Aalen combines a diverse cityscape with opportunities to explore science, hiking and mining. Traditional half-timbered houses stand alongside modern buildings in the old town; winding lanes and inviting squares shape its streetscape. This offers several different ways to plan your trip rather than steering you toward a single excursion.
Old Town, Experiments and Mining
At the explorhino Science Center, hands-on exploration takes center stage: the exhibition covers 1,200 square meters and features more than 120 interactive experiment stations. Visitors can explore, touch and investigate for themselves. This offers a different experience from a stroll through the old town, where half-timbered houses, modern buildings, lanes and squares shape the atmosphere.
The Tiefer Stollen visitor mine offers another perspective on Aalen. Visitors ride a mine train deep into the mountain. Extensive tunnels and shafts, together with a multimedia show about ore mining and iron processing, bring the region’s mining history to life. The mining trail on the Braunenberg continues this theme above ground: its three themed routes on the history of iron ore mining can be combined. The two attractions therefore differ in format: a mine train ride and tour through the mine at the Tiefer Stollen, and combinable themed routes on the Braunenberg.
Hiking: Distance, Stages and Scenery
The Aalen Panoramic Trail is about 30 kilometers long and follows signposted routes through the countryside. It can be hiked in individual stages, for example as a family outing or a longer walk. If you do not want to tackle the entire route at once, you can take its stages into account when planning. Hiking car parks along the Panoramic Trail, as well as the railway stations in Wasseralfingen and Unterkochen, make it easier to get started. As access information may change, it is advisable to check it before setting out.
Aalen’s landscape also offers its own contrast: fields and meadows give way to the wooded Albtrauf escarpment. When choosing between the routes, different questions can help guide you: are you looking for a longer trail with signposted stages, or is the history of iron ore mining your main interest? Check the latest operating information for explorhino and the Tiefer Stollen before your visit.
More Places to Explore in the Ostalbkreis
The wider Ostalbkreis district also offers Roman history at other locations. The Upper German-Raetian Limes has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2005 and runs through the municipality of Rainau, including the districts of Buch, Schwabsberg and Dalkingen, for about six kilometers. Particularly impressive sections and important individual monuments survive in the Limes Park Rainau, where they are concentrated in an exceptional area. A reconstructed watchtower offers panoramic views across the Ostalb; the Limestor Dalkingen is a remarkable structure along the entire Limes route between the Rhine and the Danube.
The Limes circular hiking trail near Rainau is about eleven kilometers long and takes approximately two and a half hours on foot. Its route follows the Limes Wall and Limes Tower between Buch and Schwabsberg, then runs through the Mahdholz forest along the Limes to the southern edge of Schwabsberg. This gives you a clear idea of the regional hike in terms of distance and walking time, while the Aalen Panoramic Trail, at about 30 kilometers, covers a significantly longer distance.
Lorch Abbey also adds to the cultural attractions of the Ostalbkreis. It was founded in 1102 by Frederick I, the first Hohenstaufen ruler, and his wife Agnes of Waiblingen as a burial place. The complex includes a medieval church, cloister, farm buildings and the Marsilius Tower, which offers views of the abbey complex, the herb garden, the sensory garden and the surrounding area. The permanent exhibition is devoted to 900 years of monastic history and includes the richly decorated Lorch choir books.
Discover more destinations: Jagstzell, Hüttlingen, Obergröningen, Leinzell, Neresheim, Bopfingen, Tannhausen, Adelmannsfelden.
Back to the main travel overview: Ostalbkreis.
