The most populous and densely populated state has over 120 cycle routes. Even in the metropolitan areas of the "Pott" there are attractive bike paths. Due to the structural change, many industrial wastelands were converted into parks and cultural centers. Beyond the big cities, there are also rural regions with different characteristics. Mountains in Sauerland and the Eifel, Lowlands in Münsterland.
North Rhine-Westphalia has a dense network of cycle paths, the "NRW Cycle Network". In contrast to other federal states, the color on the signposts is red instead of green. In some areas (like in Holland) junctions are used for signposting.
If you take a bike with you on the regional train, you usually have to buy a single ticket. A day pass is not required. The numerous regional companies have different tariffs.
Long-distance cycle routes
seen in Paderborn: The logo of the track bike route "Weser - Lippe"
- 1000 fire tour The history of coal and steel in the Ruhr area over a distance of around 200 km
- 2-country route From Aachen to Nijmegen, alternating between North Rhine-Westphalia and the Dutch side
- 3-country route - Between the Eifel and the Ardennes, in Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg through the “green heart of Europe”, the 3-country route initiated by the Eifelverein leads over the 250 km route from Aachen to Trier.
- Rail bike route Hellweg-Weser - 275 km long route from Soest through the Münsterland to Bielefeld. From here it goes through the East Westphalian hills and mountains via Bad Pyrmont Hamelin to the Weser.
- Teuto-Senne railway cycle route - Of Osnabrück along the Teutoburg Forest and the Senne to Paderborn.
- Weser-Lippe railway cycle route - Of Bremen to Bielefeld and further through that Egge Mountains to Paderborn.
- German football route NRW - More than 800 kilometers across North Rhine-Westphalia, from the edge of the Eifel to the Hermannshöhen in the Teutoburg Forest. The route is well signposted.
- Dortmund-Ems Canal Route - 340 km from the Ruhr area along the Dortmund-Ems Canal to Emden on the North Sea.
- Eder cycle path - The upper reaches of the Eder in the southern Rothaar Mountains belongs to North Rhine-Westphalia.
- Ems cycle path - follows the course of the river for 375 km from its source in the Teutoburg Forest to the North Sea near Emden.
- Emscher Park bike path - Circuit in the Ruhr area on a route of industrial culture
- European cycle route R1 from the Dutch border approx. 320 km through NRW to the border with Lower Saxony.
- Kaiser route - 470 km long themed route that follows in the footsteps of Charlemagne from Aachen to Paderborn
- Lahn valley cycle path From the source area of the Lahn in North Rhine-Westphalia through Hesse to the mouth in Rhineland-Palatinate
- Rhine cycle route · With the sub-area: Rheinschiene adventure trail
- Roman Lippe Route - <400 km route between Detmold and Xanten. The route along the Lippe follows a Roman road that was laid out to conquer the Germania on the right bank of the Rhine. (The Roman route, which was largely parallel, was abandoned.)
- Industrial heritage route - Emscher Park bike path and Round course in the Ruhr area offer together with about 700 km a supraregional cycle network in the Ruhr area. On these paths you can discover the numerous new sights that have arisen as a result of the structural change in the Ruhr area. .
- Ruhr valley cycle path - At 230 km from the source at Winterberg up to the confluence with the Rhine Duisburg the Ruhr connects the original landscape of the Sauerlandes with the eventful Ruhr metropolitan region
- RurUfer cycle path - 150 km long bike path between the High Fens and the confluence with the Meuse in the Dutch Roermond
- Siegtal cycle path - The route, although only 128 km long, can be classified as a long-distance cycle route due to its important supraregional connection function (transition Lahn / Eder cycle path to the Rhine). The route is to become part of the National Route D 4. Further information: Route in Cycle route planner NRW
- Vechtetalroute - 245 km long, cross-border route in the county of Bentheim and in the eastern Netherlands. Dutch side of the river cycle route: www.vechtdalroute.nl
- Teutoburg Forest wellness cycle route - Longer (approx. 500 km), supraregional circuit in the Teutoburg Forest and in the western Weser Uplands, which aims to bring cyclists closer to the region's seaside resorts. The route is no longer maintained.
