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Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler

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A spa town with a living tradition

Beyond the official mineral‑water facilities, Bad Neuenahr‑Ahrweiler’s therapeutic reputation is woven into daily life. Locals still gather on the Kurpark’s benches to sip the famed spring water, believing it supports digestion after the region’s hearty wine meals. In summer, the town hosts a modest ‘Kur‑lauf’, a leisurely jog that threads through historic streets and past the thermal baths, offering a glimpse of how health and leisure intersect here. If you stay for a week, ask the concierge for the low‑key ‘Wasser‑Stammtisch’, an informal gathering in a neighbourhood café where retirees discuss the latest spa treatments—an experience no guidebook will schedule but which reveals the town’s genuine spa culture.

Wine routes that bypass the crowds

The Ahr valley is celebrated for its pinot noir, yet the most rewarding vineyards are those perched on the valley’s lesser‑known slopes. Rent a small ‘Kleinstwagen’ and follow the quiet side roads from Bad Neuenahr‑Ahrweiler toward the hamlet of Antweiler, where family‑run wineries open their cellars only to locals and a handful of curious travellers. Here, you can sample single‑vintage bottles straight from the barrel, accompanied by a regional cheese that’s aged in the same cool cellars as the wine. The effort of navigating the winding lanes is repaid with intimate conversations about viticulture that you won’t hear in the bustling wine festivals further downstream.

A gateway for regional day‑trips

While the town itself is compact, its railway link positions it as an ideal base for exploratory day trips. A short ride east brings you to the historic town of Bad Münster, where the medieval castle ruins overlook the Marian pilgrimage route—perfect for a reflective walk. Heading north, the narrow‑gauge line to the Eifel’s volcanic lake, Laacher See, offers a serene contrast to the Ahr’s terraced vineyards. For those with a taste for history, the short bus journey to the Roman remains at the Ahr Museum in Ahrweiler provides a tangible sense of the area’s ancient layers, making Bad Neuenahr‑Ahrweiler a practical hub rather than a destination in isolation.

Introduction

"Ahrweiler" redirects here. For the eponymous district, see Ahrweiler (district). For people with this surname, see Hélène Ahrweiler, Mattithiah Ahrweiler, and Peter Ahrweiler. You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in German.  (September 2024) Click [show] for important translation instructions. View a machine-translated version of the German article. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must follow the LLM translation guideline, revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing German Wikipedia article at [[:de:Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler]]; see its history for attribution. You may also add the template {{Translated|de|Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler}} to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation. Town in Rhineland-Palatinate, GermanyBad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Town Coat of armsLocation of Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler within Ahrweiler district Location of Bad Neuenahr-AhrweilerBad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Show map of GermanyBad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Show map of Rhineland-PalatinateCoordinates: 50°32′41″N 7°6′48″E / 50.54472°N 7.11333°E / 50.54472; 7.11333CountryGermanyStateRhineland-PalatinateDistrictAhrweiler SubdivisionsOrtsbezirke 13Government • Mayor (2017–25) Guido Orthen (CDU)Area • Total63.38 km2 (24.47 sq mi)Elevation99 m (325 ft)Population (2024-12-31) • Total27,647 • Density436.2/km2 (1,130/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)Postal codes53474Dialling codes02641; 02646Vehicle registrationAWWebsitewww.bad-neuenahr-ahrweiler.de Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler (German pronunciation: [baːt ˌnɔʏənʔaːɐ̯ˈʔaːɐ̯vaɪlɐ] ⓘ) is a spa town in the German Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate that serves as the capital of the Ahrweiler district. The A61 motorway connects the town with cities like Cologne and Mainz. Formed by the merging of the towns (now districts) of Bad Neuenahr and Ahrweiler in 1969, Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler consists of 11 such districts.

