Harz

Part of Germany › Sachsen-Anhalt

The Harz is Germany’s northernmost mountain range and is about five hours’ drive from the Netherlands. It is a green world of dense forests, reservoirs and picturesque villages, with the Brocken (1141 meters) as its highest point.

Why cycle in the Harz?

• The Brocken: the climb to the top is car-free, so ideal for gravel and mountain biking.
• Small towns with traditional architecture like Wernigerode, Goslar and Quedlinburg.
• Hundreds of kilometers of forest road in the Harz National Park.
• Quiet, winding roads along the reservoirs.

Highlights on the bike

• The Brocken (1,141 meters), the roof of Northern Germany. A long, jagged climb; start early, because mist often settles in later in the day.
• Wernigerode and Schierke: a masterpiece of a town with a castle, and a village in the valley of the Bode at the foot of the Brocken. Take the narrow-gauge railway up and cycle down.
• The Rappbodetalsperre, a reservoir with a suspension bridge over the dam.
• Quedlinburg, with more than 2,100 half-timbered houses, and the rocks of the Teufelsmauer.
• Stolberg with the Josephskreuz, and the Hexentanzplatz with a view over the Bodetal.
• The old German-German border at Sorge: gravel along watchtowers, border posts and a border museum.
• For mountain bikers, the Volksbank Arena Harz has 74 loops and about 2,300 kilometers of trails.

You can read about our ten favorite places in Cycling in the Harz in 2026: the ultimate bucket list, and more tips in Cycling in the Harz National Park.

The gravel from Benneckenstein

Our base in the Harz is Explore the Harz, the bed & breakfast of Carla and Pim in Benneckenstein. Within a kilometer you’ll find yourself on gravel roads, and Pim creates routes with a specific theme: DDR history, the Brocken, the Rappbodetalsperre, and the Josephskreuz. Explore the Harz Cycling Destination Approved. Read our story too Four days of gravel in the Harz.

Explore the Harz: four days of gravel

A gravel week in the Harz, in four days: the Brocken, the old German-German border, the Bode Gorge and the Devils' Wall near Thale. For days 2 and 3 there are an L- and an XL variant.

Road cycling in the Harz

The Harz is not just for gravel and mountain biking. Road cyclists will find long, winding roads through the forests and a few tough climbs. From Bad Harzburg you climb to Torfhaus, the highest point you can reach on a road bike, with views of the Brocken. The Okertal is a beautiful rocky valley with a reservoir at the top, and around Sankt Andreasberg and Braunlage small roads cross the plateau. In the east, around Thale and Quedlinburg, it becomes gentler and you ride through the foothills with fields and half-timbered villages.

The Brockenstraße to the summit is closed to cars. That makes it a popular climb for cyclists, but the surface is partly old concrete and cobbles, and the narrow-gauge railway runs there too. Better to ride it on a gravel bike or with wide tyres.

Three rides to get you started

• Wernigerode – Schierke – Brocken and back (about 45 km): the classic, with a solid climb to the roof of northern Germany. Start early; later in the day fog often rolls in.
• Bad Harzburg – Torfhaus – Okertal (about 60 km, road bike): the finest tarmac climb in the Harz and a descent through the rocky valley.
• Bodetal and Rappbodetalsperre from Thale (about 55 km): past the Hexentanzplatz, the dam with the suspension bridge and back through the valley.

Practical tips

• Fog and wind: the Brocken is often in the clouds. Always bring a wind jacket and lights.
• Narrow-gauge railway: with the Harzer Schmalspurbahnen you can take your bike up and ride down yourself. Check in advance whether there is room.
• National park: in the Harz National Park you may only cycle on signposted roads. Please stick to them; it is a fragile area.
• Combine: the Harz lies partly in Saxony-Anhalt, partly in Lower Saxony and a little in Thuringia. Within an hour you are in Quedlinburg, Goslar or Nordhausen.

Where to stay?

Wernigerode is the nicest town to stay in, with a castle, a railway station and plenty of restaurants. Benneckenstein and Schierke are higher up and closer to the gravel. Bad Harzburg and Goslar are handy for the west side and the road climbs. Thale and Quedlinburg are ideal for the east.

Who is the Harz for?

The Harz is for gravel riders and mountain bikers looking for forests, rocks and history, and for road cyclists who want a few tough climbs in northern Germany. It is also a special destination because of its history: until 1989 the border between East and West Germany ran right through the mountains. Along that old border you now ride the Green Belt, a strip of nature with watchtowers and border museums. For a family or a mixed group there are plenty of trains, castles and half-timbered towns.

Rest day in the Harz

• Take the narrow-gauge railway to the Brocken and walk down.
• Walk across the Titan RT, the long suspension bridge at the Rappbodetalsperre.
• Visit the old town of Quedlinburg or the mining town of Goslar, both UNESCO World Heritage.

Food and drink

In the Harz the food is hearty: Harzer Käse (a tangy low-fat cheese), game, trout and stews. Every mountain hut serves cake or a bowl of soup. Try the beer from the brewery in Wernigerode or the herbal liqueur Schierker Feuerstein. After a gravel ride, a Gaststätte in a half-timbered house is the perfect place to recover.

When are you leaving?

May to September. The Brocken is often shrouded in clouds: always bring a jacket with you.

How do you get there?

By car in about five hours, or by train to Goslar or Wernigerode.

Events in Harz