The first stage of the Vennbahn takes you from the imperial city of Aachen through an idyllic Eifel landscape to the former cloth-making town of Monschau. Your journey on the Vennbahn begins at the main railway station in the former imperial city of Aachen. From Rothe Erde station, the hustle and bustle of the city and traffic are quickly replaced by a quiet suburban idyll. The former abbey town of Kornelimünster offers a medieval backdrop and in Walheim you can still marvel at old diesel locomotives at the station. The stage continues through a landscape of forests and meadows to the old railroad station in Raeren. At the old Raeren railroad station, you can still see silent witnesses of glorious railroad days gone by on the partly still existing rail network and the pottery museum in the moated castle still bears witness to the heyday of Raeren's master distillers, whose wares enjoyed an excellent reputation far beyond the country's borders. The route continues through the forest in the German-Belgian border region towards Roetgen, the "gateway to the Eifel". An unparalleled interplay of borders begins. The Vennbahn crosses German and Belgian territory several times on this stage. The forest scenery diminishes a little and towards Lammersdorf and Konzen, some people will be reminded of Switzerland. With these impressions, you finally reach the former cloth-making town of Monschau with its magnificently preserved half-timbered houses.

Highlights

• Historic old town of Aachen

• Aachen Cathedral

• Historic town center of Kornelimünster

• Rollefbach Viaduct

• Raeren Pottery Museum

• Lammersdorf Farmers' Museum
• Historic old town of Monschau