Ruhr valley – based in one hotel

Individual Arrival in Essen. Use the time until the welcome briefing start in the evening, to visit the Folkwang Museum, the cathedral with its treasury, or the Synagogue right next door.

In Gelsenkirchen's Nordsternpark, many things are reminiscent of the former colliery that once stood here. Numerous colliery buildings have been integrated into the park (the Federal Garden Show was held here in 1997). The 18-metre high 'Hercules of Gelsenkirchen' towers above the park. The circular tour also leads over two slagheaps, on which there are also modern sculptures. From here you have a wonderful view of the area.

One of the world's most extraordinary exhibition halls is the first stop, the Gasometer in Oberhausen. The tour continues along the Rhine-Herne Canal to the Duisburg-Nord Landscape Park around a disused ironworks site. See how nature reclaims its terrain.

You cycle along the cycle path to Mülheim. Upstream along the Ruhr you pass through some small, pleasant districts: Saarn (monastery and beautiful old town), Kettwig, Werden (former abbey). Villa Hügel (former home of the Krupp family) rises above Lake Baldeney. End your cycling day in one of the numerous beer gardens along the Ruhr.

This tour is all about mining. In Bochum you can go underground and experience what it was like in the coal mines. The tour continues via the ore railway to the Zollverein colliery, probably the most beautiful colliery in the world and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.