Hase-Ems: round trip

In between fruit trees and hayfields

This round trip starts and ends in Osnabrück, the city of peace. Osnabrück is the third largest city in Lower Saxony and the only German city which is situated in a national park – the ‘UNESCO Geo park TERRA.vita’, which includes the Teutoburg Forest and the ‘Wiehengebirge’. 285 km of bicycle paths promises an unforgettable bike tour through Emsland’s nature, with nice hotels and good restaurants or traditional inns.

Enjoy picturesque riverscapes along well-signposted bike paths and experience a unique peculiarity: As Germany’s first holiday region the Hase Valley invites you to help yourself to the apples growing on trees that abundantly line the region’s bike paths. This idea, both sustainable and hospitable, has won the German tourism award “Deutscher Tourismuspreis 2014”.

After your strolls with this original journey, you will be able to choose from five different pillows. This makes it perfect for the dream of the next robbery at the edge of the road.

1. day Osnabrück arrival

Today you should arrive early! The city centre of Osnabrück attracts with lordly patrician houses, a castle, the cathedral's treasure and many romantic half-timbered houses. Marvel at the city's landmark: Osnabrück City Hall. Osnabrück has a train station and is easy accessable by train.

2. day Osnabrück - Bersenbrück 55 km

Now it's time to get on the bike! The blue-shimmering Hase, your faithful attender, meanders through the Hase lowlands nature preserve with rare bird and plant species. In Bramsche we recommend you to visit the clothier museum, in which the cloth production around the change of the century is demonstrated with running machines. You can buy this manufactured goods at the Museum shop.

3. day Bersenbrück - Löningen 55 km

You roll through a parklike landscape to Quakenbrück. Essen impresses with its still well-preserved former village structure. In Löningen you comfortably end your day, but you should still visit Germany's biggest pillarless hall church.

4. day Löningen - Meppen 45 km

Today you meander along the Hase through wide grasslands, imbedded in silent pine and fir forests. The ethic moor landscape of the Hahnenmoor nature preserve and Haselünne, the oldest town in the Emsland are among today's discoveries. You will find the biggest cohesive juniper population of Germany, some corn distilleries and the distillery museum which is absolutely worth seeing. Follow the idyllic course of the river to Meppen.

5. day Meppen - Lingen 40 km

Now you cycle along the Ems to the moor museum with an impressive nature trail in the 20 ha large high moor with typical flora. Lingen finally awaits you with many historical buildings in the pedestrians zone of the city centre.

6. day Lingen - Hörstel 55 km

Between Dortmund-Ems channel and Ems you cycle into the direction of Emsbüren, where the open air museum offers an insight into the work- and living culture of the region. You cycle through wide grasslands and small forests, still have enough time to visit monastery Bentlage and the Rheiner Saline.

7. day Hörstel - Osnabrück 40 km

Your will cycle back to Osnabrück through the Tecklenburger Land with its famous alpine slide (120 meter).

8. day Osnabrück departure

After the breakfast your round trip ends at Hase and Ems. From Osnabrück there are good rail connections in all directions.

Worth knowing about the tour Hase-Ems

Below please find more information about your bike trip. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact us by phone: 0049 - (0)6421-886890.

Arrival by train

Osnabrück is easily accessible from all major cities in Germany by train. The hotels are located about 100m to 2.4km from the main train station and are easily accessible by a short taxi ride or public transport. Current schedule information and price information can be found at: www.bahn.de.

Train schedule information

Parking facilities

Possibility of using a secure parking area with limited space. Public parking garage available. Reservation is not possible. Use of public parking meters approx. 9.00 - 15.00 EUR per day. You will receive detailed information on the parking spaces with your travel documents 2 weeks before arrival.

Condition of cycle paths

You cycle mostly on bike paths with overwhelming good surface and only short sections on hiking path and field paths. As far as possible you cycle away from roads with heavy traffic. Field, forest and farm tracks.

Available rental bikes

You can choose between unisex bike with 7-speed hub gear and coaster brake as well as electric bikes with 7-speed gear shift and coaster brake. The touring bikes have a gel saddle and are sprung at the front. Men's bikes available on request. On request and availability, the rental bikes can be equipped with a pannier, repair kit and map holder.

