Discover Aschaffenburg: culture, cycling and hiking

From Aschaffenburg railway station, you can reach Schlossplatz and Johannisburg Castle on foot in less than ten minutes. The district also offers cycling and hiking options that include a wide range of tour types. When planning, it is worth keeping the city’s attractions and the routes in the district in mind as separate highlights.

Cycling: from family-friendly routes to cross-country trails

The family-friendly MainRadweg runs through the Main valley in Aschaffenburg district and is well signposted. The Kahltal-Spessart cycle route, which passes through the district’s landscapes, is also signposted. If you are weighing up different cycling options, these are two named routes with their own courses. Local signage can change; check it before your tour.

The four challenging cross-country trails of the Bikewald-Spessart routes in the eastern High Spessart area of the district are geared towards a different kind of ride. The comparison is useful: the MainRadweg is described as family-friendly, while the Bikewald trails are explicitly challenging. For discovery tours, there is also the app Denk mal – Rad mal. It offers cycling tours in nature with stories, quizzes and information about sights in the district. Check the app’s availability in advance; for the cross-country trails, you should also take local conditions into account.

Hiking with a variety of tour types

The Spessart Trails 1, 2 and 3 pass through Aschaffenburg district and have been awarded the German Hiking Association’s “Quality Trail: Wanderbares Deutschland” certification four times. The Eselsweg is classified as a multi-day tour in the district. More than 30 hiking tours are part of the cultural trails of the Archaeological Spessart Project. The selection therefore ranges from a tour expressly designed to take several days to a wide variety of cultural trails; you can choose a specific route according to the time you have available.

The landscape is part of the experience, too: the Spessart in Aschaffenburg district is part of Germany’s largest contiguous mixed forest area. Hiking options are spread throughout the district; when planning, check which route suits you and the current local route information.

Getting around the city and guided tours

Regional trains, Regional Express trains, InterCity trains and InterCityExpress trains stop at Aschaffenburg railway station. Schlossplatz and Johannisburg Castle are less than a ten-minute walk from the station. If you would like to start your time in Aschaffenburg with these attractions, the station provides a clear point of reference. Timetables may change, so it is advisable to check the latest connections before travelling.

Guided tours of Aschaffenburg’s Old Town and Schönbusch, an English-style landscape park, are adapted to the needs of people with reduced mobility. If you are planning one of these tours, check its availability in advance. This allows you to include a city tour and a visit to the landscape park in your travel plans without conflating either with tours in the district.

Cultural attractions nearby

Nearby, Mespelbrunn Water Castle is a cultural attraction for visitors to Aschaffenburg district. In more peaceful times, later generations transformed the forbidding masonry of the moated castle into a dreamy Renaissance palace. Its architectural history thus tells of a change in the building’s use and character. Alzenau Castle is also a cultural attraction in the area.

Regional specialities and tastings

Franconian specialities and Äppelwoi from local cider presses are served in numerous inns and hotels in Aschaffenburg district. Franconian wines can be sampled in the vicinity of the growing areas around Alzenau and Großostheim; tasting locations and dates vary. If you are planning a tasting, check the specific options in advance.

Discover more destinations: Rothenbuch, Mespelbrunn, Aschaffenburg, Hösbach, Krombach, Alzenau, Goldbach, Johannesberg, Kahl, Haibach, Kleinostheim, Schöllkrippen, Großostheim, Bessenbach, Geiselbach, Kleinkahl, Laufach, Mömbris, Sommerkahl, Wiesen, Rohrbrunner Forst, Karlstein am Main.

Go to the higher-level travel overview: Bavaria.