Dillenburg offers a wide variety of things to explore: a 41-metre-high tower, underground casemates and trails around Dillenburg and Donsbach. This gives you a choice of town history, nature and hiking when planning your visit. On Schlossberg, the focus is on the monument, museum and fortifications; in Donsbach, there is also a wildlife park and a certified circular trail.
Wilhelm Tower and Schlossberg
Wilhelm Tower was built between 1872 and 1875 on the former upper castle courtyard in Dillenburg as a monument to William I, Prince of Orange. The tower is 41 metres high. Inside is the Orange-Nassau Museum, with numerous exhibits and richly illustrated texts about William I and his struggle for freedom for the Netherlands. The monument and the chance to learn about this historical figure therefore come together in one place.
Dillenburg’s defensive structures are also located on Schlossberg: partially excavated underground fortifications with bastions and defensive passageways known as casemates. The town describes their scale as unique in Germany. A guided tour of Dillenburg’s underground world ends with a visit to the well in the Lion’s Den and the Rubens Prison.
Museums and State Stud
The villa of mining company owner Carl GrĂĽn was built in 1914/15 in the neoclassical style and has housed the Museum of Economic History since 1983. The wider Lahn-Dill-Kreis destination also includes Villa GrĂĽn in Dillenburg: in more than 20 rooms, the museum displays objects and detailed recreations of industrial and craft production in the Dill region. An elaborate, multimedia mining exhibition is located in the basement.
The Dillenburg State Stud preserves a centuries-old tradition and shapes the townscape with its cultural and historical complex. An extensive tour takes visitors through the stables and large riding hall, offering insights into the state-owned riding and driving school. In the Brunnenhof, visitors can watch horses at work and, where possible, see them being harnessed to historic carriages. The Carriage Museum is housed in the Orangery, built in 1719. Booking conditions may change; check them before taking a tour.
Wildlife Park and Trails
Donsbach Wildlife Park has a playground and a petting zoo. Its spacious outdoor enclosures, designed to meet the animals’ needs, allow visitors—especially children—to experience nature and animal behaviour at close quarters. This is a different focus from the museums and historic sites in Dillenburg: here, attention turns to the animals and their habitats.
The Wacholderweg is a 16-kilometre certified circular trail and one of eight additional Rothaarsteig trails. It circles the district of Donsbach and starts and ends at the village community centre or the wildlife park in Dillenburg-Donsbach. Those looking for a different theme can take the Oranierpfad: it follows a wide loop around Dillenburg, passing natural monuments, geological features and historic buildings.
Getting Around and Mining History
The Historic Trail in Dillenburg is marked with signs. QR codes provide information about the sites as text or audio files. This combines wayfinding with additional explanations, without requiring visitors to take in all the information in the same way.
In Oberscheld is the Ypsilanta Mine, a 140-metre-long adit that once served to drain water. Today, visitors can walk through it via a restored entrance. The site adds a former mine adit that visitors can enter to the area’s museums. Together, Dillenburg’s attractions offer different ways to explore history: through exhibits and texts, historic buildings and structures, and a walkable adit.
Discover more destinations: Driedorf, Hüttenberg, Siegbach, Leun, Herborn, Haiger, Schöffengrund, Lahnau
Go to the wider travel overview: Lahn-Dill-Kreis.
