Strohn: Volcano House, Lava Bomb and Historic Buildings
Accommodation in Strohn
Strohn combines visible evidence of volcanism with historic architecture and opportunities for hiking and cycling. If you are looking for a hotel for a stay in the Vulkaneifel, the town offers several specific attractions: an interactive volcano museum, the Strohn Lava Bomb, distinctive buildings and routes with different focuses.
Volcanism to see and understand
The Strohn Volcano House is an interactive volcano museum with small experiments and walk-through exhibition spaces. One of its distinctive features is a lava fissure wall around 30,000 years old. It is six metres long and four metres high. This gives you the chance to encounter the subject of volcanism in the museum through a specific geological feature.
Another striking feature is the Strohn Lava Bomb: a basalt sphere weighing 120 tonnes and almost five metres in diameter. It formed as lava repeatedly accumulated on a fragment of the crater rim during successive eruptions. Its history also reaches into the town’s recent past: in 1969, the lava bomb was dislodged during blasting work at the Wartgesberg lava quarry. Strohn residents brought it to its current location. The geological age of the lava fissure wall and the year the lava bomb was moved thus represent two different time scales.
Hiking and cycling routes with different profiles
The lava bomb stands beside a hiking trail that follows the Alf stream towards Strohner Schweiz. The Strohner Schweiz circular trail is considered suitable for walks with children because it has few changes in elevation and is relatively short. The circular trail takes you into the deeply incised Alf valley, where large boulders and narrow paths are part of the landscape. Free parking is available for the circular trail at the church and by the lava bomb. Check the parking regulations before you travel.
For a longer hike, the moderately difficult HeimatSpuren Lavaweg Strohn is another option. The route is 20.5 kilometres long, takes around five and a half hours and includes 293 metres of elevation gain and loss. It passes the Trautzberger Maar and Strohner Schweiz. The time and elevation figures can help you plan your hike; also check the latest route information before setting off.
A route for road cyclists is also described: the Vulkaneifel Challenge runs from Strohn via the lava bomb into Strohner Schweiz. It then continues via MĂĽckeln and Oberscheidweiler to the Maare-Mosel Cycle Route in the direction of Eckfeld. As route connections can change, check the current route before your ride.
Architecture in the townscape
The Catholic parish church of St John the Baptist brings together several dated construction phases: the west tower dates from 1760, the choir from 1867 and the two-aisled hall from 1909. Many half-timbered houses and the church shape the townscape. Individual historic features can also be dated: Strohn has a sandstone shaft cross from 1716 and a wayside shrine made of red sandstone, dated to 1791.
Another example of local architectural history is the estate at Hauptstraße 45. The property includes a half-timbered house with a Bock construction dating from the early 19th century and an agricultural building from the late 19th century. Together with the church and sandstone buildings, it shows that Strohn’s architectural history is not limited to a single period or building type.
Strohn in its wider geological context
Beyond the local evidence of volcanism, the Vulkaneifel offers a regional perspective as a wider travel destination: 77 maars have been identified there to date. In addition, 350 eruptive centres have been counted in the Vulkaneifel, around 270 of them from the more recent phase. These figures refer to the region and complement the specific examples from Strohn with a broader view of volcanism in the Vulkaneifel.
Discover more destinations: Nohn, Wallenborn, Nerdlen, Gillenfeld, Mehren, Dreis-BrĂĽck, Ellscheid, Darscheid.
For the main travel overview: Daun.
