For hundreds of years people have gone hiking and on pilgrimages to restore vitality and for the need of recreation, to find themselves and to be nearer to God. The St. Boniface route, a new hiking and pilgrimage path, has been in existence since the summer of 2004. It follows the tracks of the funeral procession which, with great interest of the population, brought the body of the missionary and church reformer from Mainz to its final resting place in Fulda in the year 754. Following the example of classic pilgrimage routes, this 180 km. route combines being on the move and pausing in between, hiking and communing with nature, and the evidence of a cultural landscape which has grown over hundreds of years.

The beginning and the end of the route are in the two old, significant bishops’ seats of Mainz and Fulda with their magnificent church buildings. Along the way the track blends the most varied cultural panorama. It begins at the Leichhof in Mainz, an idyllic square at the foot of the enormous cathedral. After crossing the Rhein the track runs through the sunny Rheingau vineyards in the Rhein-Main regional park. Passing through fields and allotments the path reaches the western and northern areas of Frankfurt, which are still characterized by timber-framed houses today. Here, within easy reach of the banking metropolis, striking views await the hiker time and again. On one side the Taunus mountain range with its dark forests rises up from the plains of the river Main, and on the other side there is the skyline of the pulsating city with its impressive skyscrapers. The route through the Wetterau – the bread-basket of Hessen – is marked by vast areas of farmland and fruit-treed fields.

The tops of the mountains along the hiking trail in the Vogelsberg mountains testify to a former volcanic activity. The Fulda countryside charms one with its neat villages of lovingly restored timber-framed houses. The St. Boniface route ends at the baroque cathedral in Fulda.

The trail markers on the route appear as small signs with the logo of the registered St.Boniface Route Association. At especially interesting places additional information plaques point out further attractions. The route is suitable for all hikers, alone or in groups, who will be satisfied by hospitable propriertors and their culinary specialities of the region. The pass of the St. Boniface Association will gladly be stamped with different motifs in churches, restaurants, accommodations and shops and this reminds the hiker and pilgrim at the end of the journey, and for a long time to come, of the fact that the St. Boniface route is more than the sum of individual impressions.