Hattingen

The romantic Ruhrtal, three castles, the “Elfringhauser Schweiz” with its meadows, streams, and forests, the historic town center below Burg Blankenstein, and the famous Hattingen Altstadt have become popular tourist attractions. In the summer, an almost Mediterranean atmosphere permeates the many squares and narrow alleys of the Altstadt. During the Christmas season, the romantic, historic Christmas market attracts thousands of visitors. In the summer, the Old Town Festival in Hattingen’s “good room” is a major draw, and Hattingen consistently blends urban flair with half-timbered charm, strolling and shopping, enjoying nature and recreational fun, tradition and modernity—all coming together on the border between the Rhineland and Westfalen to create Hattingen’s distinctive charm. All the rich diversity that defines the RuhrtalRadweg can be found in a “tantalizing concentration” within the 70 square kilometers of the city of Hattingen.

How about, for example, a trip to the LWL Industrial Museum Heinrichshütte Hattingen after visiting the nostalgic Altstadt? With nine museums, Hattingen boasts an interesting cultural landscape of supraregional significance, but the rest of the former industrial city also makes it very clear: “Hattingen’s got it!”