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Loop Trails in North Rhine-Westphalia

1,637 routes in North Rhine-Westphalia qualify, ranked below by how much walkers rate them. They average 8.3 km and 180 m (591 ft) of ascent, with the longest running to 145 km.

That is 48 percent of the 3,418 routes we map in North Rhine-Westphalia. They are shorter than the local average, 8.3 km against 12.5 km, which is what makes this a practical shortlist for a half day. They also climb less than the area average, 180 m (591 ft) against 273 m (896 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: 856 are rated easy and 114 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

Moderate

Eifeler Steilküste

Nationalpark Eifel · North Rhine-Westphalia

Distance
13.5 km
/ 8.4 mi
Elevation gain
297 m
Typical duration
3 hr 15 min
  • Coastal
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Dorfrundgang Erkensruhr

Nationalpark Eifel · North Rhine-Westphalia

Distance
6.9 km
/ 4.3 mi
Elevation gain
151 m
Typical duration
1 hr 39 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Einruhr - Sauermühle

Nationalpark Eifel · North Rhine-Westphalia

Distance
8.4 km
/ 5.2 mi
Elevation gain
184 m
Typical duration
2 hr 1 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

EifelSchleife Berg und Tal

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
9.2 km
/ 5.7 mi
Elevation gain
190 m
Typical duration
2 hr 11 min
  • Mountain
  • Cave
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Bäderweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
78.9 km
/ 49.0 mi
Elevation gain
1,735 m
Typical duration
20 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Pilgern in Lippe (Westschleife)

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
115 km
/ 71.7 mi
Elevation gain
2,538 m
Typical duration
30 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Sintfeld-Höhenweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
145 km
/ 90.1 mi
Elevation gain
1,277 m
Typical duration
36 hr
  • Waymarked route
  • Long-distance path
Easy

Naturlehrpfad Meroder Wald

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
2.8 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
62 m
Typical duration
41 min
  • Forest
  • Wildlife watching
  • Waymarked route
Easy

A1 Wandergebiet Bieren

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
4.4 km
/ 2.7 mi
Elevation gain
97 m
Typical duration
1 hr 4 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Easy

A5 Bad Oeynhausen-Dehme

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
6.3 km
/ 3.9 mi
Elevation gain
139 m
Typical duration
1 hr 31 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Auf aussichtsreichen Höhen

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

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

Bergisch-Neukirchen Rundweg A8

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
5.5 km
/ 3.4 mi
Elevation gain
122 m
Typical duration
1 hr 20 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Billerbeck Rundweg B2

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
6.6 km
/ 4.1 mi
Elevation gain
145 m
Typical duration
1 hr 36 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Blaue Route - Stemweder Berg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
2.8 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
62 m
Typical duration
41 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

D2 - Über Berg und Tal

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
9.7 km
/ 6.0 mi
Elevation gain
213 m
Typical duration
2 hr 20 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Enger Rundwanderweg A2

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
10.8 km
/ 6.7 mi
Elevation gain
237 m
Typical duration
2 hr 36 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Hard

Golddorf-Route Westfeld, G

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
15.8 km
/ 9.8 mi
Elevation gain
500 m
Typical duration
4 hr 4 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Hülser Berg Rundweg A1

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
3.0 km
/ 1.8 mi
Elevation gain
65 m
Typical duration
43 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Hülser Berg Rundweg A4

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
5.5 km
/ 3.4 mi
Elevation gain
121 m
Typical duration
1 hr 19 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Naturlernpfad Wentruper Berge

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

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

[A6] Buscher Berg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
6.1 km
/ 3.8 mi
Elevation gain
134 m
Typical duration
1 hr 28 min
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Dreitälerweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
7.0 km
/ 4.3 mi
Elevation gain
154 m
Typical duration
1 hr 41 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Eifelverein Wanderweg 70

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
9.8 km
/ 6.1 mi
Elevation gain
217 m
Typical duration
2 hr 23 min
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Residenzweg [Detmold]

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
59.1 km
/ 36.7 mi
Elevation gain
1,300 m
Typical duration
15 hr
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Stiftsweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
54.3 km
/ 33.7 mi
Elevation gain
1,194 m
Typical duration
14 hr
  • Waymarked route
Expert

[BL] Bigge-Lister-Weg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
46.1 km
/ 28.7 mi
Elevation gain
1,014 m
Typical duration
12 hr
  • Waymarked route
Easy

A1 - Schöne Aussicht

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
3.0 km
/ 1.9 mi
Elevation gain
66 m
Typical duration
44 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Easy

A3 - Panoramaweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
2.8 km
/ 1.8 mi
Elevation gain
62 m
Typical duration
41 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Bestwiger Panoramaweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
54.7 km
/ 34.0 mi
Elevation gain
1,203 m
Typical duration
14 hr
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Eggetaler Panorama Rundwanderweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
14.7 km
/ 9.1 mi
Elevation gain
323 m
Typical duration
3 hr 32 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Eifeltor Panorama - Route

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
10.2 km
/ 6.4 mi
Elevation gain
225 m
Typical duration
2 hr 28 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Herzhäuser Panoramaweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
9.3 km
/ 5.8 mi
Elevation gain
236 m
Typical duration
2 hr 18 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Langerwehe Wanderrundweg Nr. 31

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
7.3 km
/ 4.5 mi
Elevation gain
160 m
Typical duration
1 hr 46 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Much Panoramaweg

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
9.8 km
/ 6.1 mi
Elevation gain
216 m
Typical duration
2 hr 22 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
  • 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
Eifeler SteilküsteNationalpark Eifel13.5 km297 m3 hr 15 minModerateApril to October
Dorfrundgang ErkensruhrNationalpark Eifel6.9 km151 m1 hr 39 minModerateApril to October
Einruhr - SauermühleNationalpark Eifel8.4 km184 m2 hr 1 minModerateApril to October
Rondje Wolfrath naar het PieterpadNorth Rhine-Westphalia12.5 km275 m3 hr 1 minModerateApril to October
EifelSchleife Berg und TalNorth Rhine-Westphalia9.2 km190 m2 hr 11 minModerateApril to October
Natursteig Sieg Zugang Bf Au (Sieg)North Rhine-Westphalia1.0 km23 m15 minEasyApril to October
Bezirksrundweg Mittleres Sauerland RauteNorth Rhine-Westphalia112 km2,475 m30 hrExpertApril to October
BäderwegNorth Rhine-Westphalia78.9 km1,735 m20 hrExpertApril to October
Pilgern in Lippe (Westschleife)North Rhine-Westphalia115 km2,538 m30 hrExpertApril to October
Sintfeld-HöhenwegNorth Rhine-Westphalia145 km1,277 m36 hrExpertApril to October

If you only have time for one, start with Eifeler Steilküste, Dorfrundgang Erkensruhr, Einruhr - Sauermühle. 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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