Geography

[edit] Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler rests in the Ahr valley (German: Ahrtal) on the left bank of the Rhine river in the north of Rhineland-Palatinate. Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler nestles in the Ahr Hills (German: Ahrgebirge). The highest hill in the area is the Häuschen at 506 metres (1,660 ft) above sea level. Nearby are the hills of Steckenberg, Neuenahrer, and Talerweiterung. There used to be castles on the last two of these hills. Neighbouring communities[edit] Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler is surrounded by the following villages and towns (clockwise from the north): Grafschaft, Remagen, Sinzig, Königsfeld, Schalkenbach, Heckenbach, Kesseling, Rech and Dernau. The nearest cities are Bonn and Koblenz. Districts[edit] Bad Neuenahr is divided into Ortsbezirke which consist of one or more districts. The Ortsbezirke are represented by local councils. The largest district, Bad Neuenahr, was originally made up of three communities, which are still seen as districts. Population statistics as of 31 March 2013 (main and secondary residence): Local District Subdivision Population (30 June 2015) Ahrweiler District: Ahrweiler 7,411 Bachem District: Bachem 1,214 Bad Neuenahr Districts: Beul, Hemmessen and Wadenheim 12,132 Gimmigen District: Gimmigen 735 Heimersheim District: Heimersheim and Ehlingen 3,194 Heppingen District: Heppingen 873 Kirchdaun District: Kirchdaun 368 Lohrsdorf District: Lohrsdorf and Green 672 Ramersbach District: Ramersbach 567 Walporzheim District: Walporzheim and Marienthal 698 Climate[edit] Climate data for Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler (1991-2020) Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high °C (°F) 16.9(62.4) 20.7(69.3) 25.4(77.7) 30.5(86.9) 33.4(92.1) 36.4(97.5) 40.4(104.7) 38.9(102.0) 34.5(94.1) 28.5(83.3) 22.4(72.3) 19.0(66.2) 40.4(104.7) Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 5.9(42.6) 7.3(45.1) 11.4(52.5) 15.9(60.6) 19.8(67.6) 22.9(73.2) 25.2(77.4) 25.1(77.2) 20.7(69.3) 15.5(59.9) 10.0(50.0) 6.5(43.7) 15.5(59.9) Daily mean °C (°F) 2.9(37.2) 3.5(38.3) 6.5(43.7) 10.2(50.4) 14.1(57.4) 17.2(63.0) 19.2(66.6) 18.7(65.7) 14.7(58.5) 10.5(50.9) 6.5(43.7) 3.6(38.5) 10.6(51.1) Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −0.3(31.5) −0.2(31.6) 2.1(35.8) 4.6(40.3) 8.4(47.1) 11.6(52.9) 13.5(56.3) 13.1(55.6) 9.6(49.3) 6.0(42.8) 2.9(37.2) 0.5(32.9) 6.0(42.8) Record low °C (°F) −20.3(−4.5) −21.8(−7.2) −14.1(6.6) −6.4(20.5) −2.7(27.1) 1.6(34.9) 4.0(39.2) 4.5(40.1) 0.1(32.2) −7.0(19.4) −12.5(9.5) −20.1(−4.2) −21.8(−7.2) Average precipitation mm (inches) 46.0(1.81) 42.0(1.65) 48.0(1.89) 39.0(1.54) 58.0(2.28) 60.0(2.36) 62.0(2.44) 64.0(2.52) 53.0(2.09) 49.0(1.93) 46.0(1.81) 53.0(2.09) 620.0(24.41) Source: wetterlabs.de: Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler

History

[edit] Ahrweiler, St. Laurentius Church Thermal Badehaus und Kurhaus from Bad Neuenahr Coat of arms of the Counts of Neuenahr Casino from Bad Neuenahr Luxury Steigenberger Hotel in Bad Neuenahr in autumn time Antiquity[edit] Discoveries dating to the Hallstatt period (1000–500 BC) show farming activity by Celts that dwelled in the area. The Gallic Wars (58–50 BC) resulted in the forced relocation of the indigenous Eburones to the Middle Rhine. Several Roman antiquities were discovered in the region and date from the 1st to 3rd centuries. Most notable is the Villa Rustica of Bad Neuenahr [de], which, today is open to the public and serves as a museum (Museum Römervilla). Middle Ages[edit] In 893 AD, Ahrweiler was mentioned as Arwilre, Arewilre, Arewilere, and later Areweiller in the Prüm Urbar (register of estates owned by Prüm Abbey). The abbey of Ahrweiler owned a manor with 24 farmsteads; 50 acres of farmland and 76 acres of vineyards. The first mention of a parish church occurred in Neuenahr Castle and surrounding county (Newenare) from 1204 to 1225. In 1246 was founded one of the oldest German inns Gasthaus Sanct Peter. During this period, the area was ruled by German Counts von Neuenahr until 1587, until they went extinct in the male line. Modern times[edit] Close to Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, the national Government bunker was built between 1960 and 1972 inside two abandoned railway tunnels that were built as part of the Strategic Railway. The bunker was maintained and kept in a working condition for about 30 years and decommissioned in 1997. The location is a museum since February 2008. During the 2021 European floods much of the town was submerged and many died.

Notable people

[edit] Ahrweiler Marktplatz 23 Memorial plate birthplace Georg Kreuzberg Cyrillus Jarre (1878–1952), Franciscan Archbishop in Jinan Markus Stenz (born 1965), conductor Björn Glasner (born 1973), cyclist Jan van Eijden (born 1976), cyclist Pierre Kaffer (born 1976), racing driver Bianca Rech (born 1981), footballer Ricarda Funk (born 1992), canoeist Associated with the town[edit] Karl Marx (1818–1883), philosopher and economist, stayed in a spa resort in Bad Neuenahr in 1877 Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 1770 – 26 March 1827), is said to have visited the town in his youth. The Beethovenhaus is named in his honor. Peter Friedhofen (1819–1860), founder of the Charitable Brethren of Maria Hilf, who practiced his trade first in Ahrweiler Wolfgang Müller von Königswinter (1816–1873), novelist and poet, died in Bad Neuenahr Blandine Merten (1883–1918), Ursuline nun near Ahrweiler Ebba Tesdorpf (1851–1920), illustrator and watercolorist, died in Ahrweiler Paul Metternich (1853–1934), diplomat, died in the district of Heppingen Max von Schillings (1868–1933), composer and conductor Christian Hülsmeyer (1891–1957), inventor, physicist and entrepreneur, died in Ahrweiler