Nottwil between history and landscape

Nottwil is a municipality in the Canton of Lucerne, Switzerland. Historic buildings and circular trails give the town two distinct focal points: on the one hand, ecclesiastical history and rural architecture; on the other, walks through the landscape and activities on the water. When planning a stay, you can decide whether to focus on architectural history, outdoor activities or a theme related to the ParaForum.

Churches, chapels and the history of farmhouses

A little over 300 years ago, Nottwil was a Marian pilgrimage site. After the former church burned down, the Catholic parish church of St. Mary was built between 1868 and 1871 in the Neo-Gothic style. This places an older pilgrimage tradition and the later construction of the church alongside one another as distinct historical reference points. The Chapel of St. Margarethen contains remnants of a Gothic cycle of St. Margaret wall paintings. While St. Mary’s is defined by its construction period and style, the surviving paintings in St. Margarethen represent another aspect of sacred history.

The Flüss Chapel was built at its current location in 1678. The area lies on the border between Nottwil and Ruswil. Mittler-Huprächtigen, a restored Baroque Lucerne farmhouse, offers insight into rural building history. It was restored in 1990 and is considered one of the most beautiful and largest farmhouses in Central Switzerland. The two attic floors were once used for storage and drying, as well as housing a smoke chamber. These former functions add concrete details about the house’s history of use to its architectural context.

Tannenfels Castle is privately owned and not open to the public.

Circular trails by distance and landscape

Nottwil has scenic circular trails along Lake Sempach and through the hilly countryside. Two routes can be compared by length: the 7 “Flüss – Ober Merzeberg – around Säliwald” circular hike is 4.2 kilometres long. The Nottwil circular trail is 12.36 kilometres long and starts and ends in Nottwil. This makes it just under three times as long as the shorter loop. Its route passes through forests and offers views of Lake Sempach. The distances provide a concrete point of reference when choosing between these two circular hikes.

ParaForum, lakeside swimming area and farm shop

The ParaForum in Nottwil has an exhibition on spinal cord injuries. The ParaForum’s outdoor tour has ten stations on the theme of hope, around and inside the Swiss Paraplegic Centre. The exhibition and the tour have different focal points: the exhibition focuses on spinal cord injuries, while the ten stations are devoted to hope.

The Nottwil lakeside swimming area has a sandy beach and a small playground. There is also a special lift at the jetty. It allows people with physical disabilities to enter the water more easily without assistance from another person. This is one specific feature of the swimming area, in addition to its other amenities.

The Sidlerhof farm shop in Nottwil sells seasonal fruit as well as homemade jams, spirits and liqueurs. Those who want to include a farm shop in their stay alongside historic sites and trails will find these products there.

Discover more destinations: Mauensee, Neuenkirch, Oberkirch, Ruswil, Sursee, Eich, Wolhusen, Winikon.

Back to the main travel overview: Sursee.