This route features a guide to running around Elberfeld — the central and largest district of Wuppertal — with the nearby Hardt, a scenic, hilly park. We’ve created a map to use as a guideline, but you can also create your own route!

Elberfeld Center

Elberfeld is large neighborhood, sprawling both sides of the Wupper River, hilly, ‘staircase’ neighborhoods rising especially on the north side. Create your own 2-3 km route in the historic center on the north side. Start at Laurentiusplatz Wuppertal, a large plaza and pedestrian zone. Get your heart rate up by heading north, crossing Luisenstraße to experience the Tippen-Tappen-Tönnchen steps. Come back down, and use the Herzogstraße — the main east-west pedestrian thoroughfare — with its numerous shops, restaurants, and the Von der Heydt Museum. 

Make your way down to the Wupper River and the Döppersberger Brücke, the gateway to the downtown core, where you can also see the Schwebebahn: the world-famous suspension railway runs that runs through the center of Elberfeld, suspended over the Wupper river and city streets. Take a jaunt around the Kluse station and the bridges/paths along the river. Then use Wupperstraße for the 0.5 km access to Hardt Park. It’s a mainly pedestrian street, with some stairs.

Hardt Park

This is a scenic, hilly park near the commercial center of Elberfeld. A network of windy, hilly paths lead pass sprawling lawns, with some wooded sections. At the southeast end is a botanical garden, and the Elisenturm hilltop landmark, featuring great views of the city and river. At the northwest end, a highlight is the Riesen-Mammutbäume — a giant sequoia.

Elisenturm

\Create your own route around Hardt. It’s possible to do 3-4 hilly km in the park: It’s ~1 km east-west along the Elisenhöhe path, and ~0.5 km north-south.