In September, we decided to take a wellness vacation at the Hotel Zugbrücke in Grenzau. The small town of Grenzau lies at the upper end of the Brexbach valley. The Freiraum Kletterwald Sayn is at the very bottom end of the valley. So we took the opportunity to go climbing and hiking. The Freiraum Kletterwald Sayn is located at the very bottom of the valley. So we took the opportunity for a climbing session and a hike.
Brexbachtal is also home to one of the largest scout campsites in Germany with almost 10,000 overnight guests per year. There are 27 camp meadows of different sizes with permanent fireplaces and three permanent houses for groups of 10-25 people. I’m guessing that the climbing park is extremely busy during the summer vacations as a result.
View over the Brexbach valley to the Rhine plain
The Sayn climbing forest is operated by the Freiraum Group, which also runs the climbing forests in Hennef, Freischütz and the volcano park. You can book three or five hours of climbing. There is also a special package for children’s birthday parties. If you wish, you can reserve a table in the picnic area for accompanying persons.
General information about the Sayn climbing forest
The climbing park is located in the middle of the forest, so you will have to walk a few hundred meters to the park after arriving by car. But that shouldn’t be a problem for anyone who wants to climb. Important: You must reserve your places online before you arrive. You can pay on site in cash, by EC card or credit card. You can get a locker key for a €5 deposit.
After paying and stowing our rucksack, we went to the briefing. The staff were very friendly and didn’t let a few particularly grumpy children put them off their stride. The help with putting on the safety harness and the explanation of the Smart-Belay safety system was professional. As only one carabiner can be open at a time with this modern belay system, it is practically impossible to accidentally completely unhook the safety ropes.
The most important techniques were explained and demonstrated on a short training course. Everyone can then explore the climbing forest on their own. The respective access requirements in terms of age, height and required grip height are well described, as is the level of difficulty on each course. The guides are constantly on the move in the park and ensure that the rules are adhered to. During our visit, one group disregarded the traffic lights at the zip line on the Canyon Express despite being instructed and clearly labeled. The climbing was then over for them.
Opening hours 2025
Source: Freiraum Kletterwald Sayn
The courses of the Sayn climbing forest
The climbing forest offers courses for all ages and levels of difficulty. For the very little ones, there is the Takka-Tukka-Land with the toddler course. Children from 1m tall can climb here with a simple harness. Some of the beginner courses are also suitable for children from the age of six. However, the minimum handle height of the children must be 1.60 m and you must be able to cope with the Smart-Belay system. There are a total of 5 beginner courses with a maximum height of 5m:
Hunsrück (very easy, 1m height)
Eifel (very easy, 1m height)
Ardennes (easy, 3m height)
Ore Mountains (very easy, 3-4m height)
Fichtelgebirge (very easy, 3-4m height)
The ascent courses with heights of up to 10 meters are divided as follows:
Pyrenees (medium, 3-5m altitude)
Alps (medium, 4-6m height)
Borneo (easy, 3-10m height)
If that’s not enough, you can test and overcome your limits on the high-flyer course:
Kilimanjaro (medium difficulty, 4-11m height)
Rocky Mountains (heavy 3-15m height)
Andes (very heavy, 4-12m height)
Himalayas (extremely difficult, 7-20m height)
As special courses, the Sayn climbing forest offers the Canyon Express (medium, 6-15m height) and Eiger Express (medium, 6-18m height) routes with their long rope slides.
There is also the Zweigebirge partner course (medium height 10m) with special obstacles.
These can only be mastered through teamwork.
Conclusion on the Sayn climbing park
If you need a break, you can relax at the picnic area and watch the others climbing with a cool drink and a snack.
There is a kiosk but self-catering is also permitted.
We climbed a total of six routes and had a lot of fun.
We were particularly impressed by the variety of stations: Floating bridges, wobbly nets, rope slides and balance elements provided plenty of variety.
The adrenaline rush was guaranteed as we tried our hand at the higher courses – with fantastic views as a reward.
We didn’t notice anything negative during our entire stay and we can recommend the Sayn climbing forest without reservation.
If you are looking for more adventures, take a look at our adventure search.
Video of the Sayn climbing forest near Bendorf / Neuwied
