A good place to start exploring Dossenheim-Sur-Zinsel is the fortified Refuge: its archaeological remains, an exhibition and a museum of local history take centre stage here. Other highlights include Saint-Léonard Church, Château de Hunebourg and routes with different outdoor themes. You can tailor your stay to cultural history, architecture or an outdoor activity.
The Refuge: Exhibition and Museum
The exhibition interpreting the fortified Refuge explains the site’s purpose, history and development, draws attention to its archaeological remains, and offers games for children and adults. Visitor arrangements may vary, so check them before planning your visit. The Refuge also houses the museum “DOSSME, MINI HEIMET”. Located in a house built onto the wall, it features a reconstructed interior as it might have looked at the beginning of the 20th century.
The furnishings include a reconstructed kitchen and a traditional living room. There are also tools and equipment from agriculture, crafts, forestry and stoneworking. Alongside a domestic interior, the museum therefore presents objects from various fields of work. This combination offers different ways to explore the museum: the site’s development, archaeological traces and the reconstructed interior.
Saint-Léonard Church and Château de Hunebourg
Dedicated to Saint Leonard, Saint-Léonard Church stands in a former fortified cemetery. The choir and sacristy date from the 14th century. The choir is particularly worth a close look: it has a flat end wall, is built entirely of sandstone, and features a ribbed vault and a keystone carved with a rose window. Dossenheim-Sur-Zinsel’s fortified cemetery is the only one in Alsace where these cells of the protective shelters have been preserved.
Another architectural landmark is Château de Hunebourg, located on a forest road in Dossenheim-Sur-Zinsel. It is a reconstruction in the Neo-Romanesque style by Karl Erich Loebell. A first castle is documented as early as 1125. The date and the reconstruction refer to different historical details: 1125 relates to the first castle, while the site described is a reconstruction.
Routes between river, pastures and forest
The Circuit du Warthenberg runs alongside the Zinsel du Sud river and past pastures with Highland cattle. The river and pastureland give this route its stated landscape features. Landscape and land-use conditions may change over time.
The Hunebourg Forest Circuit includes, near GORNA, a discovery trail around a wildlife care centre. Visitor arrangements may change; check the current options before planning. This route adds a connection to a wildlife care centre to the cultural and architectural themes.
For a cycling trip, the mountain biking route “De Dossenheim à Saverne” is described as a 24.9-kilometre crossing. It starts at the Dossenheim-Sur-Zinsel campsite and ends in Saverne. Its named start and end points distinguish this route from those described in terms of their landscapes. As route details may change, check the current conditions before setting off.
Discover more destinations: Roppenheim, Beinheim, Schillersdorf, Rangen, Ostwald, Wasselonne, Vendenheim, Rosheim
For the regional travel overview: Bas-Rhin.
