Lava-Dome, multimedialer Vulkanausbruch, © Eifel Tourismus GmbH, D. Ketz

Volcano park - Laacher See national geopark

Six museum discovery and information centres and 17 natural, cultural and industrial monuments allow visitors to experience the hot, fiery evolutionary history of the Eifel directly where it happened.

It was only 13,000 years ago that the last pyroclastic flows and ash flows from the Laacher See volcano gushed through the valleys, extinguishing all life and leaving behind a barren moon landscape that in the thousands of years that followed would transform itself into a new landscape.

Even today, you can still see numerous cinder cones, maars, tuff and pumice walls at least a meter thick from this hot phase of the earth’s history. The volcanic eruptions in the past not only dominated the landscape, however, but also the lives of the people living in the Eifel. Historic mines, tunnels and quarries from different eras give a vivid impression of how people lived with this volcanic heritage.

The Laacher See geopark extends from Andernach am Rhein over the Brohltal valley at Niederzissen, to the north of the Laacher See lake. In the east, the area extends through to Boos, and includes the entire volcano park.
Four designated car routes, signposted cycle paths and marked hiking and circular trails lead visitors past different locations in the volcano park.

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Vulkanpark Infozentrum, © Eifel Tourismus GmbH/Dominik Ketz

Volcano Park information centre

As the central point of contact in the Volcano Park, the information centre offers an overview of the wide range of geological and archaeological themes covered in the park.

Eppelsberg

The Eppelsberg offers a unique window into the volcanic history of the Eastern Eifel as well as deep insights into the structure of a cinder block gel volcano.

Rauscherpark

The landscape of the Rauscherpark is a particularly attractive section of the Nettetal. The water rushes over mighty basalt blocks in cascades over the only natural waterfall of the Nette.

Wingertsbergwand

Soil outcrops on the Wingertsbergwand near Mendig allow science to explain the history of the Laacher See eruption through comparisons with currently active volcanoes.

Roman mine at Meurin

In the Roman mine at Meurin , visitors enter an underground world where Roman miners and soldiers worked.

In der Ettringer Lay, © Foto: Svenja Schulze-Entrup, Quelle: Touristik-Büro Vordereifel

Ettringer Lay - Vulkanparkstation

About 150 years ago in the " Ettringer Lay " ( Lay= stone quarry ) the deepest stone beeches around the Bellerberg volcano were formed. Not without danger the mighty stone columns of its western lava flow were broken here in order to extract building material or paving stones from it . Today a signposted trail lead direct to the lava flow.

Hinauf zum Ettringer Bellerberg, © Foto: Laura Rinneburger, Quelle: Touristik-Büro Vordereifel

Ettringer Bellerberg - Vulkanparkstation

The Bellerberg volcano was created 200,000 years ago, a cinder cone typical of the Eastern Eifel. The "Ettringer Bellerberg" and the "Kottenheimer Büden" form the western and eastern flanks of the large Bellerberg volcano. From the summit of the "Ettringer Bellerberg" you have a fantastic view of the surrounding volcanic Eastern Eifel.

Kottenheimer Winfeld, © Vulkanpark, Martin Christ

Kottenheimer Winfeld - Vulkanparkstation

The Kottenheimer Winfeld is a former quarry area in the area of the municipality of Kottenheim and owes its origin to the eruption of the Bellerberg volcano about 200,000 years ago. Today, the idyllic pit landscape with its bizarre rock formations and relics from bygone times, such as crane bases and pit cranes, is part of the volcano park as a landscape monument.

Unterirdische Entdeckungen im Eifelmuseum, © Eifel Tourismus GmbH, D. Ketz

Eifelmuseum - EifelTotal

Genovevaburg castle is a symbol of the town of Mayen. It can be seen from far and wide, towering over the town centre. Inside, it is home to the Eifelmuseum with the exhibiton "EifelTotal" and the German Slate Quarry Museum.

Führung im Lavakeller Mendig, © Eifel Tourismus GmbH, D. Ketz

Lavakeller – Unterirdische Kathedrale aus Basalt

There are many steps leading deep down below the town of Mendig: Here in the lava cellars, in the middle of the cooled volcanic rock, it is consistently cold even in the hottest summers, there is a mysterious dim light, there is the smell of moisture. Up to 28 Mendig breweries used the 32-metre-high, cathedral-like halls in the basalt rock to store fresh beer. Mighty pillars, left standing during centuries of basalt and lava mining, support the gigantic cellars. A guided tour through the cellars is an unforgettable aha experience. The Vulkan Brewery in Mendig, which is located above the cellars, still uses this unique cold storage facility today. The Lava Dome as a multimedia museum shows many more exciting facets of volcanism.

Familienaction im Lava-Dome, © Eifel Tourismus GmbH, D. Ketz

Lava-Dome - Deutsches Vulkanmuseum

The Lava Dome is a very special museum in the Volcano Park in the East Eifel. On 700 square metres it is not "museum-like", but spectacular - for children and adults, for absolute newcomers and for those who are pre-informed about volcanism. In the "Land of Volcanoes", a multimedia show tells the story of two violent volcanic eruptions. Images, sounds and projections let you relive them - up close and intense, but fortunately virtual. The "volcano workshop" is a genuine small science centre. At experimental stations, visitors gain a vivid impression of the processes inside the earth. The "Time of the Volcanoes" lets stones speak: Anyone who touches them can hear and see the great eruptions of times gone by. Current seismological data and images from webcams around the world are particularly exciting. And in the round cinema, a fictitious news programme takes your breath away, because here it becomes clear what another eruption of the Laacher See volcano would mean.