10 years of the Sauerland-Wanderdorf quality region

More than anything else, they stand for carefree hiking enjoyment combined with a breathtaking experience of nature and score points with perfect hiking trail infrastructure, high-quality accommodation and the best service for hikers. We are talking about the Sauerland-Wanderdorf, the first and largest "Quality Region Wanderbares Deutschland" in "Germany's most inspiring outdoor region", which has been writing a true success story for ten years now.

Allhe beginning is hard - the road to becoming a quality region

The starting signal was given back in 2012, when the Sauerland-Wanderdörfer, an association of the eleven Sauerland municipalities of Brilon, Olsberg, Winterberg, Willingen, Diemelsee, Hallenberg, Schmallenberg, Medebach, Eslohe, Lennestadt and Kirchhundem, was one of six pilot regions to be developed into a quality region in cooperation with the German Hiking Association. "The pilot phase consisted of trying out concepts, testing approaches and sometimes discarding them," says Sabine Risse, hiking manager at Sauerland Tourism. "The aim was to use the Sauerland as an example to set standards in order to make it easier for other regions to go through the qualification process later." At the beginning, there were long training phases to equip the people recording the inventory with the necessary specialist knowledge or several information events entitled "The hiker-friendly host", "The hiker-friendly tourist information" or "Package development".

"The developments leading up to the first certification have led to a real leap in quality in the region in the area of hiking," continues Risse. "In some cases, the required standards were even significantly exceeded thanks to the enormous commitment of the partners." For example, a quality region must have at least one quality hiking trail with a length of more than 25 kilometers. In the Sauerland-Wanderdörfer, there are as many as eight, and the region also has three nationally renowned long-distance hiking trails: the Rothaarsteig, the Sauerland-Waldroute and the Sauerland-Höhenflug.

Further development is the be-all and end-all

To ensure that the tourism experts in the eleven municipalities can continue to advertise with the coveted seal of the German Hiking Association in the future, it is important to continue to work consistently on the high standards. After all, the hiking association specifies 43 criteria on topics such as signposting, organization, service and hosts, which must be met. "The trail network is constantly maintained, markers are renewed and opportunities are sought to further improve quality, such as rerouting sections of trail," explains Risse. "Of course, this requires good and close cooperation with the local nature parks, hiking clubs, local heritage and tourist associations, nature conservation associations and other partners from the tourism industry, without whom none of this would be possible." An enormous effort, but one that pays off.

The region is constantly reinventing itself

And so the Sauerland-Wanderdörfer are constantly scoring points with new highlights and special features. 40 quality trails now criss-cross the region, themed trails such as the Brilon Forest Fairy Trail or the photo route in Oberhenneborn offer additional variety and, in the cold season, perfectly groomed winter hiking trails are waiting to be used. However, those responsible were able to set an absolute milestone in 2019 at the ITB in Berlin, the world's largest travel trade fair, when a concept unique in Germany was presented to the public with the Sauerland-Seelenorte. Under the motto "Living Silence", hikers can experience 42 special places such as quarries, underground caves or hilltops as part of a hike, some of which have been important to the local population for centuries, but also exude their very own mysticism and invite you to pause and consciously perceive them.

Successful quality region model

The fact that the concept of quality regions within the hiking industry can definitely be described as a model for success is proven not least by the fact that, in addition to the Sauerland-Wanderdorf, there are now seven other regions that have been awarded the seal of the German Hiking Association. "We work very closely with the other regions, regularly exchange ideas and develop joint marketing strategies," emphasizes Risse. And so the Sauerland-Wanderdörfer will remain an absolute top address among the German low mountain ranges in 2024.

Contact for the press:
Rouven Soyka, Sauerland-Tourismus e. V.
Johannes-Hummel-Weg 1, 57392 Schmallenberg
Tel.: 02974-969830, e-mail: presse@sauerland.com