Bastei is one of Saxon Switzerland's most iconic landmarks — a narrow sandstone ridge dropping nearly 190 metres sheer to the Elbe, with views that have inspired painters, poets and hikers for over two centuries. With around 1.5 million visitors a year, it is the most visited viewpoint in any German national park, and one look at the scenery makes it easy to understand why.

From the viewing platform, the panorama sweeps across the Elbe valley and over a sea of sandstone towers including the Lilienstein, Königstein and Pfaffenstein. The stone Bastei Bridge, built in 1850–51 with seven arches spanning the 'Mardertelle' gorge, is a striking sight in its own right. The area rewards visits in every season — spring greenery, summer long-distance views, autumn colours, and the crisp silence of winter frost.

How to reach the summit

• Kurort Rathen (ferry across the Elbe, then trail) — 675 steps up to the ridge, plus 132 more to the viewing platforms; approx. 30–40 min, moderate difficulty
• Wehlen or Lohmen — forest trail or by road, with a car park near the summit

Practical information

• The new viewing platform (21 m long, capacity 140 people) reopened in February 2023 after extensive rock stabilisation work
• A hotel with a restaurant operates directly at the summit
• Three long-distance hiking routes cross the Bastei: the Bergwanderweg Eisenach–Budapest, the Dichter-Musiker-Maler-Weg and the famous Malerweg (Painters' Way)
• Felsenburg Neurathen — a medieval rock fortress — is accessible via the Bastei Bridge and has its own self-guided tour

In 1853, Saxon court photographer Hermann Krone took the first landscape photographs ever made in Germany right here on the Bastei Bridge — a fitting tribute to a view that has never stopped inspiring people.