A guided tour lasting about an hour or a nature trail just under four kilometres long: Bischofswerda offers clearly distinct cultural and outdoor activities. Public guided tours cover the historic old town, the Green Belt, industrial heritage and the Schiebock tradition. The Nature Experience Trail on Butterberg offers a different focus, with ten stations. Other attractions include churches, a gallery, animal experiences and stage performances, allowing you to choose the focus of your stay according to your interests.
Old Town, Churches and Architectural History
The medieval town centre includes the Neoclassical town hall, built in 1818, the Paradise Fountain and townhouses on the historic Altmarkt. Public guided tours focus on the old town, the Green Belt, industrial heritage or the Schiebock tradition. They start at the town hall on Altmarkt and last about 60 minutes. This gives them a clearly defined time frame, whereas other activities are described more in terms of distance or subject matter.
The Christ Church stands at the highest point in Bischofswerda’s town centre and was built in the Neoclassical style between 1816 and 1818. The town hall is also Neoclassical; the two buildings date from only a few years apart. St. Benno represents a later period: the church was built in the Art Deco style in 1925. Together with the parish house, it forms an Art Deco ensemble that was largely restored in 2008. The church can be accessed from the side during the day. Before your visit, check whether this access arrangement is still in place.
In addition to services, concerts are held at Christ Church throughout the year. If you are planning a visit for a specific date, check the current concert schedule. This lets you combine a visit to the church with a cultural programme without having to plan around a fixed event date.
Art, Industrial History and Stage Performances
The Carl Lohse Gallery is a municipal gallery housed in the historic bishop’s residence and is dedicated to the life and work of the Expressionist painter Carl Lohse. Its exhibitions include a permanent exhibition of Lohse’s work and changing exhibitions by artists from the region. If you would like to see a particular temporary exhibition, it is worth checking the current programme.
The Bischofswerda Industrial Heritage Route explores several chapters of local industrial history: the former F. G. Hermann & Son cloth factory, the history of the glassworks, textile processing and more recent industrial history. This offers a different perspective on the town alongside its architectural history and visual arts. The Karl May plays add to the cultural programme at the Bischofswerda Forest Stage. They have been performed there since 1993, featuring the youngest performers; the programmes can vary from year to year.
Nature Trail, Animals and Activities
The Nature Experience Trail on Butterberg is nearly four kilometres long and includes ten sports and adventure stations. Children can learn about nature, practise their balance and play. In 2023, the trail was recognised as Saxony’s first certified family hiking trail. Its length, stations, and opportunities for learning and play make for a different kind of nature experience than the guided tours of Bischofswerda, which last about an hour.
The Bischofswerda Animal and Cultural Park focuses on experiences with bears and their habitats, endangered native species, and encounters with domestic animals. In the petting area, visitors can interact respectfully with old breeds of regional significance. This is distinct from the nature trail: here, the focus is on encounters with animals, while the trail on Butterberg combines learning about nature, balancing and physical activity.
Bischofswerda is connected to the Westlausitz region by four themed cycling routes. The Cycling and Hiking Centre in the Animal and Cultural Park offers bicycles, e-bikes, Nordic walking poles and GPS devices for hire. Another link to the region is the Westlausitz Nature Experience Route, whose highlights include Butterberg and its observation tower in Bischofswerda.
Getting to the Nature Experience Route
Visitors to the Westlausitz Nature Experience Route can reach Bischofswerda by bus and train. Check current connections before travelling. This lets you plan your journey for a visit to the route mentioned; specific travel times depend on the connections in effect at the time.
Discover more destinations: Rammenau, Laußnitz, Pulsnitz, Nebelschütz, Großnaundorf, Wittichenau, Frankenthal, Haselbachtal.
See the higher-level travel overview: Bautzen District.
