Discover Sondernau: Salt, Craftsmanship and Rhön Trails

Sondernau offers several starting points for a stay: a playground at Kreuzbergblick, woodcarving and the salt cave, with its exceptionally old salt rock. An old small-leaved lime tree on a hill below the church provides another point of interest. You can tailor your trip to different interests rather than trying to fit every experience into a single itinerary.

Things to discover in Sondernau

Sondernau has a playground at Kreuzbergblick. It’s a clearly marked destination for families who want to include a playground in their travel plans. Local craftsmanship offers another kind of insight: visitors can watch woodcarvers at work in Sondernau. Günther Eyring is based at Lindenstraße 12, independently of this.

The Sondernau salt cave consists of 6.5 tonnes of salt, salt bricks and salt rock that is more than 500 million years old. These materials themselves are a special feature. If you plan to visit the salt cave, check the practical details before your visit.

An old small-leaved lime tree stands on a hill below the church. It offers a connection with nature alongside the playground, rock and craftsmanship. Check the tree’s current condition on site.

A road cycling stage with a different surface

On the “Road Cycling Tour – From Bischofsheim through the Brend and Elst valleys – Rhön” road cycling loop, the section from Oberelsbach to Sondernau briefly uses the road. The reason: the cycle path running parallel across the fields has a gravel surface for around 200 metres. If you plan to ride this stage, check the current route description before setting out; surface conditions may change.

More experiences in the wider Oberelsbach travel destination

The wider Oberelsbach travel destination has hiking trails of varying lengths and with designated features. The easy, family-friendly, stroller-accessible circular trail “Rhön Circular Trail 9 – Butterfly Nature Trail” is 4.4 kilometres long. Information boards along the way explain the way of life of local butterfly species. The moderate “Rhön Circular Trail 1 – Five Districts” is 15.9 kilometres long and connects all five districts of the Oberelsbach market municipality. The easy, stroller-accessible Butterfly Nature Trail is the shorter option at 4.4 kilometres; the moderate 15.9-kilometre circular trail connects all five districts of Oberelsbach.

Another hiking option in the wider Oberelsbach travel destination is the certified premium extra tour “Hochrhöntour.” It is around 15 kilometres long and passes through meadows and forests via the Thüringer Hütte, Basaltsee and Schwabenhimmel. The Rhön Cycle Path sets a different scale: it runs for 180 kilometres from Bad Salzungen in Thuringia to Hammelburg in Bavaria and crosses Oberelsbach approximately halfway along.

A permanent exhibition at the Haus der Langen Rhön Biosphere Centre in Oberelsbach provides information about the UNESCO Rhön Biosphere Reserve. There is a rally for children: Elsbeth the Rhön sheep asks questions and encourages them to look closely. This means a regional outing can include both nature topics and a discovery challenge for children.

Tradition is also part of the wider Oberelsbach travel destination. The Oberelsbach market municipality holds the Rhöner Maskenfastnacht every two years. Spanmänner, Fosenöchter and other participants parade through the streets in traditional costumes and historic wooden masks; the public is invited. If you want to plan your trip around the event, check the dates in advance.

The Oberelsbach market municipality includes five nature reserves. All street lighting in Oberelsbach is designed to protect the night sky; the Rhön International Dark Sky Park received its designation in 2014. Nature conservation and the protection of the night sky complement each other in the wider Oberelsbach travel destination.

Choose accommodation to suit your interests

Once you know which experiences matter to you, you can search for accommodation more purposefully.

Discover more destinations: Weisbach, Unterelsbach.

Go to the overview of the wider travel destination: Oberelsbach.