The best family-friendly hikes and walks around Bad Rothenfelde

At the Glockensee, in the middle of the tourist center of the spa town of Bad Laer, the old water mill from the Hof Tewes-Kampelmann from the Müschen district has been rebuilt in the spa park, in the immediate vicinity of the Glockensee. The current building fabric of the mill essentially dates from 1882. Today, the historic building houses a café-restaurant, which was newly opened in spring 2020. Source: https://www.osnabruecker-land.de/erlebnisse/muehle-am-glockensee

Centrally located, all paths in Bad Laer lead to the spa park. On six hectares, those seeking peace and quiet, athletes, children and adults, flower enthusiasts and brine fans will find enough space to unfold. Anyone who wants to learn something about the history and geology of the more than 1000-year-old town can be guided through the park by 15 information boards and will also learn a lot of interesting facts about the origin of the Bad Laer brine. The spa park itself is the location of several brine springs, one of which emerges openly in the "Kolk" and feeds the Salzbach river and the adjacent Glockensee lake. Source: https://www.bad-laer.de/urlaub/entdecken/erlebnis-kurpark.html

The Teutoburg Forest is a great landscape, even from a distance

Was there and didn't find the sign that can be seen in the photos. Just learned from the Bad Laer Tourist Information that they had to close the area and it is no longer publicly accessible.

This whimsical gatehouse, dating from 1913, was designed by the architect Karl Frey. Compared to his other projects around the turn of the century, it's practically a garden pavilion. As befits a garden, a fence was essential. Today, these iron fences with their many spikes are back in vogue. The entire area of the concert garden, the promenade hall, and the graduation tower were enclosed by it. At the ticket booth, this very gatehouse, everyone paid the visitor's tax to enjoy the music, the fresh air, or simply a stroll through the promenade hall. But the lucrative times for the cashiers were soon over. World War I arrived, and part of the fence was diverted to finance the military apparatus, following the motto "I gave iron for bread, and gold for iron." In 1922, a new and considerably shorter fence was erected around the concert garden. But 44 years later, this enclosure, too, had served its purpose and disappeared completely. Where these elements vanished to is apparently not recorded in any file. Source: https://www.historische-schaufenster.de/index.php/Schaufenster/konzertgarten.html

Between the laying of the foundation stone in 1868 and its final sale to an investor group in 1997, 25 years tell of changes. It is arguably the building in Bad Rothenfelde with the most varied history. Dining and concert halls (the famous Red Hall), dance floors, wine cellars, terraces, a bar, hotel rooms, staff quarters, kitchens, and cellars—all of this was housed within its walls, and much was subsequently destroyed by fire. Just as the owners changed hands frequently, so too did the names. Built as the "Höckersches Badehotel," it was known as the Kurhaus (spa hotel) from 1881 to 1952, then the Kurklinik Nollmann (Nollmann spa clinic), and subsequently the Kurhaussanatorium with a hotel in the spa park. From 1969 onward, the operation of the hall and hotel was managed directly by the spa administration. Later, after further renovations and fires, and as long as it remained under the spa administration's ownership, the guest complex was called the Residenzhotel (Residence Hotel). The hotel's history finally came to a close in 1985 when the guest rooms were converted into condominiums. The adjacent halls and bars have been managed and leased by an investor group since 1997. The hotel in the spa park and the small concert hall were demolished. The residents of Rothenfelde are quite used to that sort of thing. The senior citizens' residence in the spa park now stands on this site, and its residents have the privilege (or rather, must accept) of having a box seat at all the festivals in the concert garden. But the townspeople still gather in the Kurhaus every year for the Bad Rothenfelde meal, and every Sunday, lively couples dance, replenishing their calorie expenditure with cream cakes. Source: https://www.historische-schaufenster.de/index.php/Schaufenster/ehemaliges-kurhaus.html

The "Little Mountain" adventure trail in Bad Laer opened in early 2014 to great public acclaim. The idea for this educational project arose in connection with a geothermal energy project. Scientists had stumbled upon fascinating soil profiles in the Blomberg near Bad Laer, which reveal the Earth's climate history up to the present day. Geologist Dr. Jens Steffahn subsequently developed a scientific concept for the creation of a geological educational trail. The 6.4-kilometer trail paints a captivating picture of Earth's history. The eight stations are connected by "reading stones," which provide engaging questions to answer while visitors wait between stations. This ensures that even younger family members won't find the walk too long. The trail holds many surprises, such as the "rocky path to the glacial erratic" and the "view into the depths." The geotourism trail is part of the Teutoburg Forest, Kleiner Berg FFH area within the European Natura 2000 network of protected areas. Source: https://nur-design-text.de/portfolio/erlebnispfad-kleiner-berg/

is fun