Discover Isselburg
Accommodation in Isselburg
Isselburg combines impressive architectural history with garden art, wildlife watching, and routes for cycling and hiking. Anholt Moated Castle showcases art and a variety of garden styles; at Anholter Schweiz Biotope Wildlife Park, expansive trails and native animal species shape the nature experience. There are also cycling routes that pass through Isselburg. You can tailor your stay to whether you would rather explore historic rooms and collections or spend time outdoors.
File:2024-09-17 Befestigungsturm Münsterdeich Isselburg 02.jpg
Photo: Ziko via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Anholt Moated Castle: Art and Garden Design
The historic landscaped park at the moated castle covers 34 to 35 hectares. Baroque pleasure gardens, English landscape gardens and a rose garden give it a variety of distinct garden styles. If you are interested in designed gardens, you will find more than a single, uniform style here: the combination of different garden forms makes the park a highlight of a visit to Isselburg.
The art collection is another distinctive feature of the moated castle. It contains a private collection of paintings that has grown over time and comprises more than 700 works. These include works by important Dutch, Flemish, German, Spanish and Italian masters. The artists’ origins give the collection a broad European perspective, adding a cultural dimension to a visit alongside the gardens.
The main castle contains stately rooms and salons with princely art collections. Other historic areas mentioned include the “Dicker Turm” (Thick Tower), a keep dating from the 12th century, and a medieval manor-house kitchen from the 15th century. These areas have been opened to the public as part of guided tours. The moated castle thus brings together a range of themes: courtly rooms, art, a medieval fortification and the manor-house kitchen.
Nature at Anholter Schweiz
Anholter Schweiz Biotope Wildlife Park is located in Isselburg-Vehlingen and covers around 56 hectares. More than 50 native animal species can be seen there. The grounds can be explored on foot along six kilometres of well-maintained hiking trails, which are also suitable for wheelchair users. The trail length gives you a practical reference point for planning a visit without requiring you to estimate a particular walking time.
The park includes a walk-through donkey and fallow deer meadow, a goat enclosure and a large playground. Public feedings are also held daily. These different experiences give families several ways to enjoy their visit: wildlife watching, time outdoors and a place for children to play can all be combined. If you are travelling with varied interests, you can make the wildlife park a focus in its own right, alongside the cultural attractions of the moated castle.
Cycling and hiking around Isselburg
The “Stadt-Land-Fluss” cycling route passes through Isselburg and is around 53 kilometres long. The western section of the Hohe Mark cycling route also runs through the town; it is around 115 kilometres long and goes via Borken, Raesfeld, Hamminkeln, Isselburg, Bocholt and Rhede. These figures refer to two different routes and distances. They can help you take your preferred tour length into account when planning your day.
The Bocholter Aa cycle path runs from Velen to the point where the Bocholter Aa flows into the Oude IJssel in Isselburg. Around Isselburg, there are varied hiking trails along quiet riverbanks, through green forests and past local districts. Cycling and hiking each offer a different focus: by bike, you can follow a named route; on foot, riverbanks, forests and local districts provide a variety of surroundings.
A historic tower in Isselburg
The defensive tower in Isselburg was built around 1417 by the Duke of Cleves as a corner tower in the Cleves town fortifications. The 15th-century tower is about 15 metres high, and its walls are up to 1.75 metres thick. Its dimensions and role as part of the town’s defences give a tangible sense of this historic structure. The Isselburg town tower is open to visitors on the first and third Sundays from May to October, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and by appointment.
Choose Isselburg as a holiday destination
When looking for a holiday apartment or holiday home in Isselburg, you can consider which experiences you want to shape your trip. Anholt Moated Castle combines gardens, paintings and historic rooms; the biotope wildlife park offers a different focus, with animal species, trails, enclosures and a playground. Cycling and hiking routes round out these attractions. Choose your destination based on which of these interests matter most to you during your holiday together.
Other places at this level: Heiden, Velen, Raesfeld, Gescher, Heek, Bocholt, Ahaus and Gronau.
Return to the overview of destinations: Borken.
