Discover Teistungen: Border history and trails

In Teistungen, traces of the division of Germany meet trails for walks and bike rides. The Eichsfeld Borderland Museum makes the history of the border a starting point for a range of discoveries: you can learn about the division of Germany and Europe, explore original GDR border installations preserved in their original state, or follow a route to the reservoir. The parish church of St. Andrew also tells the story of earlier building phases in the town.

Border history at the former crossing point

The Eichsfeld Borderland Museum, located at the former Duderstadt–Worbis inner German border crossing, provides information about the history of the division of Germany and Europe from 1945 to 1990. The museum’s Borderland Trail leads to original GDR border installations preserved in their original state, which visitors can explore. It is open year-round and can be walked at any time. This makes it possible to combine a focus on history with time outdoors.

For getting your bearings on site, it is important to distinguish between two offerings: the main building of the Borderland Museum is wheelchair accessible, with step-free access, a lift and accessible toilets. This information applies to the main building. The Borderland Trail is a separate outdoor offering.

Choose routes by time and distance

For a bike ride to the Glockengraben Reservoir, the 11.4-kilometre Reservoir Cycle and Hiking Trail starts at the Borderland Museum. It heads towards Teistungen and the lake; the stated cycling time is about 35 minutes. If you’d like to compare a longer bike ride, the 24-kilometre Teistungen–Ferna–Brehme–Duderstadt route offers a different distance and travel time: about one hour and 45 minutes. This route also starts at the museum, runs mostly along paved or compacted gravel paths, and follows the Hahle for one section.

The shorter walking and hiking routes also differ in duration and course. The loop around Glockengraben Reservoir is about 2.2 kilometres long and takes approximately 30 minutes; at the lake, paved boardwalks invite you to linger. The 3.5-kilometre Lindenberg circular hiking trail takes about 50 minutes and starts at the Borderland Museum. It crosses a pedestrian bridge towards Victor’s Residenz Hotel.

Several routes are available for about two hours of walking, and their courses make them easy to tell apart. The approximately eight-kilometre Teistungen–Berlingerode–Immingerode–Gerblingerode Cycle and Hiking Trail starts at the Borderland Museum and runs mostly along a paved path; around 200 metres follow a former border patrol road. The similarly approximately eight-kilometre Teistungen Pferdeberg circular hiking trail goes via Gerblingerode and the Hahle to Pferdeberg, with its observation tower, and then back to Teistungen.

Another option is the Teistungen–Berlingerode circular hiking trail: it is about 9.3 kilometres long, takes approximately two and a half hours and starts at the market square in front of the community centre. If you’re planning a longer loop and have more time, consider the approximately 14.2-kilometre Teistungen–Ferna–Tastungen–Wehnde circular hiking trail. It takes about five hours and starts at the Borderland Museum, initially heading towards Teistungen, past the allotment gardens and along the Hahle.

A look at the building history of St. Andrew’s

The parish church of St. Andrew adds a cultural highlight among the trails and border history. The new church was built in 1933/34. It incorporates the squat west tower of the previous church, which was built between 1722 and 1726. The organ also has a history of its own: it comes from Teistungenburg Abbey Church and was built in 1723 by Johannes Creutzburg of Wendehausen. The building period and the instrument thus reflect different chapters in the town’s church history.

Plan accommodation and your stay to suit you

If you’re looking for accommodation in Teistungen, the experiences you’re after can help guide your comparison of places to stay: would you mainly like to explore the border history and Borderland Trail, plan a short loop by the reservoir, or choose longer hikes and bike rides? The routes described vary both in their approximate duration and in their starting points. This overview helps you organise your plans for your stay without treating short walks and several-hour tours as if they were the same.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Helmsdorf, Haynrode, Niederorschel, Mackenrode, Heilbad Heiligenstadt, Breitenworbis, Deuna, Wahlhausen.

To the main travel overview: Eichsfeld.