Discover Northeim: Half-timbered houses, museum and cycle path

Half-timbered houses, cemetery and city history

The Tourist Information Office recommends a walking tour of Northeim’s old town lasting about an hour. The city itself is the focus of this exploration, and the stated duration is a helpful guide when planning your stay. Notable historic buildings include Reddersen House, the oldest half-timbered building in Northeim. The Catholic Church of St. Mary dates from 1886, adding its own distinct period to the city’s history.

Another way to explore the past is the Old Cemetery in Northeim. It features historic tomb monuments and an imposing mausoleum from the 18th century. Those interested in funerary art and historic memorial sites will find another aspect of Northeim here, distinct from its half-timbered buildings and church architecture. Together with the walking tour and the buildings, these sites let you shape your stay around different themes in the city’s history, without limiting everything to the same era.

Archaeology and railways at the local history museum

The archaeological department of the Northeim Local History Museum is part of its permanent exhibition. Its finds span the Stone Age, the Middle Ages and the modern era. Items on display include a mammoth tooth, the Edesheim ritual drum, Roman coins and 16th-century tile fragments. This breadth makes the department a way to discover very different traces of the past during a single museum visit.

Northeim’s transport history also has its own focus at the local history museum: a large railway history section explains the city’s significance as a transport hub since it was connected to the railway network in 1854. The Northeim-Höckelheim coin hoard is also on display at the museum. It comprises more than 17,000 medieval silver coins and is considered the largest surviving coin hoard in northern Germany. Archaeology and railway history thus offer distinct points of interest—from early finds to Northeim’s development as a transport hub.

Explore independently or join a guided tour

There are several ways to explore the city. Residents and visitors can follow the Northeim Skulpt(o)urenpfad sculpture trail on their own. If you prefer a guided tour, Northeim Touristik offers city, museum and forest tours. The open tower known as “Tillyloch” is another attraction in Northeim. These options let you focus on independent exploration, museum topics or a guided tour.

For active days on holiday, the Leine-Heide Cycle Path runs through Northeim. The route is around 410 kilometres long and follows the River Leine. It begins in the Eichsfeld region, passes through Northeim and the heathland, and ends in Hamburg. If you are planning a cycling trip, you can consider Northeim a stop along a longer route; for a shorter stay in the city, the recommended old-town walking tour offers another way to get to know Northeim in a manageable amount of time.

Woodland and nature nearby

The Northeim Forest Stage is an open-air venue on the eastern edge of the city, set in the middle of the woods. Alongside its historical and museum attractions, the city thus also has a place with a woodland, open-air atmosphere. Nature lovers can also visit the “Northeim Lake District Waterbird Reserve” nearby, a protected habitat for wildlife and plants.

When choosing a holiday apartment in Northeim, you can start by considering which of these aspects you want to shape your stay: the old town and its history, museum visits, independent exploration, cycling or the surrounding nature. If members of your travel group have different interests, it may be worth weighing these priorities against one another when planning, rather than reducing Northeim to a single attraction.

Discover more places

These pages about nearby places are also available for reference: Einbeck, Uslar, Bodenfelde, Moringen, Hardegsen, Nörten-Hardenberg, Katlenburg-Lindau and Kalefeld.

For the wider travel overview: Northeim.