Neubrücke offers different ways to explore the surrounding area: environmental and sustainability topics at Birkenfeld Environmental Campus, as well as trails along the Nahe. The campus is home to the themed trail “Nature and Environmental Technology around Birkenfeld Environmental Campus” and the SDG educational trail. The Nahe Trail leads into Neubrücke railway station, directly to platform 1; the Upper Nahe Water Experience Trail is also nearby. For planning your day, it helps to distinguish between campus stops, a riverside trail and a 41.1-kilometre long-distance hiking trail.

Environmental and Sustainability Topics on Campus

Birkenfeld Environmental Campus is about 200 m on foot from Neubrücke (Nahe) railway station. On 1 October 2025, the themed trail “Nature and Environmental Technology around Birkenfeld Environmental Campus” opened on campus. It includes eleven additional stops along the cycle path from the Environmental Campus via Neubrücke railway station to Birkenfeld.

The SDG educational trail at the Environmental Campus has a different focus. It illustrates how global goals are relevant at the regional level and how various university activities relate to the Sustainable Development Goals. Practical examples and tips impart knowledge and encourage visitors to put sustainable practices into action in their own lives. At the campus, you can explore nature and environmental technology as well as the connections between global goals, university activities and everyday life.

Riverside Trail and Nahe Trail

The Upper Nahe Water Experience Trail is nearby, between Hoppstädten and Weiersbach, along a restored section of the Nahe. The trail is about 1 km long and has 16 interactive stops covering restoration, the surrounding river landscape and the habitats of native species. It can be reached on foot from Neubrücke railway station in about ten minutes. The stops along the river focus on the landscape and its habitats.

The Nahe Trail is a 41.1 km long-distance hiking trail. It leads into Neubrücke railway station, directly to platform 1, and continues to Bürgerpark Steinautal, a newly built recreation area with a playground and places to rest. Along the Water Experience Trail, the opening section of the Nahe Trail from Neubrücke to Hoppstädten-Weiersbach provides direct access to the water for dogs and people. The distances involved are quite different: about 1 km for the riverside trail and 41.1 km for the Nahe Trail.

Distances from the railway station also help with planning: Birkenfeld Environmental Campus is about 200 m away on foot; the Water Experience Trail can be reached from there in about ten minutes on foot. By contrast, the Nahe Trail’s 41.1 km refers to the length of the long-distance hiking trail. This makes it easy to distinguish individual destinations from a longer hiking trail by their respective length.

Historical Background

Until 1992, the grounds of Birkenfeld Environmental Campus in Neubrücke served as the site of a reserve hospital for the American armed forces in Germany. The Neubrücke/Nahe subcamp of the Hinzert concentration camp remained in operation until March 1945. These distinct historical references add two clearly dated aspects of local history to the themes explored on today’s trails.

Discover more destinations: Schwollen, Niederhambach, Idar-Oberstein, Weiersbach, Hammerstein, Sonnschied, Hellertshausen, Fischbach.

For the broader travel overview: Birkenfeld.