The region South Westphalia is in the southeast of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Regions
- Sauerland, a region characterized by low mountain ranges, occupies the main part of South Westphalia
- Siegerland, the extreme south of Westphalia
- Hellwegbörden, the flattest part of South Westphalia, at the transition to the Münsterland and Ruhr area
Natural units in South Westphalia, some of which are already in the northern Rhineland or in the neighboring federal states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, are:
places
- Arnsberg
- Bad Laasphe
- Bad Berleburg
- Brilon
- Hemer
- Iserlohn, largest city in the Sauerland
- Lippstadt, historical town in the Geseker Börde
- Ludenscheid
- Menden
- Meschede, Center of the northern Sauerland
- Olpe
- Wins, Big city in the green Siegerland
- Soest, historical city in the Börde with a well-preserved medieval old town; Europe's largest old town fair in November
- Winterberg
- Hagen lies at the transition from the Ruhr area to the Sauerland; can therefore be called the "gateway to the Sauerland"
Other goals
background
language
getting there
By plane
- There is a commercial airport with scheduled connections on the northern edge of the region in Paderborn Lippstadt Airport
(IATA: PAD) - The "Siegerland Airport" in Burbach does not offer scheduled flights, only charter and private flights
- Other nearby airports are Dortmund (45 km northwest of Arnsberg), Dusseldorf (95 km west of Iserlohn) and Cologne-Bonn (70 km west of Olpe)
By train
The region is largely bypassed by DB long-distance trains. Individual ICE and IC trains stop in Soest and Lippstadt. Otherwise, the nearest long-distance stops are in Hagen (the "gateway to the Sauerland"), Warburg and Siegburg. From there you can take regional trains to the Sauerland or Siegerland.
In the street
The best way to get to the region is by road. The motorways A4 (Cologne – Olpe), A44 (Dortmund – Soest – Kassel), A45 (Dortmund – Hagen – Lüdenscheid – Olpe – Siegen – Wetzlar – Frankfurt) and A46 (Hagen – Iserlohn and Arnsberg – Meschede) run through them.
mobility
Tourist Attractions
- Altena: Altena Castle, The high medieval spur castle was only a ruin at the beginning of the 20th century, then it was rebuilt and has served as a youth hostel since 1914, making it the oldest permanently operated youth hostel in the world and one of the most popular excursion destinations in the Sauerland
- Heinrichshöhle at Hemer: Stalactite cave with fossils from the Devonian and the skeletons of primeval animals such as cave bears and cave hyenas found here
- Wins: Upper castle with Siegerland Museum
- Soest:
- Historical old city
- Burghofmuseum - Patrician house from the 16th century with a knight's hall and Romanesque house from around 1200, the city's oldest surviving residential building
- Winterberg: Panorama experience bridge on the mountain cap
Altena Castle
Heinrichshöhlen
Upper Castle Siegen
Soest Castle Courtyard Museum
Panorama experience bridge
activities
- Increasingly Cycle routes are sprouting up in South Westphalia. Among other things, the Lenneroute and the Ruhr valley cycle path.
- Hiking in the hilly to mid-mountain areas has a long tradition and can be enjoyed on many signposted trails. The best-known representative should be the Rothaarsteig be.
- It is known nationwide Winter sports in the Sauerland and Rothaar Mountains, especially with the ski carousel Winterberg. But other smaller ski areas also invite you to board.
kitchen
nightlife
security
climate
About 5 degrees colder than in Cologne.
