German-Luxembourg Way of St. James Echternach - Perl

start: Echternach
destination: Perl

medium
82,73 km
22 hours
1294 m
406 m
125 m
100 / 100
60 / 100

The Way of St. James offers a great variety of cultural features and scenic impressions along the German-Luxembourg border from Echternach via Trier, Konz to Perl.

The Way of St. James from Echternach to Perl is part of the Europe-wide network of Way of St. James routes that formed in the Middle Ages starting from Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain, across southern Europe, France, Germany to the British Isles, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe.

From Echternach to Trier, the pilgrim route follows the Via Coloniensis. From Trier, the route continues on the German-Luxembourg Way of St. James to Konz and further across the Saargau until you finally reach the destination Perl.

New: Trekking sites on the Way of St. James. The trekking sites "Roman Temple" in Tawern and "Saargau" in Kirf offer pilgrims the opportunity to legally camp in nature with a tent. When booking online, pilgrims receive a code that they can use to open the door to the compost toilet at the camp. Two places are available per tent site.

Impressions

For long stretches, the Way of St. James runs along historic routes

Parish church of St. Martin in Merzkirchen

On the ridge line of the Saargau above Kirf

General information

Directions

In the abbey town of Echternach, the oldest town in Luxembourg, the trail begins at two church buildings special in church history and architecture: the four-towered Romanesque basilica and the baroque abbey. The important pilgrimage site houses the tomb of St. Willibrord and is famous for the annual dancing procession held on Whit Tuesday.

At the old customs bridge in Echternach, the route crosses over to the German Sauer riverbank and leads along the border river towards Minden with wide views over the Sauer valley. Behind the mouth of the Prüm into the Sauer, the route climbs along an old Roman road to the upland of the Bitburg Gutland.

Past former Westwall bunkers and tall wind turbines, the route leads to Welschbillig, whose village square is adorned with two round towers of the former city wall as well as replicas of Roman sculpture heads (Hermes). Through the hilly landscape with idyllic scattered orchards of the southern Vordereifel, the route goes to the little village Möhn with its remarkable altar of the seven sleepers from the 16th century. The pilgrim route continues over Kordel-Kimmlingen through the romantic Butzerbach valley to Butzweiler. Here, a detour to the Pützlöcher, the shafts of a former Roman copper mine from the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, is recommended.

After a while, one crosses the small village of Lorich, which is island-like surrounded by the steep slopes of the southern Bitburg Gutland. Eventually, you reach the Moselle valley and the Trier district of Biewer. From here, the route follows the former towing path of the Moselle, then crosses the Kaiser Wilhelm Bridge to the pilgrimage centre Trier. The start of Trier city centre is marked by the Porta Nigra, next door is also the tourist information office. 200 metres further are the main market and cathedral. Germany's oldest church is best experienced by the pilgrim in meditation. Opposite the cathedral information, the Way of St. James pilgrim receives badges and pilgrim passports as well as all information about routes, maps, literature, accommodation possibilities and prayers.

Another milestone on the pilgrim way in the episcopal city is the venerable Abbey of St. Matthias. The basilica holds the bones of St. Matthias, the only apostle’s grave north of the Alps and up to Santiago.

From St. Matthias, the route follows the Moselle upstream to Konz, where once stood the late Roman villa of Emperor Valentinian I. Here, at the confluence of the Saar and the Moselle, the Way of St. James crosses the Saar and gently ascends towards the Saargau.

At Metzenberg near Tawern, the Way of St. James passes a reconstruction of a Roman temple precinct.

Here the "Roman Temple" trekking site offers pilgrims the possibility to legally camp in nature with tents. With online booking, pilgrims receive a code needed to open the door to the compost toilet at the camp. Two places are available per trekking site. The site is bookable at www.saar-obermosel.de

From Tawern, the pilgrim route runs on or parallel to the former Roman road from Trier to Metz on the heights of the Saargau. At Kümmern, the route passes scattered orchards and fields. In Fisch, the way turns east into the wild romantic valley of the Mannebach to the idyllically situated parish church Litdorf-Rehlingen, dedicated to St. James. Through the hamlet Maklich you reach Körrig, with the filial church St. Lukas & St. Arnold, and not far from the parish church St. Martin in Merzkirchen again a section of the former Roman road. From here you have a wide panorama over the Upper Moselle, into the Saar valley and towards Luxembourg and Lorraine.

Past impressive wind turbines, the Way of St. James runs on the ridge line of the Saargau above Meurich and Kirf at an altitude of 400 m above sea level. There is another trekking site. The "Saargau" trekking site offers pilgrims the possibility to legally camp in nature with tents. With online booking, pilgrims receive a code needed to open the door to the compost toilet at the camp. Two places are available per trekking site. The site is bookable at www.saar-obermosel.de

At the Peace Monument, the Way of St. James crosses the B 406 and leads through the Kampholz forest to Borg, where near the route, the Roman Villa Borg, another impressive reconstruction of Roman architecture and way of life, can be found. From Borg, the route continues past the Pillinger Hof and through sunlit vineyards down to the Upper Moselle. In the Saarland wine village Perl in the three-country corner of Germany, France, Luxembourg, our Way of St. James leads to the parish church St. Gervasius & Protasius, decorated with a figure of St. James. Now only a short way across the Moselle bridge into Luxembourgish Schengen remains and you stand at the monument for the famous Schengen Agreement.

Equipment

Demanding stage hike. Suitable are sturdy running shoes or light hiking shoes. Backpack for provisions, sufficient sun and rain protection, and everything that goes with it!

Tip

Resting opportunity & WC at the Könener fishing ponds. Also catering at the ViezOmat in Fisch as well as accommodation at the Viezstuff in Fisch and at the trekking sites in Tawern and Kirf. Bookable at www.saar-obermosel.de.

Public transit

Information on current timetables of public transport is available at www.bahn.de or www.vrt-info.de/busnetz.

Literature

Ways of St. James pilgrims in the Rhineland, Volume 2: From Cologne/Bonn through the Eifel via Trier to Perl/Schengen. 250-page detailed route description for foot and bike pilgrims. Topographic maps at a scale of 1:25,000, partly 1:50,000 with walking and cycling paths. Numerous photos and texts with detailed information on sights, pilgrim traces along the way, traffic information for arrival and departure to the stages, notes on pilgrim hostels and accommodations. ISBN: 3-7616-2443-3.

Maps

The hiking map "Holiday Region Saar-Upper Moselle" at a scale of 1:35,000 is available for €8.95 at the tourist information offices in Konz and Saarburg.

Or order the map directly in our online brochure shop

Additional Information

Saar-Upper Moselle Tourism

Tourist Information Saarburg, Graf-Siegfried-Str. 32, 54439 Saarburg, Tel. 06581-995980.

Tourist Information Konz, Saarstr. 1, 54329 Konz, Tel. 06501-6018040.

Email: info@saar-obermosel.de

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Tourist Information Echternach