Harley Days Dresden - Tour recommendation - Tharandter Wald - Altenberg - „Die Lange“ 

Discover the most beautiful tours around Dresden!

From the festival grounds, we head left across the Schlachthofbrücke bridge, turn right at the traffic lights, then immediately left again and continue straight across the next two traffic lights. After crossing the large railroad bridge, we turn right and then let it run its course. Straight ahead, through the Bramsch tunnel onto the double-lane Coventry road towards Freiberg.

In the footsteps of Friedrich Schiller. A visit to Tharandt

Approximately 5km ahead, we turn left at the traffic lights in the village of Grumbach and follow the signs to Tharandt). Located between high sandstone cliffs, the rock castle appears directly in front of us. At its foot, you can enjoy your first coffee break or soft ice cream in the traditional bakery (there is a parking lot on the right). 

We want to move on quickly. As we leave the parking lot, we see the Schillereck on the right-hand side, where Friedrich Schiller actually lived from .... to .....  Just 300m after the parking lot, turn right towards Dippoldiswalde. Passing the buildings of the Tharandt Mining University, the route leads through fast bends into the Tharandt Forest.

The small villages along the road should be taken at a moderate pace, because the living space and neighborhood peace is worth a lot. Nothing would be worse than if the race organizers were to discover the routes for themselves and their measuring equipment. 

With the signs to Altenberg and Zinnwald in view: Riding fun through a picturesque landscape

As long as we can read the towns of Altenberg and Zinnwald on the road signs, we are heading in the right direction. Keep in the right lane and you'll experience wonderful scenery, lots of bends and an extremely great driving experience. We drive through the town of Dippoldiswalde and turn right onto the B170 towards Altenberg. It quickly becomes rural again, the region lives a lot from the forestry and timber industry, which is clearly visible from the sawmills and joineries along the road.

On the way to Altenberg

Shortly before Altenberg, we reach the luge and bobsleigh village of Oberbärenburg. The bobsleigh run, which is often used for World Championship races, can be visited. To do this, turn left at the 2nd hairpin bend leading up to Altenberg. It is signposted. If you're not a fan of tobogganing, you can enjoy a great view over the entire valley from the adjacent observation tower. 

EISCAFE ALARM - A really very unusual ice cream parlor where the coffee is served in a beautiful porcelain cup.

The last few kilometers to the center of Altenberg are done quickly. Here we take a break at the well-known ice cream parlor „Buntes Häusl“ (large parking lot on the right), because the ice cream and cake are our top regional tip. The atmosphere is very unusual. It's worth taking a look inside the café, where every porcelain and art lover's heart will beat faster.

A few meters further along the road, there are of course restaurants for those with a big appetite, as well as in the neighboring village of Geißing (here you will find a small historic inn dating back to 1497, which is well worth a visit, but is often full because it is quite quaint and small) or on the Czech side, as the border is only 2 km away. 

The town of Altenberg is located on the border with the Czech Republic and is a winter sports destination for the people of Dresden. It is also a paradise for hikers and motorcyclists, as we will soon see as we continue our journey. We quickly fill up at the petrol station and continue on, because there are bends, bends, bends ahead. Just before leaving Altenberg, we turn left towards Heidenau and Glashütte. A very nice route to enjoy. 

We drive to the watchmaking town of Glashütte. Beautiful timepieces have been handcrafted here since the 19th century, but they are priced similarly to a Harley-Davidson. But we can dream, can't we?. 

Shortly after Glashütte, you come to the small village of Weesenstein, which appears picturesquely surrounded by forest and rocks, dominated by its beautiful castle. It's worth stopping here again, as Weesenstein was one of the places worst affected by the floods in 2002. The fact that the inhabitants have rebuilt everything and made it even more beautiful is truly commendable. 

Just 200 meters after the Weesenstein town sign, take a sharp left onto a mountain road. Keep heading towards Maxen and enjoy more great curves to master. Keep heading towards Kreischa, then in Kreischa towards Possendorf, not Dresden. 

Once we arrive in Possendorf, we can finally breathe a sigh of relief. After turning off towards Dresden city center, we leave the big city behind us and roll relaxed into the Saxon capital. Our destination is Dresden's landmark, the Semperoper opera house. But first, we stop at the Frauenkirche, the city's most famous building. If you're a little resourceful, you can almost drive right up to it. 😉

Back on Willsdruffer Straße, we drive to Postplatz, turn right there (caution: many railroad tracks) and find ourselves directly behind the Dresden Zwinger. To our right, we can already see Dresden Castle with its castle church. Keeping slightly to the right and following the railroad tracks, the majestic Semperoper opera house appears beside us. A photo stop is a must, of course, but be careful—parking in front of the Semperoper is not permitted. 

From here, it's only a 5-minute drive back to the event site. We hope you had a great ride. You've earned your beer at the finish line. 

Dresden Exhibition Center – Schlachthofbrücke – Waltherstraße – Bramschtunnel – Kesselsdorf Grumbach – Tharandt – Höckendorf – Dippoldiswalde – Altenberg – Glashütte – Weesenstein – Maxen – Possendorf – Dresden – Postplatz – Semperoper – Exhibition Center

Route length: approximately 120 km 

Pure travel time: Approximately 2.5 hours, depending on traffic

Travel time with suggested breaks: approximately 4.5 hours 

Link to the Calimoto data

Further tour suggestions for the Harley Days Dresden