| Boat pier |  |
| If you fancy a little Rhine cruise, take the Trompeter von Säckingen, which sails from June to October. From the landing stage, it takes you to the old wooden bridge, then turns around and travels downstream to the small town of Schwörstadt via Wallbach, then back to Bad Säckingen. |
| Castle Gardens | |
| A statue of the Trompeter von Säckingen ("trumpeter of Säckingen") adorns a pond in the castle gardens. Emblem of the city, this trumpeter is the hero of an 1853 poem by Joseph Victor von Scheffel, a German writer and poet who was widely read in the 19th century but remains unknown outside German-speaking countries. |
| Castle of Schönau | |
| The castle was first mentioned in documents around 1300 and until 1928 it belonged to various private owners. It was then taken over by the town of Bad Säckingen and now houses the Hochrheinmuseum, which has various permanent exhibitions, including the Trumpet Museum and collections of prehistory and protohistory. |
| Cathedral door | |
| With its baroque bulbous towers, St. Fridolin's Cathedral is an exceptional monument, visible from afar. After a fire in the city in 1272 destroyed the original church, the cathedral was built in the Gothic style between 1343 and 1360 but, burnt down by the French in 1678 during the Dutch War, it was transformed into a Baroque cathedral when reconstructed. |
| Diebsturm | |
| The round tower Diebsturm ("Thief's Tower") was an integral part of Bad Säckingen's city wall in the 13th century. It retained its function as a fortification until the 19th century, but in 1864 it was rebuilt in the neo-Gothic style. As part of the Schönau Castle Park, it has become a place of cultural creation, which can also be rented for weddings, receptions and other festive events. |
| Fridolinsmünster | |
| The cathedral has several overlapping periods, from the crypt dating back to the 10th or 11th century, to the pipe organs of the 20th century, and to the baroque stuccoes of two different periods. The arrows integrated in this panorama allow you to see much more! |
| Gallusturm | |
| Our stroll along the Rhine ends here, at the old Gallus Tower, built in 1343 after a terrible flood as a bulwark against the flooding of the Rhine and as a defensive structure. Nowadays, the tower has become a "bulwark against gloom", as a guildhall and the venue for the traditional "Narrenzunft" (Fools' Guild), the Säckingen carnival. |
| Münsterplatz | |
| The Cathedral Square, lined with several restaurants, extends around the impressive church and, together with the Rathausplatz (Town Hall Square), to the Rhine. This is the heart of Bad Säckingen, where the weekly markets and numerous festivals are held. |
| On the border | |
| With its length of over 200m, it is the longest covered wooden bridge in Europe, slightly longer than the famous Kapellbrücke in Lucerne. In the middle of the bridge, a line on the ground symbolises the border between Germany and Switzerland, which can be crossed freely without customs formalities. |
| Rathausplatz | |
| The Town Hall Square is merely an extension of the Cathedral Square. It ends in a small section of Steinbrückstrasse, a street that runs through the old town parallel to Rheinbrückstrasse. At the very end, a shaded terrace offers a beautiful view of the Rhine and the old covered bridge. |
| Rheinbrückstrasse (1) | |
| To the right of the bridge entrance, stairs lead down to the Rhine promenade. At the bottom of these stairs, turn left to walk a little further up to the cathedral or to walk to the Gallusturm, turn right to the Diebsturm and the castle park. |
| Rheinbrückstrasse (2) | |
| To the right of the beautiful building with a turret, the Schönaugasse leads to the castle and its large park. Continue straight ahead to cross the old covered bridge and go to the Swiss side of the Rhine. Just before the entrance to the bridge, there are steps leading down to the Rhine promenade. |
| Rheinbrückstrasse (3) | |
| Lined with restaurants and shops, this cobbled street is of course one of the most touristy in Bad Säckingen as it leads to the old covered bridge after stretching through the entire old town. |
| Rheinbrückstrasse (4) | |
| Here we are at the end of the Rheinbrückstrasse section which runs straight to the old covered bridge. On our right, Wernergasse leads to Schönaugasse and one of the entrances to the castle park. On our left we see one of the cathedral towers. A few metres further on, the Rheinbrückstrasse continues on the left, but we will continue towards the Münsterplatz to visit this beautiful church. |
| Rhine Promenade (1) | |
| Along the Rhine Promenade, three passages lead up directly to the old town. The first, near the Diebsturm further south, leads to Schönau Castle Park, the second, here, climbs to Rheinbrückstrasse at the entrance to the bridge, and the third, further north, goes to Rathausplatz (Town Hall Square) and the cathedral. |
| Rhine Promenade (2) | |
| This double ramp of stairs climbs to a beautiful viewpoint at the end of the Rathausplatz (Town Hall Square), adjacent to the Münsterplatz (Cathedral Square). Further on, the Rhine Promenade continues towards the Gallusturm, a fortified tower from 1343. |
| Rhine Promenade (3) | |
| The walk along the Rhine stretches for miles, both upstream and downstream. In this virtual stroll, we only show you a section of around 600 metres from the Trompeter von Säckingen boat pier to the Gallusturm. The rest is up to you to discover! |
| Schönau Castle Park | |
| In summer, the castle park is not only a shady place to relax, but also the setting for numerous events, including concerts, open-air cinema and so on. You can also relax with a drink on the terrace of the café with a view of the Rhine or in the bar just below on the river bank. |
| Schönaugasse | |
| On the way out of the castle park you will see a restaurant with a funny name, "Kater Hiddigeigei". Kater ("tomcat") Hiddigeigei is a disillusioned philosopher cat who haunts the town in the epic poem "The Trumpeter of Säckingen". This good restaurant, frequented by a local clientele, serves tasty dishes. Behind its terrace, which is bordered by a car park, is the Wernergasse, which connects with the Rheinbrückstrasse. |
| The old bridge | |
| The wooden covered bridge at Bad Säckingen was built in the 16th century to provide access to the Fricktal region, on which the town was economically dependent and which, like it, was part of the Austrian Empire. It was not until 1803 that the Fricktal became part of the canton of Aargau and the bridge became a border between Switzerland and Germany. |
| View from Switzerland | |
| The place where the bridge ends in Switzerland is not interesting, it is just an industrial area in the small Aargau town of Stein. However, the view of the Rhine and the town of Bad Säckingen is superb and justifies crossing the bridge to the Swiss side. |
| View on Rhine | |
| At the end of the Steinbrückstrasse, an extension of the Rathausplatz, a few shady benches invite you to take a meditative break while gazing at the Rhine and the old covered bridge. A double flight of stairs leads down to the Rhine Promenade to continue the walk along the river. |