- Water castle route - 470 km from Wasserburg to Wasserburg on the edge of the Eifel and Cologne Bay
- Weser cycle path - partly still signposted as R99. The best sections of the Weserweg are in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Help for creating new cycle route articles:
- Wikivoyage: skeleton for cycle routes - basic framework for cycle routes
- Wikivoyage: specification for cycle routes - explanation of the basic structure
- finished example: Fulda cycle path
Simply insert missing routes into the lists available here (definition of regional route: up to 150 km in length).
Regional routes
Münsterland
- Münsterland cycle park - This name is sometimes used to describe the regional network of cycle routes in the Münsterland. A total of 4,500 km of cycle routes are signposted in accordance with standards in the Münsterland. 3,000 arrow signs and 15,000 intermediate signs were set up. The regional themed routes with logos were integrated into this network. Further information: regional cycling information from Münsterland Tourism).
- 100 castles route - Themed route embedded in the network of the Münsterland Cycle Park, which connects the numerous castles and manors in the Münsterland.
- Werse cycle path - 122 km long cycle route in the Münsterland, which was opened on April 29, 2007. Route: Rheda-Wiedenbrück - Oelde - Beckum - Ahlen - Drensteinfurt - Sendenhorst-Albersloh - Münster - Wersemuition into the Ems (located north of Münster); Route map in NRW cycle route planner
East Westphalia
Else and Else-Werre cycle path in Bünde
- Alme bike path - 68 km long regional route from Brilon to Paderborn (Route page)
- Auen cycle path - approx. 50 km through forests and meadows. Mostly unpaved roads. (Route page)
- Else Werre cycle path - approx. 55 km from Molded along the Else to Frets and later along the Werre Bad Oeynhausen. Ends at the Weser at the "Werre-Weser kiss".Route page).
- Prince Route Lippe - across the Lipperland on an old prince's path. Unfortunately, the route quality is not always so princely. Route happens the Externsteine.
Eifel
Vennbahn with junction
- Ahr cycle path (Eifel) - Almost 80 km long cycle path from Blankenheim, the source of the Ahr, to Remagen am Rhein.
- Eifel high route 230 km round trip: Blankenheim ↔ Dahlem ↔ Hellenthal ↔ Monschau ↔ Heimbach ↔ Gemünd ↔ Kall ↔ Mechernich ↔ Nettersheim - Route planner: Info · map
- Erft cycle path - 110 km along the Erft from the northern Eifel in Holzmülheim over Bad Münstereifel and Euskirchen up to the Rhine Neuss - Approach from Blankenheim (12 km) or Nettersheim (9 km) - (Route page).
- Kalltal cycle path- 20 km from Simmerath-Lammersdorf to the confluence of the Kall into the Rur in Zerkall, suitable as a parallel route to the RurUfer cycle path
- Urft cycle path, 40 km from Blankenheim to Rurberg. Together with the Olef bike path part of Valley route of the district of Euskirchen.
- Vennbahn (also: Vennbahnradweg) - 125 km long railway cycle path, which in Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg High Fens opens up.
Lower Rhine
- Via Romana - Develops the "Niederhein" region between Xanten and Nijmegen. Although the route is 260 km long, the nested route has only a regional character (official route page).
- Fietsallee on the north canal - 106 km of ferry route from Neuss on the Rhine to Nederweert (NL). The route follows a historic canal that was never completed. (official route page)
Ruhr area
- Ore railway line - Although only 11 km long, the railway cycle path is a regional highlight thanks to its 15 bridges, including new constructions. The route runs on the former ore railway from Westpark in Bochum to the port of Grimberg on the Rhine-Herne Canal. During the construction of the ore railway, the railway line was laid on a dam up to 15 m high, as numerous traffic arteries had to be crossed. So you have beautiful views especially from the numerous bridges. The route is now largely paved. Further information: route information with image documentation on Bahnrassenradeln.de. The branches halfway there Emscher Park bike path (11 km part of a 225 km long circular route), which also uses a former railway line here and on the Zollverein colliery ends. A total of 44 km of cycling fun if you cycle there and back.
- Panoramic cycle path Niederbergbahn - The Panoramic cycle path Niederbergbahn offers between Essen-Kettwig (Ruhr valley cycle path) and Oberdüssel almost 23 km of cycling fun. The old railway line was expanded with an asphalt surface three meters wide. The completely signposted cycle path uses 16 bridges and three large viaducts. It includes an extension up Solingen which mostly runs on country roads and is also quite hilly. In Solingen there is a connection to the corkscrew route. Total distance approx. 40 km.
