The Elbe Bike Trail, or Elberadweg, as it is called in German, is one of the most popular bike routes in Germany. The 1300km long trail follows the Elbe River from source to mouth, starting in Czechia and ending in the North Sea. I’ve cycled nearly the entire German portion from Cuxhaven to Magdeburg to Czechia. If you’d like to read about starting in Cuxhaven, check out part I. In this post, I’ll share all about my experience cycling on the Elbe Bike Trail from Magdeburg through to the Czech border.
Day 1: Magdeburg to Aken – 63 km
I wouldn’t really recommend the left (west) side of the Elbe heading south on the Elbe Bike Trail from Magdeburg. I didn’t enjoy the route much and I found the signs difficult to follow because mostly there weren’t (m)any. The portion I did really enjoy was my short stint across the river through a beautiful forest. But I must say that the left side of the Elbe was nice directly in Magdeburg. I enjoyed the narrow but long mural on the promenade which showed the river’s course from Cuxhaven to its source in Czechia. I took the ferry twice, 2€ each time for rider and bicycle.
The campsite in Aken was the highlight of the leg. It doesn’t get prettier or more price-worthy. The Zeltwiese is right next to the river, and though it is not flat, there are a few spots where you can pitch your tent. I was joined by 3 other pairs and another solo woman. The facilities are in containers, which seem very new and are still quite clean. As an American, it is strange that the two shower stalls have glass doors, but when in Rome…! A single person on a bike with a tent pays 15€, which includes all the water you want. I was even offered a spot to charge up my phone – all included!
Day 2: Aken to Bergwitz See by Lutherstadt Wittenberg – 74 km
I woke up to a beautiful sunrise after a beautiful sunset. Most campers were early birds, off before 8am. I expected it to be a long day, but luckily Komoot put my checkpoints in the wrong order, meaning 20km of my route were double-counted.
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I first went through Dessau and had a look at some Bauhaus architecture, including the university, before cycling down the Mulde creek (not part of the Elbe tour) and stopping on the Jagdbrücke bridge. There I saw a white egret, a kingfisher, and lots and lots of fish.
There were several nice sections today, like a raised bike path on the dike that was a tree-lined bike boulevard. I also had some nice forests paths but also a long, hot stretch at the base of a dike which never seemed to end.
I was quick, so I decided to take a detour and have a look at Lutherstadt Wittenberg before going to the campsite. I’m glad I had a look around and some fries (I was starving!!). I had been to Wittenberg before but didn’t remember how amazing the market square is. I took a short walk around and then headed back 3 km to meet my trail and then another 10 to camp.
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I like the camp a lot and had thought it would be more touristy. Maybe I’m lucky that Sachsen-Anhalt went back to school this week, so it wasn’t crazy busy. I’ve been seeing the kids walk home with their backpacks and Schulranzen between 1 and 2 pm each day. I had a short swim in the lake before showering. You get a card with money on it for the water. I love this because you can see how much you’re using, and it stops counting when you stop the water. You can take your time and use very little water/money.
I enjoyed today’s route much better than yesterday’s. I will continue to follow the main Elbe route on the left side as much as possible.
Day 3: Bergwitz to Torgau – 92 km
In the night some stupid guys were listening to music and talking at the beach (3am) until I got up and asked them to leave. German campsites are pretty strict about quiet hours (usually from 10pm onwards), so at least the more sober guy was understanding and apologetic.
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In the morning I left around 7:45 and headed back towards Wittenberg. Because I already knew the way, it didn’t feel like it took very long. Everything was closed when I arrived and so I left without really looking at anything.
The trail today was mostly in the sun, with little view of the Elbe. Before crossing the river, the ice cream parlor was there, as promised by the local couple I had met at the beach the day before. When I arrived, seniors took up the benches in front. Ice cream time would begin in 10 minutes. I was the only person who didn’t order more than 2 scoops – stracciatella and honey-sage-raspberry. The father-son cycling duo in front of me ordered 4 scoops each!
From this point on I was pretty baked by the sun. I stopped every opportunity there was for a bench in the shade, which wasn’t often. I was counting the kilometers left to Torgau.
