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Loop Trails in Hesse

There are 922 hikes in Hesse in our database that fit. They average 9.2 km and 206 m (676 ft) of ascent, with the longest running to 146 km.

That is 47 percent of the 1,972 routes we map in Hesse. They are shorter than the local average, 9.2 km against 16.5 km, which is what makes this a practical shortlist for a half day. They also climb less than the area average, 206 m (676 ft) against 367 m (1,204 ft), so they suit a recovery day or a group with mixed fitness.

Circular routes: park once, finish where you started, and never walk the same section twice. The mix is broad: 442 are rated easy and 77 are hard or harder, so there is something here whether you have two hours or a full day. A good share of them are loops, so you can park once and finish where you started.

Trails

Easy

Buhlen B1

Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee · Hesse

Distance
5.6 km
/ 3.5 mi
Elevation gain
124 m
Typical duration
1 hr 21 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Dicker Kopf-Route

Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee · Hesse

Distance
10.0 km
/ 6.2 mi
Elevation gain
220 m
Typical duration
2 hr 25 min
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Kanzel-Route

Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee · Hesse

Distance
4.3 km
/ 2.7 mi
Elevation gain
96 m
Typical duration
1 hr 3 min
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Nationalparkrundweg Quernstweg

Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee · Hesse

Distance
3.5 km
/ 2.2 mi
Elevation gain
77 m
Typical duration
51 min
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Nationalparkrundweg Talgang

Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee · Hesse

Distance
4.6 km
/ 2.9 mi
Elevation gain
101 m
Typical duration
1 hr 6 min
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Hagenstein-Route

Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee · Hesse

Distance
4.6 km
/ 2.9 mi
Elevation gain
102 m
Typical duration
1 hr 7 min
Expert

Wittgensteiner Panoramaweg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
143 km
/ 88.8 mi
Elevation gain
3,145 m
Typical duration
38 hr
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Vulkanring Vogelsberg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
121 km
/ 75.0 mi
Elevation gain
2,656 m
Typical duration
32 hr
  • Lake
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Moderate

Panorama Weg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
11.4 km
/ 7.1 mi
Elevation gain
251 m
Typical duration
2 hr 45 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Panoramaweg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
4.3 km
/ 2.7 mi
Elevation gain
95 m
Typical duration
1 hr 3 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Bartenwetzerpfad

Hesse · Germany

Distance
114 km
/ 70.8 mi
Elevation gain
2,507 m
Typical duration
30 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Diemelsteig

Hesse · Germany

Distance
62.6 km
/ 38.9 mi
Elevation gain
1,378 m
Typical duration
16 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Dietemannpfad

Hesse · Germany

Distance
102 km
/ 63.4 mi
Elevation gain
2,244 m
Typical duration
27 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Grenzweg Nidda

Hesse · Germany

Distance
67.2 km
/ 41.7 mi
Elevation gain
1,478 m
Typical duration
17 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Rhenanuspfad

Hesse · Germany

Distance
94.0 km
/ 58.4 mi
Elevation gain
2,068 m
Typical duration
25 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Siegerland-Höhenring Raute1

Hesse · Germany

Distance
146 km
/ 90.8 mi
Elevation gain
3,216 m
Typical duration
39 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Uplandsteig

Hesse · Germany

Distance
66.0 km
/ 41.0 mi
Elevation gain
1,451 m
Typical duration
17 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

Bad Arolsen Wanderweg A1

Hesse · Germany

Distance
4.2 km
/ 2.6 mi
Elevation gain
92 m
Typical duration
1 hr 1 min
  • Forest
  • Castle and ruins
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Bellings, Wanderweg B5

Hesse · Germany

Distance
2.3 km
/ 1.4 mi
Elevation gain
51 m
Typical duration
33 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Braunau - BR2

Hesse · Germany

Distance
4.9 km
/ 3.0 mi
Elevation gain
117 m
Typical duration
1 hr 12 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Aarschleife Augenweide

Hesse · Germany

Distance
11.0 km
/ 6.9 mi
Elevation gain
243 m
Typical duration
2 hr 40 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Aarschleife Höhenluft

Hesse · Germany

Distance
10.3 km
/ 6.4 mi
Elevation gain
226 m
Typical duration
2 hr 29 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Burgpfad

Hesse · Germany

Distance
13.0 km
/ 8.1 mi
Elevation gain
286 m
Typical duration
3 hr 8 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Burgpfad - Kurzvariante

Hesse · Germany

Distance
7.9 km
/ 4.9 mi
Elevation gain
173 m
Typical duration
1 hr 54 min
  • Waymarked route
Hard

Gutenbergweg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
23.9 km
/ 14.9 mi
Elevation gain
526 m
Typical duration
6 hr 2 min
  • Waymarked route
Hard

Kirchweg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
15.7 km
/ 9.8 mi
Elevation gain
346 m
Typical duration
3 hr 49 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Kirchweg - Kurzvariante

Hesse · Germany

Distance
7.3 km
/ 4.6 mi
Elevation gain
161 m
Typical duration
1 hr 46 min
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Knüllwald Rundweg K1

Hesse · Germany

Distance
50.5 km
/ 31.4 mi
Elevation gain
1,111 m
Typical duration
13 hr
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Kunstweg-Battenberg

Hesse · Germany

Distance
15.0 km
/ 9.3 mi
Elevation gain
330 m
Typical duration
3 hr 37 min
  • Waymarked route
Hard

Kuppenpfad

Hesse · Germany

Distance
18.7 km
/ 11.6 mi
Elevation gain
412 m
Typical duration
4 hr 38 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Kuppenpfad - Kurzvariante

Hesse · Germany

Distance
12.5 km
/ 7.8 mi
Elevation gain
275 m
Typical duration
3 hr 1 min
  • Waymarked route

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
Kellerwaldsteig, Nordschleife (mit Alternative A1)Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee83.0 km5,945 m28 hrExpertApril to October
Buhlen B1Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee5.6 km124 m1 hr 21 minEasyApril to October
Dicker Kopf-RouteNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee10.0 km220 m2 hr 25 minModerateApril to October
Kanzel-RouteNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee4.3 km96 m1 hr 3 minEasyApril to October
Nationalparkrundweg "Daudenberg-Route"Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee4.8 km105 m1 hr 9 minEasyApril to October
Nationalparkrundweg Locheichen-RouteNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee7.5 km165 m1 hr 48 minModerateApril to October
Nationalparkrundweg QuernstwegNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee3.5 km77 m51 minEasyApril to October
Nationalparkrundweg TalgangNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee4.6 km101 m1 hr 6 minEasyApril to October
Hagenstein-RouteNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee4.6 km102 m1 hr 7 minEasyApril to October
Nationalparkrundweg Dreiherrenstein-RouteNationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee7.5 km166 m1 hr 49 minModerateApril to October

If you only have time for one, start with Kellerwaldsteig, Nordschleife (mit Alternative A1), Dicker Kopf-Route, Buhlen B1. 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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