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One might think that hobbits from the Tolkien novel "Lord of the Rings" were once at home here - the cave dwellings of Langenstein are unique in Germany.

By train to Halberstadt: Plan arrival

Small gardens full of herbs and colorful flowers, behind them cozy homes for young families - this is what the cave dwellings of Langenstein, located about six kilometers southwest of Halberstadt on the B 81, once looked like. Possibly the first ones date back to the Germanic settlement period, others probably resulted from the remains of a castle that Bishop Ulrich of Halberstadt had built in 1177. Most of the former ten cliff dwellings under the windmill head in Langenstein were dug into the sandstone walls between 1855 and 1858. Young farm worker families created a home for themselves here with hammer and chisel, with a living room, bedroom, children's room and a storeroom. It was not until 1916 that the last troglodytes (cave dwellers) left their "rock villas", which were then used as storage cellars or animal stables for around 100 years - and today are unique testimonies to an earlier living culture in Germany.

The special tip: Under the guidance of the association "Langensteiner Höhlenwohnungen e. V." five of these caves can be visited again, duration: about one hour.

Good connection by train: From Berlin, Halberstadt station can be reached in a good two and a half hours, from where a bus leaves every hour during the day to Langenstein in a good 30 minutes.

Mobile on site - even without a car: Holiday ticket HATIX 

No more parking hassles in the Harz: If you want to get to the starting point of hikes or to historical monuments in the region, you can use the HATIX - the Harz vacation ticket - to travel on all public streetcars and buses in the district of Harz as well as selected routes in the district of Mansfeld-Südharz. New with this offer: the district of Goslar and the Altkreis Osterode. More info: click here
By the way, you can find tips on how to travel comfortably and inexpensively on long-distance and local trains with Deutsche Bahn here.

Cover image: © The cave dwelling at the Schäferberg © S.Herfurth

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