Things to do in the Ore Mountains

The Ore Mountains are a mountain range in the Czech Republic and in Germany. Since 2019 the region is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.The Ore Mountain Range has been a natural border between Bohemia and Saxony from the 12th to the 20th century. Europe's earliest mining district, dated to 2500BC, was in these mountains, but it was only in the early 12th century that the region was started to be inhabited. Until the 16th century more mining towns were built and the region became the heartland of the Central European mining industry, relying mostly on silver and tin ores and afterwards on cobalt on which it had a worldwide monopoly. During the Soviet Union uranium was processed. Mining operations ceased completely in 1991.In the Ore Mountains you can follow the historical Silver road which links all the main attractions: visit mines and mining trails in the local history museums and learn about different traditions and folk art. Discover medieval mining cities as Annaberg-Buchholz or Schneeberg and enjoy their Christmas markets or miners’ parades. On the Saxon side you can also visit many castles as the Augustusburg Castle. The highest peaks, Fichtelberg at 1250 m and Klinovec at 1244 m, are great sport destinations: during wintertime you’ll enjoy skiing, snowboarding, bob-sleighing, cross country skiing and many other winter activities and during summer you’ll have fun hiking and mountain bike riding.