Wingst: Nature, Trails and Excursion Destinations

In Wingst, nature, outdoor activities and animal experiences come together. Forest, geest and moorland shape the hiking area, while the forest zoo, forest museum and adventure park offer other highlights. There are also various options for cycling and horse riding. To plan your trip, you can take the landscape, specific excursion destinations or the length of a cycling loop as your starting point.

Hiking through forest, geest and moorland

The Wingst hiking area brings together forest, geest and moorland landscapes. The network of trails covers more than 100 kilometres, offering a wide choice of routes. One distinctive natural area here is Lake Balksee, which forms the core zone of the Balksee and Marginal Moorlands Nature Reserve.

There is an observation tower at Lake Balksee, about a 150-metre walk from the car park. A visit to Lake Balksee therefore combines a natural setting with a viewpoint.

The German Olympus is also linked to Wingst’s hiking network by the Family Adventure Hiking Trail. From the German Olympus observation tower, the view extends from the Elbe estuary across Brunsbüttel to Cuxhaven-Altenbruch. The tower offers a different perspective from the viewpoint at Lake Balksee: here, the focus is on the wide panorama, while at the lake it is on the core zone of a nature reserve.

Forest zoo, forest museum and adventure park

At the Wingst Forest Zoo, themed tours connect five forest ecosystems with their corresponding zoo animals. The Adventure Tour combines entertainment, information and interaction between people and animals. The forest zoo also has two playgrounds, and visitors can use a wheelchair free of charge.

The Wingst Forest Museum explores the many different aspects of the forest. Its modern exhibition covers just under 75 square metres. If you are interested in native animals and plants, you can join guided walks around Wingster Olymp on request. These walks are offered year-round and bring the subject of the forest outdoors, into the landscape.

Another place to visit during a stay in Wingst is the Wingst Adventure Park. The recreation area covers more than 50,000 square metres. Together with the two playgrounds at the forest zoo, it offers a choice of different leisure spots, whose areas and facilities vary considerably.

Cycling and horse riding around Wingst

The cycling loops around Wingst range from 27 to 75 kilometres. This range makes route length a useful point of comparison when planning. If you are comparing routes, you can start by using the stated distances as a guide to the length of your ride.

The riding area around Wingst includes forest trails, sand tracks, a large indoor riding arena and numerous riding stables. Most riding trails are private, with some public roads excepted. A vignette is required for private trails. This distinction is important when exploring riding options: the trails and facilities mentioned describe the area, while the vignette requirement applies to private trails.

More destinations in the wider Cuxhaven destination

In the wider Cuxhaven destination, the UNESCO World Heritage Wadden Sea Visitor Centre Cuxhaven presents information about the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site and the Cuxhaven coastal heathlands across three floors. The centre’s nature walks let you experience mudflats, salt marsh, geest cliff and coastal heath. So, alongside Wingst’s forest and moorland landscapes, the Cuxhaven destination also offers coastal and Wadden Sea themes.

In Cuxhaven, the 29-metre-high Kugelbake, built of wood, marks the point where the Elbe ends and the North Sea begins. The two-storey viewing platform at Alte Liebe in Cuxhaven offers views of the Elbe. Each place offers its own perspective: the Kugelbake illustrates the meeting point of river and sea, while Alte Liebe is a viewpoint overlooking the Elbe.

Discover more destinations: Wehdel, Odisheim, Börde Lamstedt, Wanna, Nordleda, Bad Bederkesa, Nordholz, Wurster North Sea Coast

View the wider travel overview: Cuxhaven.