Pillow-bar

You have the option to choose between five different pillows (neck support pillows, neck roller, 80/80 pillows, 40/80 pillows or 40/40 pillows) your personal favorite. All cushions are allergy friendly and satisfy the highest quality requirements.

Good weather guarantee

With continuous rain you and your bike will be taken to the next destination for free!

Costs which are not included in the travel price

A possibly resulting tourist tax is not part of the travel price and therefore it has to be paid locally in the Hotel. The cost is between EUR 1.50 and EUR 2.00 per day.

7 day hotline service

Just in case the bike chain breaks, flooding makes it impossible to continue your tour or any other nasty surprise: You can reach us seven days a week and we will do anythig to help you as fast as possible.

Passport and visa requirements

For EU citizens, there are no special passport or visa requirements and no health formalities to be considered for this trip.

Travel insurance

The tour price already includes the statutory insolvency insurance. In addition, we recommend that you take out travel cancellation insurance upon receipt of your travel confirmation in order to protect yourself against financial disadvantages in the event of travel cancellation, interruption of travel, illness or accident.

Castle Osnabrück

The Baroque-style castle in Osnabrück dates from the second half of the 17th century. It was the residence of the Protestant prince-bishop Ernst August I of Brunswick-Luneburg and his wife Sophie of the Palatinate.

Castle in Osnabrück

Town Hall Osnabrück

The Osnabrück city hall is the landmark of the city. It was finished in late Gothic style in 1512 after a 25-year period of construction. In this town hall the Westphalian Peace was negotiated in 1648, next to the Town Hall of Münster.

Town Hall Osnabrück

Marcet square Osnabrück

The historic market square is surrounded by the town hall, St. Mary's Church and colorful
town houses of Osnabrück. Here are celebrated events such as hobby horse riding and the Christmas market.

Marcet square

Cloth making museum Bramsche

Clothmaking Museum

Field mill

The first mill mentioned in the year of the founding of the abbey of Bersenbrück was the predecessor of our field mill. The mills building is from the Meyerhof to Ahausen. Abbess of Moltke had the building renovated in 1729.

field mill

Haselünne

The 200ha large recreation area Haselünne includes a large lake and a forest with game reserve. In 1346 the first Burgmannshöfe were mentioned in a document. The Westerholtsche Burgmannhof was preserved in a barely changed form. The 36ha Wacholderhain nature reserve has been used as a pasture since the Middle Ages to preserve the juniper. A picturesque museum village is hidden behind the gates of the open-air and local museum.

Wesertholtsche Burgmannshof

Meppen

The fortified town of Meppen is only about 20km from the Dutch border. The historic ramparts around the old town invites you to take a walking tour. The open-air stage Meppen offers a unique theater experience in summer. The coupling lock can today be visited in its original condition. The technical masterpiece was built to grant the ride in the hare.

Meppen

Lingen

The town house of Lingen was built in 1733 in Dutch style with a bell gable. The old Posthalterei on the market is one of the historic Lingen houses. The great two-storey half-timbered house with hipped roof stands out from the row of gable houses at the market.

Alte Posthalterei

Town house

Red and yellow Villa Rheine

The two Villas were built in 1886 by the textile manufacturers Hermann and Karl Kümpers. Architects were Bernhard Tüshaus and Leo von Abbema from Duesseldorf, who designed the Red Villa in the style of German-Dutch Renaissance architecuter and the yellow one in an italian garden villa of the high renaissance.

Red and Yellow Villa

Monastery Bentlage

Founded in 1437, the former Kreuzherrenkloster is located in the middle of Bentlage recreational area in close proximity to NaturZoo and the Saline Gottesgabe in a largely intact, historicaly grown cultural landscape, on the left bank of the river Ems. The monastery complex, which was secularized in 1803 and has been in the municipal office since 1978, now presents itself as an artistic and cultural monument of the first rank, whose fascinating modernization over 500 years of history is brought to life.

monastery Bentlage