Westerwald
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Days Out, Walks and Activities for the Whole Family
Travelling with children means weighing things up all the time: short distances or big adventures, nature or a packed itinerary, peace and quiet for the parents or action for the kids. In the Westerwald you rarely have to choose. A wildlife park, a short walk and an afternoon by the water fit comfortably into a single day.
Roughly 3,000 square kilometres, 3 federal states, and in between them woodland, ponds and basalt cliffs: this low mountain range is big enough to keep things varied and compact enough that you won't spend half your holiday in the car.
On this page you'll find places to visit for families, walks that work with children, activities for wet days and practical tips for planning your holiday in the Westerwald.
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Hiking works with children when something happens along the way. A stream to dam up, a lookout tower, a picnic spot with a view down the valley: those things matter far more than the number of kilometres. The Westerwald has a dense network of waymarked routes, from short loops to long-distance trails.
At 235 kilometres across 16 stages, the WesterwaldSteig is the region's best-known trail and holds the "Wanderbares Deutschland" quality mark. With children you don't have to walk it in one go. Plenty of families pick out individual sections and pair them with somewhere to visit at the end of the stage. If you prefer a loop, the Wäller Touren are certified circular walks in every part of the region.
The Kleine Wäller are our certified walking trails. Most are between 3 and 7 kilometres long, clearly signposted and easy to walk without any special kit. Allow 1 to 3 hours depending on the route, which is about right for most children's legs.
Some routes are made for younger walkers in particular. On the Kleiner Wäller Zwergenweg 2, quiz questions are dotted along the 4.5-kilometre loop and there's a bat cave along the way. The Kleiner Wäller Klangpfad and the Weg der Sinne are all about listening and touching, and the Kleiner Wäller Wolfsteine leads through Bad Marienberg Wildlife Park. Whether your child would rather solve puzzles or climb, there's a route to match every age.
The Holzbach Gorge near Seck is one of the most striking natural settings in the Westerwald. Basalt walls rise 20 to 30 metres above a valley roughly a kilometre long, which has been the Holzbachdurchbruch nature reserve since 1961. The circular trail measures around 3 kilometres and takes about 45 minutes, with a forest nature trail explaining the trees, rock and wildlife as you go. Wear sturdy shoes, and note that the gorge itself is not suitable for a pushchair.
At 657 metres, the Fuchskaute is the highest point in the Westerwald. The summit is ringed by a nature reserve of arnica meadows, which the Arnika circular trail loops through. This is where 2 Top Trails, the WesterwaldSteig and the Rothaarsteig, meet. If you're heading up with children, check how to get there first, as the car parks at the former hotel on the Fuchskaute can no longer be used.
Animals never fail to draw children in. The Westerwald has several places for this that combine nicely with a walk, and there's plenty to spot in the woods anyway: tracks in the ground, birdsong, ant trails and old trees full of hollows.
Bad Marienberg Wildlife Park is a large leisure site with animal enclosures and level footpaths. Wild boar, deer, lynx and other native species live here. There's also a petting zoo, an adventure playground, a barefoot trail and the Hedwigsturm lookout tower.
The level paths make the park practical for families with a pushchair. If you fancy more, add a loop on the Kleiner Wäller Wolfsteine, which runs directly through the grounds.
At the head of the Kesselbach valley lies Niederfischbach Animal Park, known for its falconry with regular free-flight displays. Falcons, eagle owls, eagles and buzzards live in 15 spacious aviaries. Alongside them you'll find native animals such as storks, lynx, wild boar and raccoons. The park also cares for and breeds old domestic breeds that are at risk of dying out.
For children the displays are the highlight: birds of prey sweeping low overhead stay with you long afterwards. For opening times and free-flight schedules, it's best to check directly with the park.
Children want to move, and a climbing frame, a tower or a rope net is usually all it takes. In the Westerwald you'll find both: purpose-built sites and terrain that's practically made for scrambling.
Right next to the wildlife park, Bad Marienberg Climbing Forest offers 12 climbing courses at heights of 1 to 12 metres, some of them up in the treetops. Tarzan swings, rope bridges and long zip lines provide the action and plenty of fun, and there's a partner course and a 10-metre sports climbing wall as well.
The youngest have an area of their own: Kinderland sits at a height of one metre and is designed for children from 3 years up. That way the whole family gets to climb without anyone finding it too much or too tame.
A playground doesn't have to be metal and rubber matting. Natural playgrounds work with wood, water, sand and rock, and let children build and experiment for themselves. You'll find sites like these at several places to visit in the Westerwald, among them the adventure playground at Bad Marienberg Wildlife Park, the adventure playground at Stöffel Park and the adventure water playground at the Thalhausermühle forest swimming pool.
The Gackenbach Wildlife and Leisure Park, the Quendelberg leisure grounds and the adventure playgrounds in Steinen and Dreifelden are also among the places families in the region like to head for. And when the weather doesn't play ball, the fun carries on indoors: the Flippolino children's play paradise in Kirchen an der Sieg has a climbing maze over 3 storeys with slides across roughly 3,000 square metres, plus an area of its own for the youngest. Ask the operator directly what's on site and which age groups the equipment suits.
As soon as it warms up, a family holiday moves towards the water. The Westerwald has natural lakes, reservoirs and outdoor pools for exactly that.
The Westerwälder Seenplatte, the Westerwald Lake District, consists of 7 ponds on a plateau some 400 metres above sea level: the Dreifelder, Post, Brinken, Hofmanns, Haiden, Haus and Wölferlinger Weiher. They were created in the 12th century for fish farming and today they're a local recreation area.
