Even more tips for the Northern Harz Foothills can be found here
Wolfenbüttel
This is how you get to Wolfenbüttel by train: Plan arrival.
Spectacular adventures, wild rides, sensations? If that's what you're looking for, the Northern Harz Foothills may not be the right destination. Between Wolfenbüttel, Goslar and the Oderwald forest, the most important thing is to breathe in. Exhale.
But, there is a system to it: Those who hike in the Oderwald in the northern Harz foreland often enough do so in a so-called "quiet forest" - even in the quiet nature here, it is always pointed out what counts in this region. Hectic and noisy adventures are not. The so-called Samtgemeinde Oderwald consists of six villages that joined together as recently as 1974. The commonality of Börßum, Cramme, Dorstadt, Flöthe, Heiningen and Ohrum since then: Far away from hectic, everyday stress and city noise, you can relax here perfectly on many hiking trails - whether on foot or by bike. The power event of the day: Breathe in. Exhale. Anyone who really wants to slow down and avoid stress right from the start should find themselves in the right place here.
If you are in the mood for a cultural experience now and then, you will not be left completely alone in the Harz foothills: The ramparts of the former Schalksburg east of Groß Flöthe, for example, are worth a visit. And there are other sights in the region: the 12th century monastery church of Heiningen with its famous baroque organ - or the former Dorstadt monastery, which has long since been secularized and is now privately owned. Nevertheless, one can visit the extensive park of the estate, and private apartments have been set up in the former convent building of the monastery. The fact that here, too, a great deal of emphasis is placed on mindfulness and experiencing nature is evidenced by the sympathetic lines that the owner of the estate shares on his website as his core message, so to speak: "Visitors to the estate will find peace and diverse stimulation in harmonious balance. Spiritually, too, there is harmony between energetic and spiritual stimuli, as well as a special connection to the surrounding nature and its inhabitants."
Those who do not want to hike exclusively with the family can also spend their vacation on the numerous bike paths in the Northern Harz foreland on a mountain bike or - more leisurely - on an e-bike. Signposted regional theme tours or routes expressly established with a connection to nature are easy to discover as part of leisurely day tours, even for leisurely cyclists and children, and are called "From the Oderwald to the Bodenstein Cliffs" or simply "Around the Oderwald". On this cultural tour there is also the possibility to visit the Lessing City Wolfenbüttel or to get to know the pretty half-timbered town of Horneburg or the landscape park Kaiserpfalz Werla.
The Northern Harz Foothills can even boast an exotic superlative in this region: In Schladen, visitors can break down their possible fears of snakes, lizards and spiders at Europe's largest private snake farm. The farm's website says in big letters, "Snakes to touch." Well: maybe you'll make sure not to visit the snake farm on the last day of your summer retreat in the Northern Harz Foothills. After you've relaxed so wonderfully and come to rest, you don't want to risk raising your stress level again unnecessarily in the end.
