To do or not to do? To be active or to allow oneself a break? To discover the region or just consciously spend a day without a goal or plan? The FreiWerk makes you want to do something, but it also offers space for mindful, enjoyable retreat with its saunas and relaxation area.

If you like it sporty, explore the different faces of the Harz on two wheels - sometimes pedalling breathlessly uphill on steep paths, sometimes rolling spiritedly downhill. On well-signposted routes, the southern Harz offers the right challenge for every fitness level. By the way, you can rent e-bikes directly at the resort by appointment.

Attractions in the Harz Mountains

A place for treasure seekers

The small town of Stolberg will surprise you with its great history and romantic flair. Situated in the middle of forests, the little town with only 1000 inhabitants is considered a half-timbered jewel, a pearl of the southern Harz Mountains and for some even the “most beautiful village in Germany” – as chosen in a poll by the online travel magazine Travelbook. No wonder that Stolberg left the competition behind, because the dreamy alleys, the half-timbered houses from the 15th to 18th century and the castle above it all – the residence of the Stolberg counts and princes – really do exude a special charm.

One of the most beautiful buildings in the town is home to the “Alte Münze” (Old Mint) museum, where visitors take a journey through time into the history of minting coins. A curiosity of the architecture is the Stolberg town hall. Its floors can only be reached via an outside staircase. It originally had twelve doors, 52 windows, and 365 panes of glass – based on the number of months, weeks and days in the year. In addition to the architectural treasures, many notable figures were born in Stolberg, visited the town, lived and worked here and left their mark on the history of Europe – including Thomas Müntzer, Juliana zu Stolberg and Johann Gottfried Schnabel. Even Martin Luther once walked here.

A place for summiteers

Even a walk through the town of Stolberg is full of temptations for hikers: Behind small, half-timbered alleys, paths lead out of the valley to the ridges of the surrounding mountains. After just a few steps, you will have left the centre of the village behind you and you will be looking down into the valley over the treetops in amazement.

On well-signposted hiking routes of varying degrees of difficulty you can reach destinations such as the Joseph's Cross, perhaps best described as a small Harz Eiffel Tower, the Lower Harz pond and ditch system or the tranquil community of Stiege with its wooden church. 

If you are looking for a challenge, take the really big tour: the 250-kilometre-long Karst hiking trail, which stretches from Lower Saxony via Thuringia to the area of Sangerhausen. There is plenty of nature to discover along the way: caves, sinkholes, landslips, springs, brooks, cliffs and rich flora and fauna.

A place for the curious

The magical attraction of the Harz has always inspired imagination and creativity: the inexplicable, the eerily beautiful, the mystical have been reflected in legends and tales, in literature and the visual arts. Goethe, Heine and Caspar David Friedrich found inspiration here.

Of course, today as then, art and culture shape the character of the region. Numerous exhibitions, concerts, cabaret guest performances, theatre productions and cultural projects are constantly setting new highlights. Discover the wild and romantic natural stages of the Harz Mountains in Altenbrak, Thale and Benneckenstein, experience a theatre performance underground in Rübeland or a cabaret evening at the AndersWelt Theatre in Stolberg!

A place for romantics

In spring, lush carpets of flowers in the awakening beech forest, in summer, lively mountain streams and cool forest paths under a dense canopy of leaves, in autumn, the roaring of deer from the golden forest, in winter, a beautiful blanket of white – the southern Harz is a fairy-tale place for a time-out for two.

Your excursions will take you to old monasteries, mighty palaces, hidden forest lakes, romantic parks and gardens, castles and fortresses. In the evening you can sit on our terrace under the stars, watch the bats fly and wait for the deer at the edge of the forest. In the morning you can enjoy the wide view of the countryside from your window and see the mountain ridge opposite appearing out of the morning mist. A new day at the FreiWerk begins!