Mountain range · Germany and Czechia
Elbe Sandstone Mountains, rock towers on both sides of a border.
Sandstone massif on both sides of the Elbe, between Saxony (Germany) and Bohemia (Czech Republic).
Places
2 places in Elbe Sandstone Mountains
This area crosses borders: Germany and Czechia.
When to go
When to go to Elbe Sandstone Mountains
Tips
Worth knowing first
What are the Elbe Sandstone Mountains?
A sandstone massif that the river Elbe crosses between the Saxon town of Pirna and the Bohemian town of Děčín, right where it crosses the border between Germany and the Czech Republic. About three quarters lie in Germany, where it is called Saxon Switzerland, and the rest in the Czech Republic, where it is Bohemian Switzerland. The name is attributed to two Swiss painters of the Dresden academy, Adrian Zingg and Anton Graff, who in the eighteenth century compared these rocks to their own country.
It is not a high mountain: the summit, the Děčínský Sněžník, is 723 metres. What catches the eye is the shape of the rock. The soft sandstone has eroded into towers, needles, sheer-sided plateaus, arches and narrow gorges, with forest at the bottom and viewpoints at the top. On both sides there is a national park: that of Saxon Switzerland, created in 1990, and that of Bohemian Switzerland, from 2000, and around both, wider protected areas. It is also the birthplace of a free-climbing style with its own rules, with more than a thousand climbable needles.
How do you get there and get around?
By air, to Dresden, Prague or Berlin. From Dresden main station, the S-Bahn follows the Elbe valley and stops at Pirna, Kurort Rathen, Königstein and Bad Schandau, the gateway to the German national park, in under an hour. From Prague, the train reaches Děčín in an hour and a half; from there, buses 434 and 438 go up to Hřensko and Mezní Louka. Door to door, from Prague to Hřensko is about two and a quarter hours. By car, from Prague to Bohemian Switzerland it is about 140 km along the D8 motorway.
Inside the massif you get along very well without a car: the train runs along the valley on the German bank, ferries cross the Elbe in a few minutes and there are hiking buses to the upland villages. The Elbe-Labe day ticket is valid for trains, buses and ferries on both sides of the border. With a car, on the other hand, the problem is parking: at the Bastei and at the Czech approaches you can only park in paid areas, and in summer they fill up early.
What to see in the Elbe mountains?
On the German side, Saxon Switzerland has the most visited point of the massif, the Bastei, a group of rocks above the Elbe with a stone bridge, next to Kurort Rathen. Opposite, on a plateau, is the Königstein fortress. Bad Schandau is the base village for the national park, and from it start the routes along the Stiegen, stairs and iron passes between the rocks. The Malerweg, the painters' way, circles the area in about 116 km and eight stages, from Pirna-Liebethal to Pirna, and can be done in one-day sections.
On the Czech side, Bohemian Switzerland has the Pravčická brána, the largest natural stone arch in continental Europe, about a 3 km climb from Hřensko, and the Kamenice gorges, part of which you travel by boat with a boatman from April to October. Hřensko, the border village, is the lowest point in the Czech Republic. From there you cross the Elbe by ferry and by train you reach the Bastei.
Dresden, less than an hour away by train, is the town to sleep in if you prefer museums and restaurants in the evening, and Prague, about two hours away, to combine the excursion with the Czech capital.
When is it best to go?
From April to October. May, June, September and October are the best months for walking, with mild temperatures and, in autumn, the colours of the forests. The boats on the Kamenice gorges only run from April to October. In July and August, and at weekends all year, the Bastei and the car parks fill up from mid-morning. From November to March you can walk, but some stairs and passes ice over, the boats do not run and the Pravčická brána opens only Friday to Sunday.
How many days do you need?
One long day is enough for one side: the Bastei and Königstein from Dresden, or the Pravčická brána and the gorges from Prague. With two or three nights you do both sides, a route along the Stiegen and some stage of the Malerweg. The whole Malerweg asks for eight days of walking.
What is worth knowing before you go?
On the German side you pay in euros and on the Czech side, in crowns. Before you go, check the notices of the Saxon tourist office and the Czech park: there are path closures and restrictions that change, including on the Bastei bridge. In the national parks you do not leave the marked paths, and climbing follows its own rules, only on authorised rocks. Wear footwear with a sole that grips: sandstone is slippery when damp.
Parking by the Bastei or in Hřensko on a Saturday is difficult. The S-Bahn from Dresden and the ferries across the Elbe leave you at the foot of the paths, and with the Elbe-Labe ticket you pass from one country to the other without thinking about the car.
It is the most famous viewpoint and the most crowded. If you go at the weekend, arrive first thing or leave the Bastei for the end of the afternoon and spend the middle of the day on a lesser-known route.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Saxon Switzerland and Bohemian Switzerland?
It is the same sandstone massif split by the border. The Saxon part, in Germany, is bigger and has the Bastei; the Czech part has the Pravčická brána and the Kamenice gorges.
Can it be done in a day from Dresden or Prague?
Yes. From Dresden, by S-Bahn to Kurort Rathen or Bad Schandau in under an hour; from Prague, about two and a quarter hours by train and bus to Hřensko.
What is the Malerweg?
The painters' way, a waymarked route of about 116 km in eight stages through Saxon Switzerland, which can be done whole or in sections.
When do the boats on the gorges run?
From April to October. In winter they are closed.