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Best Long-Distance Hikes near Aachen

There are 49 hikes near Aachen in our database that fit. They average 61.3 km and 1,291 m (4,236 ft) of ascent, with the longest running to 414 km.

That is 28 percent of the 176 routes we map near Aachen. They run noticeably longer than average for the area, 61.3 km against 26.0 km, so budget more daylight than a typical outing here. The climbing is steeper too: 1,291 m (4,236 ft) on average versus 560 m (1,837 ft) across the wider area.

Multi-day paths, normally walked in stages, with the accommodation and waymarking to support them. The mix is broad: 14 are rated easy and 22 are hard or harder, so there is something here whether you have two hours or a full day.

Trails

Spa, Belgium, Six-O'Clock-Park, Galerie Leopold II
Expert

GR 5 Belgium, Wallonia

Luxembourg

Distance
156 km
/ 96.8 mi
Elevation gain
1,577 m
Typical duration
39 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

National Park Trail (hoofdtraject)

Hoge Kempen National Park · Flanders

Distance
109 km
/ 67.5 mi
Elevation gain
2,389 m
Typical duration
29 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Wildnis-Trail

Nationalpark Eifel · North Rhine-Westphalia

Distance
83.9 km
/ 52.2 mi
Elevation gain
1,846 m
Typical duration
22 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Via Arduinna - Aachen branch

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
62.3 km
/ 38.7 mi
Elevation gain
1,371 m
Typical duration
16 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Via Limburgica

Flanders · Belgium

Distance
142 km
/ 88.2 mi
Elevation gain
3,121 m
Typical duration
38 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Via Mosana

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
146 km
/ 90.4 mi
Elevation gain
3,202 m
Typical duration
39 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Jakobs-Pilgerweg Köln - Aachen

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
99.1 km
/ 61.6 mi
Elevation gain
2,180 m
Typical duration
26 hr
  • Mountain
  • Pilgrimage route
  • Waymarked route
Easy

GR 56 Liaison Gare Hergenrath

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
1.4 km
/ 0.9 mi
Elevation gain
30 m
Typical duration
21 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

GR 56 Variante Amblève (Amel)

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
36.9 km
/ 22.9 mi
Elevation gain
521 m
Typical duration
9 hr 8 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

GR 56 Variante Sentier des Fagnes

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
97.5 km
/ 60.6 mi
Elevation gain
2,215 m
Typical duration
26 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

GR 56 Variante Warche

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
35.6 km
/ 22.1 mi
Elevation gain
837 m
Typical duration
9 hr 18 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 56 Liaison Bayehon

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
11.5 km
/ 7.2 mi
Elevation gain
479 m
Typical duration
3 hr 7 min
  • Castle and ruins
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 412 Boucle 2 Les Coteaux

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
9.7 km
/ 6.0 mi
Elevation gain
213 m
Typical duration
2 hr 20 min
  • Forest
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 412 Boucle 3 Hasard-Bas Bois

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
11.4 km
/ 7.1 mi
Elevation gain
252 m
Typical duration
2 hr 46 min
  • Forest
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 128 Variant Tongeren

Flanders · Belgium

Distance
12.9 km
/ 8.0 mi
Elevation gain
283 m
Typical duration
3 hr 6 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 15 Liaison vers GRP 571

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
8.9 km
/ 5.5 mi
Elevation gain
195 m
Typical duration
2 hr 9 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 15 Variante Caillebotis

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
37 m
Typical duration
24 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 15 Variante Charmille

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
2.2 km
/ 1.4 mi
Elevation gain
48 m
Typical duration
32 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 5 Aanlooproute Genk

Flanders · Belgium

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
37 m
Typical duration
24 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 5 Liaison GR 576

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
9.6 km
/ 6.0 mi
Elevation gain
212 m
Typical duration
2 hr 19 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 5 Liaison GRP 573 - GRP 576

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
7.3 km
/ 4.5 mi
Elevation gain
160 m
Typical duration
1 hr 45 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 56 Hochwasservariante

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
15 m
Typical duration
10 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 56 Liaison Gare Aix-la-Chapelle

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
7.8 km
/ 4.8 mi
Elevation gain
276 m
Typical duration
2 hr 2 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 56 Liaison Gare d'Eupen

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
1.9 km
/ 1.2 mi
Elevation gain
22 m
Typical duration
26 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 56 Variante crue Lontzen

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
11 m
Typical duration
11 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 57 Liaison Barchon

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
14.4 km
/ 8.9 mi
Elevation gain
316 m
Typical duration
3 hr 28 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

GR 57 Liaison Tilff

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
2.1 km
/ 1.3 mi
Elevation gain
47 m
Typical duration
31 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

GR 576 Liaison GR 5

Wallonia · Belgium

Distance
9.6 km
/ 6.0 mi
Elevation gain
212 m
Typical duration
2 hr 19 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Dutch Mountain Trail

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
101 km
/ 62.7 mi
Elevation gain
2,221 m
Typical duration
26 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

GRP 563 Tour du Pays de Herve

Flanders · Belgium

Distance
160 km
/ 99.3 mi
Elevation gain
3,516 m
Typical duration
42 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Krönungsweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
142 km
/ 88.0 mi
Elevation gain
3,117 m
Typical duration
38 hr
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

Streek-GR Haspengouw 1-16

Flanders · Belgium

Distance
8.1 km
/ 5.1 mi
Elevation gain
179 m
Typical duration
1 hr 58 min
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path

The shortlist, side by side

The ten highest scoring routes on this page, so you can compare effort before opening any of them.

Distance, ascent, walking time and difficulty for the top routes
RouteDistanceAscentTimeDifficultyBest season
GR 56 Sentiers de l'Est de la Belgique | Parcours principal : Sentier des FrontièresLuxembourg157 km1,508 m39 hrExpertApril to October
GR 5 Belgium, WalloniaLuxembourg156 km1,577 m39 hrExpertApril to October
National Park Trail (hoofdtraject)Hoge Kempen National Park109 km2,389 m29 hrExpertApril to October
Wildnis-TrailNationalpark Eifel83.9 km1,846 m22 hrExpertApril to October
Markiertes Wanderwegenetz Nationalpark EifelNationalpark Eifel241 km5,311 m65 hrExpertApril to October
European long distance path E8, North Rhine-WestphaliaNorth Rhine-Westphalia414 km9,116 m111 hrExpertApril to October
Via Arduinna - Aachen branchWallonia62.3 km1,371 m16 hrExpertApril to October
Via LimburgicaFlanders142 km3,121 m38 hrExpertApril to October
Via MosanaNorth Rhine-Westphalia146 km3,202 m39 hrExpertApril to October
Jakobs-Pilgerweg Köln - AachenNorth Rhine-Westphalia99.1 km2,180 m26 hrExpertApril to October

If you only have time for one, start with GR 56 Sentiers de l'Est de la Belgique | Parcours principal : Sentier des Frontières, GR 5 Belgium, Wallonia, National Park Trail (hoofdtraject). Those are the routes people come back to. Every route on this page links through to a full guide with the map, elevation profile, seasonal advice and what to bring.

Frequently asked questions

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