Herten offers a range of ways to spend your stay: walking and cycling routes, a landscape of slag heaps and industrial heritage. When choosing a hotel, it is worth first deciding which themes you want to shape your trip. The differences between parkland and woodland, circular paths and longer cycling routes, and exhibitions and mining history can help you choose discoveries that suit you.
Parks, woodland and nature trails
At Schlosspark Herten, Baroque garden design meets the character of an English landscape park. With more than 200 tree species, the park is also notable for nature enthusiasts. The paths through Schlosspark Herten and Schlosswald are used for jogging, cycling and walking. Schlosswald covers 179 hectares and has a nine-kilometre network of walking and cycling paths.
Many plant and animal species live at Ewaldsee; bird species found there include tufted ducks and great crested grebes. Two circular hiking trails start at the southern end of the lake. The 49.8-hectare Telgenbusch nature reserve has paths for cycling, walking and horse riding. This gives you different ways to get outdoors, while each place offers a distinct nature experience: Ewaldsee is defined by its habitat, while Telgenbusch also has riding trails.
Slag-heap landscapes and cycling
Halde Hoppenbruch has winding paths for walking and mountain biking. The range extends from easy routes to challenging trails with jumps. At the summit, a wind turbine with information panels offers views across the Ruhr region. As trail conditions and operating rules may change, check them before setting out.
Together, Halde Hoheward and Halde Hoppenbruch form a 220-hectare landscape of slag heaps, described as the largest in Europe. Landschaftspark Hoheward combines a former colliery site with extensive green spaces, art installations and views across the region; it also has numerous walking and cycling paths. Those particularly interested in industrial heritage will find a different perspective here than on the nature trails at Ewaldsee or in Telgenbusch.
The Allee des Wandels follows a former colliery railway line across Herten towards Westerholt. The cycling route is approximately 31 kilometres long and starts at the RVR Hoheward Visitor Centre. To find your way to the Zeche Ewald site, cycling junction 43 on radrevier.ruhr also leads directly there. The length of the Allee des Wandels and the marked junctions address different planning needs: one gives you an approximate distance for a cycling trip, while the other points the way to the colliery site.
Zeche Ewald and visitor attractions
Zeche Ewald is characterised by colliery architecture from three mining eras. This includes the Malakow Tower, Shaft 2 and the headframe of Shaft 7. You can explore the listed complex along the Ewaldpromenade or on a guided tour. The RVR Hoheward Visitor Centre at Zeche Ewald houses the interactive exhibition “New Horizons – In the Footsteps of Time”.
The Zeche Ewald QR code rally starts at the entrance to the Lohn- und Lichthalle, which houses the visitor centre. It is free and takes the form of a digital treasure hunt: twelve stations are planned, and a duration of about one to one and a half hours is recommended. Check the details of the activity before your visit.
The Horizontobservatorium is another special attraction on Hoheward. Sight markers and two monumental arches are used to observe the sun, the solstices and the seasons. As of August 2026, the observatory could not be entered; completion of the planned renovation was targeted for the end of 2027. The sundial on Hoheward, by contrast, is freely accessible on foot. Keep this difference in mind when planning your visit.
Getting there and the wider region
The Zeche Ewald site is served by bus routes SB27 and 210 and the Bergwerk Ewald 1/2 and Gelsenkirchener Str. stops. Check the latest public transport information before travelling. In the wider destination of Recklinghausen, the DrachenbrĂĽcke connects the district park in Recklinghausen-Hochlarmark with Halde Hoheward. For more cycling trips, the long-distance cycling routes in Recklinghausen district are signposted and run mostly away from main roads.
Discover more destinations: Castrop-Rauxel, Haltern Am See, Datteln, Marl, Waltrop, Recklinghausen, Hervest, Dorsten
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