Discover Heiligenhaus: Museums, forest and cycling routes

Heiligenhaus combines museum visits, nature experiences and active tours. Options range from exhibitions on the town’s history and the history of firefighting to walking trails, forest-themed activities and a cycle path along a historic railway line. When planning, you can take different interests into account and decide which experiences should be the focus of your stay.

Museums telling stories from Heiligenhaus

The permanent exhibition at the Abtsküche Museum shows life and work in Heiligenhaus between tradition and modernity. Exhibits and installations cover domestic life, school, pre-industrial crafts and the beginnings of the lock industry. The exhibition therefore looks at everything from everyday life to early industrial developments.

The Abtsküche Museum also offers special exhibitions and activities such as museum nights, book flea markets, markets and festivals, as well as events featuring local dialect and concerts. These formats complement the permanent exhibition with a variety of cultural themes.

The forest museum run by the Environmental Education Centre is housed in a former waterworks. Its exhibition on people and the forest, located in Abtsküche Nature Experience Park, invites visitors of all ages to touch, see and learn about a wide range of things. The Environmental Education Centre also offers visits to its natural history collection, which features bird and animal exhibits. Guided forest tours are also available; booking may be required.

The Heiligenhaus Fire Brigade Museum documents the development of firefighting techniques through a collection spanning more than 100 years of fire brigade history. Its museum barn displays numerous vintage fire engines from seven decades of fire vehicle development. The vehicles are largely in working order. Firefighting technology and vehicle development thus offer different perspectives on the history of the fire brigade.

Enjoy nature and compare routes

Abtskücher Teich is a reservoir pond in the local recreation area on the edge of Heiligenhaus. It is suitable for hiking and walking, observing flora and fauna, and relaxing. Nature observation and exercise go hand in hand here with the chance to plan a break in green surroundings.

The “Heiligenhauser Runde” discovery loop is a moderately challenging circular themed trail, approximately 7.78 kilometres long. It passes through the Rinderbachtal and Vogelsangbachtal nature reserves. Its stated length and moderate difficulty provide practical guidance when planning your tour.

The Heiligenhaus leisure map brings together hiking and cycling routes of varying lengths and difficulty levels; the brochure is available online. If you want to compare different route options when planning, it provides an overview of these differences.

Cycling and exercise

The almost 40-kilometre PanoramaRadweg niederbergbahn connects Haan, Wülfrath, Velbert and Heiligenhaus along a disused historic railway line. The first and only railway-carriage bridge of its kind in Germany is located in Heiligenhaus on the cycle path. A longer bike ride and a distinctive structure are therefore among the highlights for cycling enthusiasts.

The low ropes course at the sports field offers another way to stay active. Covering around 3,800 square metres, it features more than 70 metres of rope course, a bouldering wall and a versatile sports area. The rope course and bouldering are complemented by an area designed for a variety of sports.

If you are planning to visit a swimming pool, please note that Heljensbad is currently closed and is not expected to reopen until 2028.

Discover more destinations: Mettmann, Monheim am Rhein, Langenfeld, Erkrath, Hilden, Haan, Wülfrath, Velbert.

Go to the overarching travel overview: Mettmann.