Externsteine Travel Guide

Now, the most interesting time to visit the Externsteine is on April 30. (Walpurgis) and June 21 (Summersolstice). You´ll find all sorts of people there, from Rainbow-hippies over Celts and Vikings to Gothics and Metallfreaks. Normal partyfolk as well of course. The amount varies from 500 to 3500 people. If you´ve never drunk mead (honeywine), this is the best oportunity!

It offers space for family and buisness meetings (50-200 people), Fastfood (100 people) and a "beer-garden" for 200 people. The parkinglot can hold aprox 1000 cars, and also has a seperate big busparkingspace.
You don´t have to make an apointment, exept for the family/buisness meetings...
The food is normal, but the exclusiv place rises the price.

Favorite Dish: hm... Nothing, I don´t eat there. On summersolstice I might buy some mead there.

There are trains to Horn - Bad Meinberg, but from the trainstation its aprox. 6-7 km to the Externsteine. There is a bus that drives there, but I have never used it, so I cannott give adequate info here.
But If you go there for those freak-festivals, hitchhiking is defenitely a good option, you will find lots of people going there, coming from Paderborn or Hameln on the B1.
Cab, car, caravan or a bicycle is another option of course

Now, just a warning to those, who intend staying there for a while, or outside of the freak-party-season (walpurgis / summersolstice).
If you get caught by the authorities, you´ll have to pay 35 euros for camping in a nature preservative, and if you have a fire running, it´s another 35 euros. If the forester has found your luggage unacompanied in the woods, he´ll take it to his cottage, and store it there until the next workday, and take it to the lost and found in Horn, so you might have to wait 3 day´s until you can claim your luggage, and the fine will have risen of course. Not to forget, if you dont have a car, you´ll have to walk back into the village, and find the lost and found. Your tent might also be damaged by the forester, while he drags your stuff through the woods.
So be aware, that camping in this nature preservative is forbidden !!! (exept during those freak-activities twice a year)

Luggage and bags: Dont forget a small rucksack, for going shoping in town, makes life easier!

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: It aint swampy, but it can rain. It has two lakes, so a bathingsuit can come handy, but a lot of people bath naked.

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Toiletpaper! The public toilets close at 17:00 o clock. And a shovel might come in handy.

Camping/Beach/Outdoor Gear: EVERYTHING NEEDED HERE!!!
Tents or plasticsheets, ropes, shovels, bathingsuit, FLASHLIGHTS, Binbags for the rubish, bateries, mosquito repellant, firstaidkit, tools, ect...

Miscellaneous: Josticks, jugglingballs or similar things of artistic value, drums.... there´ll be lots of drums! or just any other instrument,

Favorite thing: Just climb up the stairs on the rocks, to get to the platform on top. The right rock has a marvelous view, and the midle rock, has the "Summersolstice"-Celtic-Altar-Calendar. Price: aprox. 1 euro till 6 PM, then the Altar-rock gets locked, but the viewing platform can be entered for free then. There are a dozen secret mystic Places in the woods, but I can´t explain how to get there, and some people might not want me to do so anyway... *g*

Fondest memory: Walpurgis 1999. Lots of fire juggling, firespitting, singing, and the Rocks were iluminated by candles in the night... Very romantic and mystic. Had a sweat lodge in the woods, and we were finished at the break of dawn. *sigh*