Discover Frankenau: Forest, Heathland and Culture

Frankenau is a starting point for exploring Kellerwald-Edersee National Park. Forest history, cultural development and diverse heathland habitats give the area a varied character. There are also trails with different focuses: you can choose a cultural history route, learn about local flora and fauna on the heathland discovery trail, or include the alternative routes of the Kellerwaldsteig in your plans.

National Park and Cultural History

The KellerwaldUhr is located directly at the national park entrance of the same name in Frankenau. Its exhibition covers the forest history and cultural development of the region, from the Ice Age to the present day. If you are interested in how the landscape has changed and in the region’s history, this offers a different way to experience the national park than a hiking trail. The KellerwaldUhr’s location also makes the national park entrance a prominent landmark during your stay.

The “Kultur-Arche” information centre is also in Frankenau, at Wolfskaute, opposite the Kellerwaldhalle. There, visitors can see traditional domestic animal breeds and embark on a cultural history journey of discovery. Frankenau Church adds to the area’s cultural character with its entirely Neo-Gothic architecture. At the edge of town, in the direction of Löhlbach, you will also find the Goethe-Anlage, considered the smallest park in Hesse.

Heathland, Meadows and Remarkable Rocks

Frankenau’s cultural landscape is distinguished by the coexistence of different types of nutrient-poor grassland and heathland. Along the heathland discovery trail, you can explore the flora and fauna of these diverse habitats. The trail therefore focuses not on just one heathland area, but on the variety of nutrient-poor grassland and heathland habitats in the cultural landscape.

West of Frankenau, near Ellershausen, the Lengelbach Valley stretches for more than five kilometres through woodland and meadows. It runs from Ellershausen to its confluence with the Eder below Hessenstein Castle and has no public roads. Another special feature is the Wichtelsteine in Frankenau: this natural monument includes small caves that formed in the rock faces over thousands of years. These two landscape features offer contrasting highlights: the valley winds through woodland and meadows, while the Wichtelsteine are notable for their caves in the rock.

Hiking Trails with Different Themes

Historical Hiking Trail No. 3 leads to places of historical interest in the Frankenau area over a total of 10 kilometres. Knowing the exact distance makes it easier to fit this trail into your day’s plans. The Kellerwaldsteig also has green-and-white-marked alternative routes from Frankenau to Asel, Herzhausen and Hüddingen. These make it possible to divide the route into northern, southern and western sections.

When choosing your holiday apartment in Frankenau, consider which of these themes you would like to shape your trip: forest history and culture, heathland habitats, or hikes to natural and historic sites. This lets you tailor your search to the kind of stay you want, without reducing all the experiences to a single theme.

More Local Pages

For more information about the area, you can also visit Altenlotheim. More local pages: Volkmarsen, Rosenthal, Edertal, Bad Arolsen, Basdorf, Burgwald and Bad Wildungen.

For the wider travel overview: Waldeck-Frankenberg.