The Bilzweg stretches for ten kilometres and takes around three hours to walk. It covers an elevation gain of 287 metres and is marked throughout with green-striped ‘Bilzweg’ signs. What sets this trail apart is its great variety of scenery: it leads through woods, past tranquil ponds, through the deeply incised Lößnitz Valley and up to the Lößnitz vineyards with their sweeping views across the Elbe Valley.
The starting and finishing point of the circular walk is Eduard-Bilz-Platz in Oberlößnitz. This beautifully landscaped square, inaugurated by the Bilzbund in 2002 and redesigned in 2017, features a water feature and a drinking fountain, and marks the junction of Eduard-Bilz-Straße and Augustusweg. From here, the route first heads towards Hoflößnitz – the former electoral vineyard and now the Museum of Saxon Wine History.
From here, the route initially follows Eduard-Bilz-Straße, passing the former Bilz Natural Health Centre (house numbers 53–57), which Bilz expanded from 1890 onwards to become one of the largest natural health centres of its kind. Via Weinbergstraße, you reach the Bennoschlößchen, the oldest surviving manor house in the Lößnitz region, dating from 1570. The route continues through the vineyards – past historic winegrowers’ houses from the 17th century – and via Weberstraße and Eggersweg you reach the Spitzhaus.
The Spitzhaus is one of the tour’s scenic highlights. The view of the Elbe Valley from here is breathtaking – the valley lies at your feet, with the vineyards cascading down in terraces. Right next to it stands the Bismarck Tower, from whose plateau the view is also well worth seeing. Via the legendary Spitzhaus Staircase, with its many steps, you descend back into the valley and continue on to Hoflößnitz, the mountain and pleasure house that Elector Johann Georg I had built from 1649 onwards. Here, the winery invites you to take a break with a glass of Saxon wine. The route leads into the Lößnitzgrund via Weinbergstraße and Lößnitzgrundstraße.
Here, the route is accompanied by the Lößnitzgrundbahn, the famous narrow-gauge railway that has been chugging through the valley since 1884 and is affectionately known by locals as the ‘Lößnitz Dachshund’. At the ‘Hoher Stein’ quarry, the path turns westwards, up to the Jagdweg and on along ‘Am Spittelholz’ to the Buchholzweg. This wooded section offers a chance to experience nature at its best. At Buchholzweg, the route turns northwards to Meiereiweg. This is where the Bilzbad is located. In the former gatekeeper’s cottage, the Bilzbund has put together a small collection dedicated to Eduard Bilz. This can be viewed on request. Via Meiereiweg, the path leads back into the Lößnitzgrund, past small ponds and always alongside the Lößnitzbach. From Lößnitzgrundstraße, the path turns further east. Via Unterer Langenwiesenweg, you reach the historic village green of Altwahnsdorf. Children will love the idyllic playground here. Thirsty walkers can enjoy a glass of Radebeul wine at the ZiegenWein wine tavern, which also offers delicious cheese products. Via the Graue Presse Weg and the Straken, you’ll return to the starting point at Eduard Bilz-Platz.
On-site information
QR codes on the signposts provide information at various points along the route about the eventful life and work of the naturopath and health reformer
They recount his early days in the general store, his friendship with Karl May – with whom Bilz shares his final resting place in the Radebeul-Ost cemetery – and the bold utopia of his science fiction novel *In a Hundred Years*, in which he outlined his vision of a ‘natural state’. The Bilzweg brings this multifaceted history to life on site – as an invitation to discover the principles of a natural way of life for yourself.
Friedrich Eduard Bilz
Friedrich Eduard Bilz, born on 12 June 1842 in Arnsdorf, came to the key realisation – through his own struggle to overcome serious health crises – that a consistently healthy lifestyle not only alleviates illness but actively prevents it. As a young weaver’s apprentice, he suffered from the appalling working conditions of the industrial era – 14 hours a day in enclosed spaces, coupled with artificial lighting and a lack of exercise – which led to stomach cramps and a serious lung condition. These experiences shaped his life and led him to become a self-taught practitioner of naturopathy.
His magnum opus, *Das neue Naturheilverfahren* (The New Natural Healing Method), affectionately known as the ‘Bilz Book’, became a bestseller. The encyclopaedia, with its simple, vivid explanations of medical matters, sold in the millions – by 1938, around 3.5 million copies had been published in twelve languages. Using the substantial proceeds, Bilz established a light and air spa in Radebeul from 1905 onwards, a public health centre intended to be accessible to the general public. The facility initially comprised 50 air-bath chambers, several water basins and, later, one of Germany’s first wave machines – an Undosa wave machine presented at the International Hygiene Exhibition in Dresden in 1911, which Bilz purchased immediately and had installed in 1912. This wave machine, the oldest of its kind still in operation, is now a technical monument and remains in use to this day. In addition, he developed and produced ‘reform foods’ such as Bilz nutritional salt, nutritional salt cocoa and malt coffee, as well as the non-alcoholic Bilz Brause, which was created in collaboration with the drinks specialist Franz Hartmann and is now known worldwide under the name Sinalco.
Things to see and experience
- Information boards about Eduard Bilz with QR codes
- Albrechtshöhe viewpoint
- Bismarck Tower viewpoint
- Spitzhaus & Spitzhaus Stairs (with audio guide & viewpoint)
- Hoflößnitz Wine Museum (with a playground, display garden for vineyard plants, a stop on the Bee Trail and audio guides)
- Wine taverns & wineries
- Bilz Baths
- Bilz Museum
Navigation & Tracking