Once there, I biked to the market square to have a little look. There was a really cool castle, but it was too late in the afternoon for such a visit. I would have liked to come back for the city tour at 6pm, but I was dead tired, and it was threatening to rain.
At camp, I set up my tent quickly and waited for the rain to come. It did rain a bit and by the time it stopped I was ready for dinner. There are some other cyclists here and the camp is very nice.
Day 4: Torgau to Meissen – 83 km
Because I slept so well in Torgau and the tent was wet from the rain and dew, I decided for a later start. Along the way I caught up to another biker I saw at camp and we rode together for about 30km until Strehla, where I stopped to see a castle that turned out to not be open. We talked about biking and traveling. I later saw him a few kilometers afterwards in Riesa, finishing an ice cream. I stopped too to have some fries and was on my way again. There wasn’t much to see in Riesa.
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It didn’t feel like nothing because I was covered in sweat, but I was in Meissen quickly since there hadn’t been so much to see along the way. About ten kilometers before Meissen the vineyards began and I felt like I was entering Saxon Switzerland, even if it’s not quite yet. The banks of the river were getting higher and sometimes I could see the exposed sandstone.
In Meissen I was too tired to do anything except sit on a bench at the market square and watch others eat ice cream. I wanted some but felt it would be too heavy in my belly. I did walk around town and to the Rathaus before cycling the last few kilometers to a very cute campground. There are 4 other Czech bikers here on the tent field. Before they arrived, I was all alone and two Italians with a rented RV came over to ask if I was ok or needed anything. I ended up having a coffee and practicing some Italian with them. It was really nice!! Mostly the people I’ve met so far were only German, even all the other cyclists at camps. It was nice to have some internationality on the last night!
Day 5: Meissen to Schöna (Czech border) – 81 km
I saved the best for last! Or the Elbe bike trail saved the best for last. You could call it the Königsetappe, as the best leg is always described in our hiking books – the King’s section. This is how I thought the Elberadweg would be the whole time – river always in view, interesting landscape and lots of things to see and places to stop along the way. There were lots of Biergartens and bike cafes too on this section.
This could be seen as a pro or con, but the surface was so good that the kilometers flew by! This was a bad thing because it made the day go by so fast! There were lots and lots of cyclists of all kinds from Dresden and it was easy to see why.
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From Meissen, my first stop was Dresden. There are so many sights to see there, so if you have never been, then you should definitely stop here for a few days. I just made a quick stop by the Frauenkirche, the most famous church in Dresden. The whole old town and riverbank area was being prepared for a big festival on the weekend.
Later on, I cycled by Schloss Pillnitz, where we very nearly planned to have our wedding. I love the gardens in springtime and the castle buildings are also worth visiting. You’ll have to take the ferry across to get there, and you can easily spend several hours.
Before I knew it, I was in Pirna. We spend lots of time here, so I didn’t stop longer than a water break. The old town here is so beautiful. I would recommend walking up to Schloss Sonnenstein for a great view and a break at the Biergarten.
Pirna is the gateway to Saxon Switzerland, one of Germany’s most well-known and beloved natural landscapes. The houses are very cute lined up along the Elbe with the big sandstone cliffs and forest behind them. There’s one village after another and the bike trail gets a little hilly through here. I passed Stadt Wehlen, Kurort Rathen, Bad Schandau, and Schmilka, all well-known to me from my time on the Malerweg hike.
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A little further than Schmilka is Schöna, and just 2 km beyond that is the Czech border. As a cyclist there wasn’t anyone to check your passport, but I only took a photo and turned back. I took the train from Schmilka back to Pirna for the weekend. But not before crossing the river for a drink at one of the mills in Schmilka!
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C is interested in cycling the Elbe in Czechia, so hopefully we get to do the final 300km together sometime. But I would definitely cycle towards Germany instead of continuing upriver! The landscape on the Czech side is a lot like Saxon Switzerland, so I look forward to more beautiful landscapes along the way.
Planning your own trip on the Elbe Bike Trail from Cuxhaven to Magdeburg to Czechia? You can see all the routes for this tour on my Komoot profile. Additionally, there’s a great interactive map of the Elbe Bike Trail which includes accommodation, natural and historic sites, places to eat, and museums. They also have links to GPS downloads.