Cycling routes from the PLAZA Hotel Hanau
Through fairy-tale country by bike
The PLAZA Hotel Hanau sits on Kurt-Blaum-Platz in the heart of the city, a few minutes by bike from the Brothers Grimm National Monument and the banks of the Main. Hanau is the birthplace of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm and kilometre zero of the German Fairy Tale Route.
The Main Cycle Route and the Hessian long-distance route R3 run through the city — ideal starting points for day tours into the Kinzig valley, to Seligenstadt or into the Wetterau. Early starters find breakfast from 06:30 on weekdays, while the car stays in the hotel garage.
Five themed routes at three levels start right outside the door: from the short Fairy Tale Tour to the demanding queen stage up to Ronneburg Castle. The routes follow existing cycle paths such as the Main Cycle Route and the R3; details are available in the Hesse cycle route planner.
15 to 70 kilometres from the hotel
15 km, leisurely. From the Grimm monument to the baroque Philippsruhe Palace with the GrimmsMärchenReich museum — kilometre zero of the German Fairy Tale Route.
20 km, leisurely. Philippsruhe, the rococo spa park of Wilhelmsbad with the world's oldest carousel, and Steinheim Castle.
34 km, explorer. Along the Main Cycle Route to Einhard's Basilica and the abbey garden — back across the river by ferry.
32 km, explorer. Along the R3 through the Kinzig meadows to the Roman baths at Rückingen, Langenselbold palace park and Lake Kinzig.
70 km, expert. The queen stage through the Ronneburg hills to the knights' castle and the medieval town of Büdingen.
Hanau Fairy Tale Tour
Hanau is the birthplace of the Brothers Grimm and the official starting point of the German Fairy Tale Route. This short loop links the brothers' national monument in front of the Neustadt town hall with the baroque Philippsruhe Palace, whose north wing houses the hands-on GrimmsMärchenReich museum for families.
Along the way: the German Goldsmiths' House, a half-timbered building from 1538 that today exhibits gold and silversmithing, the amphitheatre in the palace park — venue of the Brothers Grimm Festival from May to July — and the return across the Steinheim Main bridge with a view of the half-timbered old town.
Refreshments: cafés on the market square, the palace café at Philippsruhe or an ice cream at the Obertor gate in Steinheim.
Palaces & Gardens
Three eras in one afternoon: the baroque Philippsruhe Palace with its English landscape garden, the rococo spa complex of Wilhelmsbad built for Hereditary Prince Wilhelm of Hesse-Kassel, and across the Main the medieval Steinheim Castle with its half-timbered old town. Both parks are open free of charge all year round.
Wilhelmsbad is home to the carousel of 1780, the oldest surviving stationary carousel in the world; it runs on selected dates. Next to it are the Hessian Doll and Toy Museum in the historic arcade building and the Comoedienhaus, a baroque theatre from 1781 that is still in use today.
Refreshments: the palace café at Philippsruhe, the park inn with beer garden in the Wilhelmsbad spa park, the Huttenhof in Steinheim's old town.
Seligenstadt Loop along the Main
The Main Cycle Route leads upstream via Steinheim's old town to Seligenstadt: to the Carolingian Einhard Basilica from the 9th century, founded by Einhard, the biographer of Charlemagne, and into the freely accessible garden of the former Benedictine abbey with its mill from 1574.
The Seligenstadt–Karlstein ferry takes bicycles and carries you to the other bank. The way back runs via Großkrotzenburg, where the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — once crossed the Main, and along the Großauheim riverside with its museum in the former power station.
Refreshments: the terrace at Steinheim Castle, the abbey café in Seligenstadt, the Ratskeller in Großauheim or, in summer, the beach bar on the riverbank.
Limes Loop into the Kinzig Valley
The Kinzig leads you out of the city: the Hessian long-distance route R3 runs through meadows and the Bulau forest to Erlensee, past the Erlensee nature reserve, a resting place for migratory birds on the lower Kinzig.
In Rückingen lie the reconstructed foundations of a Roman fort bath — part of the UNESCO World Heritage Limes, freely accessible and explained on information boards. Further on, Langenselbold offers the baroque palace of the Counts of Isenburg with its public park and the natural lido on Lake Kinzig (summer season). The return follows the flat Kinzig valley.
Refreshments: the Erlebnisgaststätte in Erlensee, the Dragonerbau restaurant in Langenselbold palace park.
Ronneburg & Büdingen
The sporting day stage: via Bruchköbel and the old trade route Hohe Straße, the road rolls up and down to Ronneburg Castle, a high-medieval hilltop castle on a steep basalt cone with a castle museum and restaurant. The final climb is short and steep.
From the top, continue to Büdingen: around two kilometres of completely preserved town wall, 22 towers, the Jerusalem Gate of 1503 and an intact half-timbered old town. The return follows the flat Gründau and Kinzig valleys via Langenselbold back to Hanau.
Check the opening hours of the castle museum and restaurant in advance; cafés around Büdingen's market square are further options.
Services for cyclists
Breakfast is served from 06:30 on weekdays and from 07:00 at weekends and on public holidays. Parking spaces and the hotel garage are available for 15 euros per night; the reception team will answer questions about bicycle storage. Dogs are welcome.
E-bike charging: public charging points at the Alter Schweinemarkt on Langstraße (lockable boxes), at the main entrance of the Alte Fasanerie wildlife park and at the RadWerk museum in Klein-Auheim. For repairs, Velozeit at Nordstraße 86 and E-Bike Welt Hanau at Johann-Carl-Koch-Straße 7 can help.
Rental bikes: nextbike city bikes are available at stations across the city. Navigation: the Hesse cycle route planner (radroutenplaner.hessen.de, also as an app) covers more than 450 themed routes including GPX export.
PLAZA Hotel Hanau
Rooms, facilities, location and availability can be found on the hotel page.