret. - The Weser Festival am See in Höxter, for example, is worth mentioning in terms of festivals, where stars come and go.
Curious Culinaria
From a culinary point of view, you are in an Eldorado here: on the Middle Weser you can feast on Nienburg asparagus, Weser eel, trout, carp, pike and zander. Brokeloh is proud of its blueberries. A Bremen specialty is cabbage and pinkel, i.e. kale, which is called brown cabbage in Bremen, along with smoked pork, pancetta and a hearty Grützwurst, pinkel. To some, the Labskaus may seem strange: potatoes, salted meat and beet, plus rollmops, pickled gherkin and fried egg. There is plenty of sea fish here, as we are approaching the North Sea. Beer fans will enjoy Bremen's brewery scene with small craft beer manufactories as well as the large Beck's brewery.
Nature
First, the bike path follows the meandering Werra through the Weserbergland, a low mountain range landscape that reaches heights of over 500 meters. The route reaches the Weser breakthrough at Porta Westfalica, where the Werra pours into the North German Plain. The river widens, the landscape becomes more open and wide, and finally the route heads north into the Wesermarsch, much of which lies below sea level. On the North Sea coast, another highlight is the UNESCO World Heritage Wadden Sea.
