Discover Aalen: Old Town, Mining and Panorama Trail

Aalen combines a distinctive townscape with interactive science, hiking trails and reminders of its mining past. When planning your trip, it is worth distinguishing between these different highlights: the Old Town is known for its particular streetscape, explorhino for hands-on discovery, and the Panorama Trail and Mining Trail each offer a different way to explore the area. The Tiefer Stollen visitor mine adds underground experiences to the mining theme. This lets you choose what to see in Aalen based on the interests you want to shape your stay.

Old Town and interactive science

Aalen’s Old Town combines traditional half-timbered buildings with modern new buildings. Winding lanes and inviting squares define the streetscape; the contrast between older architecture and contemporary buildings gives it its distinctive character. The townscape is therefore a highlight in its own right, alongside attractions focused on nature and technology.

Hands-on discovery is at the heart of the explorhino Science Center. The exhibition covers 1,200 square meters and features more than 120 interactive experiment stations to touch and explore. Visitors can engage with the experiments themselves at the stations. This hands-on approach sets a visit apart from a focus on the townscape, landscape or mining history.

Hiking: the Panorama Trail and Mining Trail

The Aalen Panorama Trail is about 30 kilometers long, signposted and runs through the countryside. Aalen’s landscape transitions from fields and meadows to the wooded Albtrauf escarpment. You can hike the trail in individual sections as a family outing or take a longer walk. Hikers can access the Panorama Trail from walking trail car parks and from the railway stations in Wasseralfingen and Unterkochen. As this access information may change, check locally before setting out.

The Mining Trail on the Braunenberg offers three themed routes about the history of iron ore mining in the region; the routes can be combined. Different planning considerations come into play when choosing between the trails: the Panorama Trail is defined by its approximate total length and the option of hiking individual sections, while the Mining Trail offers interconnected themed routes. You can decide whether to tackle a signposted scenic route in stages or plan your hike around themes related to mining history.

Mining underground

At the Tiefer Stollen visitor mine, visitors travel deep into the mountain on a mine train. A tour through extensive passages and shafts, along with a multimedia show about ore mining and iron processing, illustrates the development of mining in the region. The mine train, underground tour and show offer different ways to explore the subject. This sets the mine apart from the Mining Trail’s three themed routes, which focus on the history of iron ore mining. For the latest information about operations, check the mine’s details before your visit.

Discover more destinations: Hüttlingen, Neuler, Ellenberg, Mutlangen, Schechingen, Stödtlen, Unterschneidheim, Durlangen.

Return to the main travel guide: Ostalbkreis.