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Saxon Switzerland
Sandstone towers, deep gorges and views over the Elbe to the south-east of Dresden. You walk up stairs and ladders between the rocks and are back at your motorhome in the evening.
Table mountains, gorges and sandstone rock towers
The mountains are made of sandstone. When the land rose, the rock cracked into a kind of grid. Water and wind then carved out table mountains, gorges and free-standing rock towers. Part of the area has been a national park since 1990.
The best-known viewpoint is the Bastei, more than 190 metres above the Elbe. There a stone bridge from 1851 crosses a gorge 40 metres deep. Caspar David Friedrich drew here. The Malerweg is a walking trail of more than 110 kilometres in eight stages.
More than 1,100 rock towers are climbed, and since 1898 a small tram has run from Bad Schandau through the Kirnitzschtal to the Lichtenhain Waterfall. It stops right next to Camping Ostrauer Mühle, which is handy for walking a route in one direction.
May, June, September and October are the nicest
The best walking season runs from April to October. It is nicest in May and June and in September and October, when the forests turn red and gold. Go on a weekday if you can: on fine weekends it gets very busy at the Bastei and the Schrammsteine. In winter the paths are not cleared and stairs and ladders can be icy.
Beautiful walks
Schrammsteine via the Wildschützensteig
9 km · 3.5 hours · circular walk · starts at the Kurpark in Ostrau
Through the Großes Schrammtor and up stairs and iron ladders to the Schrammsteinaussicht. You need to be sure-footed and have no fear of heights. The Wildschützensteig is one-way: you may only walk up it. From Camping Ostrauer Mühle it is about 2 kilometres to the start.
Bastei and Schwedenlöcher
6.4 km · 2.5 hours · circular walk · about 380 m of climbing · starts at the station in Kurort Rathen
Seven viewpoints and the Bastei Bridge, then down through the Schwedenlöcher: a narrow gorge with some 700 steps and two iron ladders. The ferry across the Elbe is paid separately.
Kuhstall and Himmelsleiter
7 km · 2.5 hours · circular walk · starts at the Lichtenhain Waterfall
To the Kuhstall: the largest rock arch in the area. Via the Himmelsleiter (a narrow staircase in a crevice) you climb to the viewpoint above it. The start is the terminus of the Kirnitzschtal tram. From Camping Kleine Bergoase it is just under 2.5 kilometres as the crow flies and almost 4 on foot.
Hinterhermsdorf and the Obere Schleuse
about 8 km · 2.5 hours · circular walk · starts at the Buchenparkhalle car park in Hinterhermsdorf
A quiet route through the forest to viewpoints such as Hermannseck. Halfway you take a short boat trip through the narrow gorge of the Kirnitzsch. The boat runs from Easter to the end of October. Camping Thorwaldblick is about a kilometre from the start.
Caspar-David-Friedrich-Weg
15 km · 5 hours · circular walk · about 370 m of climbing · starts in Krippen
Past twelve boards with drawings Friedrich made here and over the Kaiserkrone with views of the Schrammsteine and the Zirkelstein. Voted Germany's most beautiful day walk in 2025. This route is also on our map at Ostrauer Mühle and Kleine Bergoase.
Our campsites nearby
At each campsite you can see on the map the circular walks that start close by.
- Ostrauer Mühle in the Kirnitzschtal near Bad Schandau
- Kleine Bergoase in Mittelndorf above the Kirnitzschtal
- Thorwaldblick near Hinterhermsdorf