Discover Hainewalde: Castle, Valley and Breiteberg

Hainewalde combines Baroque architectural history with a wooded river landscape and a range of ideas for things to do. The New Castle, Roschertal and Breiteberg each offer something different: architecture, valley and elevation. When looking for accommodation, you can first consider whether your trip will focus mainly on local history, nature or a mix of both.

The New Castle and its terraces

Hainewalde New Castle is a Baroque complex built between 1749 and 1755 on the hillside above the Mandau. Five terraces lead from the valley up to the main building. Their sequence makes the layout of the terrain a defining feature of the complex: the eye follows the levels upwards, rather than focusing only on the castle façade.

The castle park is considered accessible free of charge all year round. The castle interior, however, is not open to the public every day; it can be visited as part of scheduled tours and events. Check the current dates and access arrangements before your visit. This lets you distinguish the outdoor area from a visit inside, for which a specific date is essential.

The Kanitz-Kyaws family crypt is part of Hainewalde’s church history. The Baroque structure was built in 1715 and stands beside the church; together, they form part of the local ecclesiastical heritage. On a walk, the crypt offers a different historical focus from the terraced grounds of the New Castle.

Roschertal, Breiteberg and a local walking route

Roschertal is a wooded stretch of the Mandau valley, just under one kilometre long, between Hainewalde and Mittelherwigsdorf. As a gorge-like valley, it is bordered by wooded slopes that rise 50 to 60 metres. Its scale and dense woodland give the valley a distinctive landscape character, clearly different from the terraced castle complex.

Another landmark is Breiteberg, Hainewalde’s local mountain. It is 510 metres above sea level; the walk from the village takes around 30 minutes. The Breitebergbaude is located at the summit. If you would like to take its opening into account when planning, check the current opening hours in advance.

A local circular walk of about 45 minutes connects the old and new castles with the “Blue Ribbon” on the Mandau, Hainewalde Church and the Kanitz-Kyaws family crypt. This route brings together different aspects of local history and the river landscape. Cycling downstream towards Roschertal is also possible; these two options offer different focuses for active days. Local trail conditions may change, so it is worth checking for current information before setting out, if needed.

The herb garden beside the parish grounds is particularly vivid in its individual features: a bridge, a willow house, around 60 labelled medicinal plants and an information book about medicinal plants. The labels and book give the garden a specific botanical focus. If you plan to visit it, check current access and conditions in advance.

A distinct cultural focus in the wider destination of Görlitz

The wider destination of Görlitz adds an urban cultural focus. After a city fire, Schönhof was rebuilt in the Renaissance style from 1526 onwards. Today it is the main building of the Silesian Museum in Görlitz and is one of the oldest Renaissance buildings north of the Alps. Its history connects post-fire reconstruction with a significant Renaissance building.

The Holy Sepulchre in Görlitz offers another historical focus: it was built between 1481 and 1504 and comprises the Chapel of the Tomb, the Chapel of the Anointing and the Chapel of Adam. It is considered a unique replica of the holy sites of Jerusalem and the oldest surviving structure of its kind north of the Alps. St Peter’s Church, in turn, houses the Sun Organ, an instrument built by Eugenio Casparini towards the end of the 17th century that can imitate birdsong. Hainewalde’s castle complex and these buildings in Görlitz thus offer different points of interest if you are interested in architectural and cultural history.

Discover more destinations

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Back to the main travel overview: Görlitz.