- Ruhr-Lenne eighth - The 67.5 km long route connects Iserlohn, Hemer, Menden, Fröndenberg, Schwerte and Hagen with each other.
- From-Ruhr-to-Ruhr cycle path - connects the two Ruhr towns of Hattingen and Wetter via a route remote from the river.
Rhenish Bay and Rhine Rail Duisburg - Bonn
- Rheinschiene adventure trail
- Erft cycle path - 110 km along the Erft from the North Eifel to the Rhine Neuss (Route page).
- BahnRadWeg - 92 km long cycle route that runs along the Aachen - Cologne railway line. Warning: the route is no railway cycle path, but accompanies the railway line on dirt roads and back roads. Between Horrem and Düren, 9 boards on the cycle route provide information on the subject of trains. Route information can be found on the website of the VCD district association Aachen-Düren to findwho was also the source of the idea for the project.
- Rhine-Erft adventure route - 27 km long cycle route that runs from the Cologne Zoo bridge through the inner green belt of Cologne and across Cheeky in the valley of the Erft. Leaflet for the route as PDF file (1.7 Mb).
- Bike routes and tour suggestions in Rhineland Nature Park - with map, GPS data and route descriptions, click on the individual logos.
Bergisches Land and Siegerland
- Agger Bigge circuit - 69 km route between Aggertalsperre and Biggesee, three dams, three barrier walls and the "Wegeringhauser Tunnel", the second longest bicycle tunnel in Germany at 724 m.
- Bergischer Panorama cycle path - 133 km through that Bergische Land. On various railway lines it goes up to Olpe.
Sauerland, Rothaargebirge and Westerwald
Sauerland bike ring
- Diemel cycle path - 110 km long river cycle path from Willingen in the Sauerland to Bad Karlshafen on the Weser.
- Monastery garden route - Those who love tranquil monastery gardens could enjoy this 185-kilometer circuit in the Höxter district, which includes parts of the Diemel and Weser cycle paths.
- Lenneroute - 140 km long river cycle path from Winterberg in the Rothaargebirge to Wetter, shortly after the confluence with the Ruhr.
- Pengel-Anton cycle path - 54 km from Brilon to the Möhnesee, then Soest
- Möhnetal cycle path - of Brilon to the Möhnesee, then Arnsberg
- Ruhr-Sieg cycle path - Opening in summer 2014. 113 km long route from Meschede an der Ruhr via Eslohe, Finnentrop, Attendorn, Olpe and Freudenberg to Kirchen an der Sieg (in Rhineland-Palatinate). Depending on the direction of travel, 800 to 1900 m. link
- Sauerland bike ring - 85 km round trip (40 km over Meschede) in the Hochsauerland. The northern section between Finnentrop and Schmallenberg runs on a former railway line. The southern half runs along the Lenne (Lenneroute) and is very close to traffic (partly on the main road). The main attraction and symbol is the Bat tunnel. A 40-kilometer “Nordschleife” with the Wennetal cycle path and a section of the Ruhr valley cycle path complements the route to the north.
- Wennetal cycle path - Northern connection of the large ring direction Wennemen to the Ruhr valley cycle path. Starts in Bremke and is a premium quality railway cycle path. (Part of the big eight)
The list of regional routes is not complete and may be added to. In some cases, longer, mostly very "curvy" circuits and themed routes over 150 km in length have been assigned to the regional cycle routes, as these routes have little or no cross-regional connection function.
MTB regions
- Bike Arena Sauerland
Web links
- Cycle route planner NRW (official national bike website). All long-distance cycle routes and many local routes are shown here. Regional, area-wide cycling networks, if available, are also shown. The selected routes can be printed out. However, newer routes and the omnipresent junctions are missing.
- NRW tourism - official and tourist
- Regiofreizeit.de (Official website of the Recklinghausen district) Map application with routes, bike stations and bike rentals in the Recklinghausen district. Address and POI searches are possible, and the maps can also be printed out. The routes and POIs are available for download in gpx format (for GPS receivers).
- GPS download: You can generate sections of the themed route as a GPS track by setting the start and destination flags on the route planner's map and setting the option en Prefer a certain themed route ’under the menu item‘ Route search criteria ’. Then calculate the route and download the GPS track. This method also gives you the distance (km) and detailed information Elevation profiles.
(please do not insert any pages from bike tour operators or brokers here)