At 123 hectares, the Dreifelder Weiher is the largest body of still water in the lake district, and the path round it is about 6 kilometres. In summer you can swim or take a pedalo out on the Dreifelder Weiher and the Postweiher. To take in the whole landscape, walk the 7-Weiher trail, which you can just as easily do in sections with children.
The Thalhausermühle forest swimming pool near Hamm an der Sieg is the largest natural outdoor pool in the Westerwald, with 16,000 square metres of water and 15,000 square metres of sunbathing lawn. Children jump off the 1-metre and 3-metre boards, climb up to 7 metres on the climbing wall above the water or take on the giant slide. A beach volleyball court and an adventure water playground were added in 2024.
The MarienBad in Bad Marienberg is designed as an activity pool, with a double slide, a lazy river, an outdoor pool and a therapy pool at 34 degrees. There's a sauna village and a bistro as well. The Blaue See near Vettelschoß, a former gravel pit with clear water and a backdrop of woodland, has step-free access and is therefore an option for visitors with reduced mobility too.
Cycling often works better with children than hiking, because you cover more ground without anyone starting to grumble. The Westerwald has circular cycle routes, point-to-point routes and waymarked mountain bike trails for this, plus the Westerwaldschleife, which links several parts of the region together.
With younger children, flat sections and the circuits around the ponds of the Seenplatte work better than the higher ground. On an e-bike the climbs aren't a problem either, even with a trailer. Ask your host whether they lend out bikes or have somewhere secure to store them.
Combining a ride with somewhere to visit works particularly well: a short stage in the morning, then a wildlife park, a museum or a dip in the outdoor pool. That keeps the day varied and nobody spends too long in the saddle.
A wet day doesn't have to ruin the holiday. Mines, museums, indoor pools and indoor playgrounds all sit close together in the region. You'll find a full overview of every destination on our website under "Experience".
For your stay, the Westerwald offers hotels, holiday flats, holiday homes, guesthouses, campsites and motorhome pitches. Our hosts are quality-assured, and many businesses hold a DTV classification or ServiceQualität Deutschland certification. The region also holds the Sustainable Travel Destination award.
Which type suits you depends on the age of your children. Holiday flats and homes give families more room to spread out and a kitchen of their own, which helps with small children and fixed mealtimes. Hotels take the organising off the parents' hands. Camping and a stay in the countryside put you closer to nature, and anyone after peace and quiet will be happy out in the country, though camping does take a bit more kit.
Many properties have what matters to families: Wi-Fi, parking, a quiet setting, a garden and the option to bring pets. For what an individual property actually provides, ask the host directly. A tip from experience: base yourself somewhere central and the drives to each destination stay short, and with children that pays off every single day.
Knowing a few things makes the difference between a relaxed holiday with children and an exhausting one. Most of it isn't about the destinations themselves, but about the distances in between and how much you take on in a day.
The Westerwald sits conveniently between the Rhine and the Sieg to the west and the Dill to the east. The A3 and A45 put the region within easy reach of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse and the south of Rhineland-Palatinate. Coming from the north or from the Rhine-Main area, you're usually there in 1 to 2 hours. That makes short trips possible too, if you can't stay for a whole week.
Within the region a car gives you the most flexibility. For cycling there are circular cycle routes, point-to-point routes and e-bike routes, plus waymarked mountain bike and gravel trails.
With a pushchair you'll want level paths. Bad Marienberg Wildlife Park, the circuits on the Seenplatte and many of the largely step-free Kleine Wäller walking routes work well. Narrow, steep stretches such as the Holzbach Gorge rather less so.
Plan less and build in more breaks. Children rarely remember how many places you visited, but they do remember the stream they got to paddle in. An afternoon with time to play and mess about often gives you more family time than 3 destinations ticked off.
What can you do with children in the Westerwald?
Popular destinations include Bad Marienberg Wildlife Park, Niederfischbach Animal Park, the climbing park in Bad Marienberg, Stöffel Park, the Grube Bindweide visitor mine, the Holzbach Gorge and the Westerwälder Seenplatte. Add to those child-friendly walks on the Kleine Wäller as well as lakes for swimming and outdoor pools in summer. Instead of large zoos, you'll find wildlife parks here with native animals and plenty of room to run.
Which places to visit in Rhineland-Palatinate are suitable for families with children?
In the Westerwald, in the north of Rhineland-Palatinate, that mainly means animal and wildlife parks, mines and museums with hands-on activities, along with natural sights such as the Holzbach Gorge, the Fuchskaute and the Seenplatte. They lie close together and combine easily into a full day out.
Where can you go with the family nearby?
From the Rhineland, the Ruhr area and the Rhine-Main region, the Westerwald is 1 to 2 hours away. That makes it just as suitable for a day trip as for a long weekend, without a long drive at the start.
What can you do together as a family in the Westerwald?
The things that work best are the ones everyone can join in with: a short walk on one of the Kleine Wäller, a visit to a wildlife park, a cycle round one of the ponds or an afternoon at the outdoor pool. Family time rarely needs much organising.
What should you have seen in the Westerwald?
The best-known destinations include the WesterwaldSteig, the Fuchskaute as the highest point in the region, the Holzbach Gorge, the Westerwälder Seenplatte, Stöffel Park and the Kannenbäckerland around Höhr-Grenzhausen with its ceramics tradition.
Which children's museums are there in Rhineland-Palatinate?
In the Westerwald the museums worth heading for are the hands-on ones, above all the Keramikmuseum Westerwald with its own education programmes for families. You'll find a full overview of every museum and covered destination in the region on our website under "Experience".
Funded by the Hessian Ministry for Economic Affairs, Energy, Transport, Housing and Rural Areas
