Bad Dürrheim: Saltwater Spa Town, Solemar and Nature Trails

Bad Dürrheim combines a distinctive spa-town character with attractions centered on water, saunas and nature. When choosing your destination, you can start by deciding what you want to focus on: Should your trip be mainly about Solemar and the Black Forest Sauna, or would you rather make the trails through the Baar region the main focus? The Salinensee adds a lake with a water fountain to these attractions. If you’re looking for hotels in Bad Dürrheim, this distinction can help you tailor your search to your planned stay.

Saltwater Spa Town, Water Attractions and Sauna

Bad Dürrheim holds the designations “saltwater spa town” and “therapeutic climate resort.” Solemar offers a variety of water attractions, while the Black Forest Sauna has six themed saunas. If you’d like to combine water and sauna during your trip, these are two specific attractions in town. The designations also indicate the town’s spa character. These features can be a starting point when choosing a hotel: Consider whether you’d rather focus on Solemar and the sauna or on nature trails.

A Circular Trail or a Longer Route?

The “Discover the Diversity of the Baar” biodiversity trail is around five kilometers long and forms a circular route through the Baar region’s varied landscapes. Starting at the spa gardens, it leads through meadows, fields and forests in Bad Dürrheim. If you’re looking for a shorter circular route with changing scenery, its approximate length and loop format are useful points of reference when planning your day.

The Stifterweg offers a different scale: It is about 33 kilometers long and marked throughout with the logo of the Bürgerstiftung (Citizens’ Foundation). Since 2012, it has connected all six districts and the town center of Bad Dürrheim. The trail is not too difficult to walk, but can only be used as a cycle route to a limited extent. Compared with the approximately five-kilometer biodiversity trail, it is considerably longer and connects the districts; the two distances make it easier to distinguish the scope of the routes. If cycling is a consideration for you, bear in mind that the trail is only suitable for cycling to a limited extent.

The Salinensee is a picturesque lake with a water fountain. It offers a different landscape focus from the trails: Here, the lake itself is the main attraction, while the trails offer points of reference in their length, routes and changing scenery. If you don’t want to choose your destination based solely on a walking route, you can consider the Salinensee as a distinct landscape attraction.

More Ways to Explore the Schwarzwald-Baar District

The broader destination of the Schwarzwald-Baar district also includes Lake Kirnbergsee in Bräunlingen-Unterbränd. A 2.5-kilometer circular trail goes around the oval lake and crosses the dam. In terms of length, this loop is about half as long as the approximately five-kilometer biodiversity trail in Bad Dürrheim. The two routes also differ in their layout: Here, the circular trail crosses a dam; there, it runs through meadows, fields and forests.

The Swabian-Alemannic Fasnet carnival in the Schwarzwald-Baar district also offers a regional cultural connection. In December 2014, it was added to UNESCO’s nationwide register of intangible cultural heritage. Carnival in the district lasts six days, from Schmotziger Dunnschtig (Fat Thursday) to Ash Wednesday. This regional tradition adds another way to explore the Schwarzwald-Baar district alongside Bad Dürrheim’s specific spa-town and landscape attractions.

Discover more destinations: Öfingen, Kappel, Tuningen, Schönwald Im Schwarzwald, Donaueschingen, Nußbach, Dauchingen, Niedereschach.

Go to the broader travel overview: Schwarzwald-Baar district.