Emmendingen combines local history and photography with opportunities for hiking and cycling. Depending on whether you want to explore museums, take a guided city tour or spend time on signposted trails, you can choose different priorities for your stay.
Museums in the Margrave’s Castle and beyond
The Emmendingen City Museum and the Hirsmüller Photography Museum are located in the Margrave’s Castle. The City Museum’s permanent exhibition traces the city’s history from its first documented mention in 1094 to the modern era. Its topics include crafts, guilds, industrialization and the 18th century.
The Photography Museum focuses on the history of the HirsmĂĽller photography business in Emmendingen and its family. The collection includes around 100,000 photographs, as well as studio and laboratory equipment and a camera collection. The Museum of the German Diary Archive offers a different perspective on the past, displaying a selection from its diary collection.
Across from the Margrave’s Castle, you can visit the Emmendingen Jewish Museum. Its cellar houses the historic mikveh, a ritual bath. Together, these museums offer different perspectives on history: urban development and trade, photography, personal records and Jewish life.
Guided city tours, the city garden and the municipal forest
Regular public guided tours take you through the Margrave’s town and last 90 minutes. Check dates and prices in advance if you plan to join a tour. For a break in the city garden, there are seats by the duck pond, as well as public play and exercise equipment.
You can also explore Emmendingen’s municipal forest with a particular theme in mind: a forest ranger-led excursion covers wildlife, hunting, and the characteristics of trees and leaves. Availability and booking conditions may change; contact the organizers for details if you are interested.
Hiking trails and cycling routes
Five circular hiking trails have been signposted around Emmendingen in cooperation with the local branch of the Black Forest Association. A nearby regional hiking option, the approximately 30-kilometer Vierburgenweg (Four Castles Trail), connects Kastelburg, Hochburg near Emmendingen-Windenreute, Landeck Castle and Lichteneck Castle. The trail can be hiked in stages.
For cycling, there is the signposted MĂĽhlbach circular route. The loop is about 30 kilometers long, and 20 information boards cover mills, power stations and points of interest. The two routes, each approximately 30 kilometers long, differ in format: the Vierburgenweg is a hiking route that can be split into stages, while the MĂĽhlbach circular route is a signposted cycling loop with information boards.
In Emmendingen district: the wider area
The offerings of Emmendingen district are distinct from the trails around the city: the district’s hiking network comprises 800 kilometers of hiking trails and tours. There are 900 kilometers of routes for recreational cycling, including 250 kilometers of signposted routes. Winegrowing is also rooted in the region. The district’s winegrowing areas are in the Kaiserstuhl and Breisgau regions and cover around 2,300 hectares.
In Emmendingen, the tourist information office offers the Breisgauer Entdecker-Weinprobe (Breisgau Discovery Wine Tasting). It includes five tasting vouchers for 0.1-liter glasses, redeemable at participating wineries. Offer details and availability may change; check them in advance if you wish to take part in the wine tasting.
Getting there and getting around
Emmendingen is on the Baden Main Line between Mannheim and Basel. The central station is in Emmendingen; there are also stops in Kollmarsreute and (Teningen-) Mundingen. A regional train reaches Emmendingen from Freiburg Central Station in less than 15 minutes. Journey times depend on the available train service, so it is a good idea to check the current connections before traveling.
By car, you can reach the A5 via the Teningen interchange, about five kilometers from the town center. The B3 runs through the town. Emmendingen has around 29,000 residents. The city includes the former municipalities of Kollmarsreute, Maleck, Windenreute, Mundingen and Wasser; BĂĽrkle-Bleiche is its largest district.
Discover more destinations: Elzach, Teningen, Sexau, Forchheim, Malterdingen, Biederbach, Rheinhausen, Winden Im Elztal.
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