Pleasure tour Donauwörth

There are 268 bicycle parking spaces in the immediate vicinity of the railway station.

To hire a well-maintained bike for your tour, take the Donauwörth city bus line 6 from the railway station.

Get off at either the Zirgesheim Stillbergweg or Zirgesheim Ost stop. From there it is a 2 or 5 minute walk to the bike hire centre.

At Donauwörth bike hire, the bikes can be tested on a test ride and are also individually adjusted to suit your posture.

Delivery of hire bikes to the railway station is only possible in exceptional cases (by prior arrangement). In any case, all hire bikes must be reserved in advance by telephone and a pick-up time arranged.

Of course, all bikes are always well maintained and the batteries of the e-bikes are fully charged.

If you have your own bike, you can also contact Donauwörth bike hire in the event of a breakdown.

The tour begins with a ride through the centre of Donauwörth and across the old town island of Ried to the north. This gives you the opportunity to take a look at the pretty little town before heading out into the countryside. You cycle through the Rieder Tor gate past the town hall. Turn right at Ochsentörl and then soon cross the Danube and head south. If you have picked up a bike from Zirgesheim, join us here and save the town centre as a highlight for the end of the tour.

You leave the town behind you and cycle through fields and the villages of Auchsesheim and Mertingen. Less than a kilometre south of Mertingen, you will discover your first destination: the gallows oaks.

A beautiful and peaceful place whose eerie history is reflected in its name. Of the once three mighty oaks, the two younger ones with a trunk circumference of almost five and over three and a half metres still stand today. Their eldest sister died in the 1980s and her trunk and root plate remained in place.

Less peacefully, felons used to die here. Merdingen, now Mertingen, was once the capital of the imperial bailiwick of Werd, now Donauwörth. A high court execution site was set up here for offences such as murder, fornication, arson and serious theft.

In the meantime, life and nature have long since taken centre stage again, and further oak trees have been replanted over the decades.

Continue southwards through fields and along the edge of the forest. After Druisheim and Allmannshofen, you reach your next port of call, Holzen Monastery.

Holzen Monastery is nestled on the banks of the Schmutter.

The Benedictines founded the double monastery of Neuwasser as early as 1150. In the same century, it was moved to the edge of the forest on the western bank of the Schmutter and was given the name Holzen Monastery, which it still bears today. It suffered severe destruction in the wars of the 16th century and had to be rebuilt. In the 17th century, it was elevated to the status of an abbey, but then fell into such disrepair that it had to be demolished.

The foundation stone for the current complex on the Karlsberg was laid in 1696. The buildings of the monastery are grouped around a square inner courtyard, whose Benedictine character is recognisable in the axis running from east to west with the monastery church and the conference area.

The extensive grounds have a varied design. The outdoor facilities include its own orchard, beehives and an animal enclosure as well as a chapel for contemplation, a monastery forest with grotto and forest nature trail and a listening tour. The outbuildings and neighbouring houses are home to facilities that support and accompany people with disabilities. They make products that can be purchased in the monastery shop.

Take your time and enjoy the beauty of the monastery. Perhaps you will also take the opportunity to savour the award-winning cuisine at Holzen Monastery.

If you have managed to tear yourself away, continue on. At Ehingen, turn westwards and cycle back across the open countryside. After Neuweiler and shortly before Buttenwiesen, turn northwards. Now a wooded section and the villages of Lauterbach, Rettinen and Zusum await you. At the power station, you cross the Danube again as at the start of your tour and cycle round your last destination of the day: the quarry pond.

The Riedlinger Baggersee, which locals also refer to as the large and small quarry pond, is located not far from Donauwörth directly on the Danube. There used to be several gravel pits here, which have been recultivated and turned into an attractive local recreation area.
There are sunbathing lawns, changing facilities and toilets. There is a beach volleyball court and a table tennis table for the more active. There is also a playground for children and car parking spaces for their parents. You can prepare your own food at the barbecue area. That's good, because the kiosk is so popular with the best sausage salad far and wide that it sometimes runs out of food.

Once you have had your fill of cool water, cycle past the Airbus Helicopters factory to the station or, as described at the beginning, through the city centre back to the bike hire.