Discover Emsland: Nature, Trails and Culture
Accommodation in Emsland
In Emsland, you can discover hiking routes, cycle paths, moorland landscapes and historic sites on a variety of scales. HĂĽmmling Nature Park lies in the northeast of the district and covers around 580 square kilometres. Its cycling and hiking trails pass information stations, historic sites, megalithic tombs and Clemenswerth Palace. This makes it easy to combine an active tour with impressions of history and landscape.
Hiking in HĂĽmmling and at Theikenmeer
The Theikenmeer loop is one of the trails in HĂĽmmling Nature Park that meets the quality criteria of the German Hiking Association. Another hiking option in Emsland is the Kranichpfad (Crane Trail), which leads about 2.5 kilometres into Theikenmeer nature reserve. The return journey follows the same route, making a total distance of around five kilometres.
Along the Kranichpfad, an observation platform and a hide offer different perspectives on the landscape. From the platform, panoramic views extend across Lake Theikenmeer and the moorland of Wehmer Dose; the hide is on the lake shore. When planning your hike, you can take both the approximate walking distance and the viewpoints into account.
The Emsland Route by bike
For a different kind of active exploration, there is the 395-kilometre Emsland Route. The circular route passes through five landscapes: Northern Ems Valley, HĂĽmmling, Bourtanger Moor, Hasetal and Southern Emsland. The route is very well signposted, mostly flat and paved, and free of car traffic. It is particularly suitable for beginners and families with children.
The route connects 19 towns and villages. Any of the places along the route in Emsland can serve as a starting or finishing point. So when choosing accommodation for a cycling trip, you can base your choice of location on your preferred start and finish. This makes planning the route different from a hike with a fixed out-and-back course: the Emsland Route gives you a wider choice of possible starting and finishing points.
Moorland landscapes and how they have changed
From the Fehndorfer Moor viewpoint in Haren, you can see a 29-hectare remnant of a former industrial peat extraction site. The site has been prepared for nature conservation and raised bog regeneration. The viewpoint therefore offers a view of a particular area of moorland, as well as insight into its former use and its current focus on nature conservation.
Further afield in the region, the International Bourtanger Moor–Veenland Nature Park lies in the tri-border area between Emsland, Grafschaft Bentheim and the Dutch province of Drenthe. Its natural and cultural landscape is shaped by peat extraction, agriculture, preserved raised bogs and restored areas. Cycling and hiking trails, nature experience paths and viewpoints bring the changes to the moorland landscape to life. The nature park extends beyond Emsland, offering a broader perspective on the subject of moors.
A palace, a mill and regional cuisine
In Sögel, the palace gardens of Clemenswerth Palace cover 42 hectares. They include the Gloriette, the garden pavilion of Elector Clemens August. The size of the gardens and this distinctive building offer a tangible architectural and historical focal point for a visit.
Kreutzmann's Mill in Werlte was restored to its original 1881 condition in the 1990s. In Haren (Ems), the MersmĂĽhle mill is the centrepiece of the Maritime Museum's mill museum. The site also includes a miller's house, the main exhibition building, a historic bakehouse, a restored motor mill, a tool shed with a carriage house, and a farmhouse and herb garden.
Local produce is another discovery the area has to offer: it is served at the museum café of the Emsland Moormuseum in Geeste, including buckwheat pancakes. You can weigh up your interests when choosing a destination—whether you mainly want to hike, follow a cycling route, or combine landscapes with historical and culinary experiences.
Discover more destinations: Kluse, Rhede, Dohren, Haren / Ems, Twist, Papenburg, Sögel, Salzbergen, Meppen, Freren, Dörpen, Herzlake, Lehe, Lähden, Geeste, Haselünne, Lünne, Heede, Spelle, Holthausen, Holte, Düthe, Werlte, Stavern, Esterwegen, Emsbüren, Lathen, Werpeloh, Niederlangen, Fresenburg, Lingen, Rastdorf, Vrees, Dersum, Surwold, Lahn, Renkenberge, Bawinkel, Lingen (Ems), Walchum.
For the main travel overview: Lower Saxony.
