Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany — Towns & Travel Guide

What is Nordrhein-Westfalen known for?

Nordrhein-Westfalen is known as Germany's industrial heartland, a state built from two old regions, Nordrhein and Westfalen. The Rhine runs through it. Its cities crowd the Ruhr Valley, once the country's great coal-and-steel belt, while green country reaches out to the Teutoburg Forest.

Industry and forest share the same state. Two lands, one name.

Where is Nordrhein-Westfalen?

Nordrhein-Westfalen is a landlocked state threaded by the river Rhine, which cuts across it from one side to the other. The Rhine orders the map. Along and across the river spreads Nordrhein, the urbanised half of the state, while Westfalen makes up the broader, greener country beyond.

It is the fourth-largest of Germany's states by area, large enough to hold both a great industrial belt and open forest. River and region shape it. Two landscapes fill the state.

The Ruhr Valley forms a dense industrial expanse, a belt where cities crowd one against the next across the old coal-and-steel ground. Away from it, the Teutoburg Forest rises green and wooded, a stretch of hills and trees that stands in complete contrast to the Ruhr. The Rhine links the two, carrying traffic and trade through the heart of the state.

Industry on one hand, forest on the other.

What is Nordrhein-Westfalen like?

Nordrhein-Westfalen's culture carries the mark of two old regions joined under one name. History split it in two. Nordrhein and Westfalen were long independent of each other, and that older divide still shows in local identity, dialect and habit across the state.

The Ruhr Valley adds a strong industrial culture of its own, shaped by generations of coal and steel. German is the common language, spoken from the Rhine cities to the villages of the Teutoburg Forest. Two heritages under one roof.

What is the history of Nordrhein-Westfalen?

Nordrhein-Westfalen was created in 1946, joining two historically separate lands into a single state. The union is younger than its parts. Nordrhein and Westfalen had each stood on its own for centuries before they were brought together after the war under one government.

The Ruhr Valley had already grown into a coal-and-steel powerhouse that drew workers from across the country. That industry helped bind the new state. Two histories, one border.

What is the climate of Nordrhein-Westfalen?

Nordrhein-Westfalen has a temperate climate, mild and damp, softened by lowland air off the Rhine. The lie of the land keeps it gentle. The Rhine valley and the Ruhr basin see mild winters and warm summers, while the higher ground toward the Teutoburg Forest runs a little cooler and wetter.

Rain is frequent year-round. Grey, mild weather prevails.

How do you get to Nordrhein-Westfalen?

Nordrhein-Westfalen is one of the best-connected German states, laced with motorways and rail across its crowded chain of cities. Routes run everywhere here. The Ruhr Valley and the Rhine cities sit within a tight web of roads and trains, so moving between centres is quick and frequent.

Being landlocked, the state has no coast, though the river Rhine carries barge traffic through its middle. The Teutoburg Forest lies a short way beyond the cities. Getting around is easy.