With its half-timbered houses along the winding Roer, the traffic-free Monschau remains a tourist magnet just behind the German border. At the same time, the beautiful place is a gateway to the hiking paradise of the Eifel.

A castle overlooking the town? Then you know that there were activities here as early as the Middle Ages. Yes, the dukes of Limburg considered Monschau a pleasant place to recuperate from the Crusades. Today, young people from all over the world live in this rugged youth hostel. Visitors come mainly for the atmosphere of terraces, restaurants, and galleries in the nostalgic surroundings of well-kept half-timbered houses that balance over the rocky shores of the Roer.

Do you have time for a cultural tip? Then visit the stately late Baroque Red House by Johann Heinrich Scheibler. It was both a home and a business meeting point for this prestigious cloth maker. The museum features an impressive staircase, whose carvings depict scenes from the textile industry. You'll get an idea of the life of the wealthy owners and, of course, a whole exhibition about fabric production. In no time, you’ll have taken a green walk through a piece of Eifel, along the Roer, the Kluckbach, and the Perlenbachtal.

Departure from the generous paid parking lot Burgau (V) next to the impressive glass factory (1) of Monschau. Cross the Roer and turn right into the Stadtstraße. After 400 m, turn right onto Ruhrstraße and enjoy the most romantic view of Monschau from the bridge. Immediately after the next bridge, turn left back and again the Stadtstraße past the Red House (2). At the intersection, turn right onto Laufenstraße, then Stehlings and Eschbachstraße next to the Roer. At the next fork, follow right to Rosenthal. You will reach the Nordeifel Nature Park and take a left on the gravel path next to House 25. The path narrows further down. When a forest road crosses the path from the left, keep to the rising path in front of you. At a resting bench, turn right and after 50 m descend on the right (Rurtal-Rohren-Widdau). Continue right over gravel to a shelter (3). Turn right to cross the bridge and continue uphill. You will reach the Kluckbachhütte (4) with many picnic benches. You will now continue along the left bank of the Kluckbach (towards Perlenbach Dam). At the Y junction, turn right (Höfen-Monschau-Perlenbachtalsperre). Valleys, with right turns, a little water going up and down. At the T with a bench, turn left, Route 57. Along the meadows and at the next T turn right. The path is asphalted, and at another T turn right again to the hamlet of Höfen. Cross the intersection Wiesengrund and go right over the gravel. At the T, turn left, Pferdebahn. To the next T

Turn left, ignore Schmiedegasse and Zum Kessel, continue right on Kappersweg. Carefully cross the main road to Zur alten Molkerei (5). Behind the dairy, turn left onto the gravel path and the bridge to a T. Right over asphalt and further down towards Perlenbachtalsperre, following Eifelsteig and Route 51. At the signpost, turn right towards Perlenau/Monschau. Soon you will walk along the reservoir that supplies Monschau with drinking water. You will pass the Perlenbach Dam (6), turn right with the asphalt, and at the T turn left. Just before the Perlenbach waterworks, turn right onto the gravel path and the viaduct below. At the signpost Monschau/Engelsley, turn right and steeply uphill*. Descent at the T turning left. You will pass Teufelsley and Engelsley, continue right, past the information board Burgau, until you reach the parking lot where you started.