Malerweg

DELive

117
km: 8
stages: +4 098
m ascent: −4 139
m descent

Stages, times and the profile follow the direction you pick.

Difficulty

Moderate

avg +512 m/day · 14.6 km/day · 33 km without an overnight · hardest day +782 m

Derived from distance and ascent, not terrain grade — not a SAC or T-scale rating.

The Malerweg — the Painters' Way — follows the routes that 18th- and 19th-century painters took through the sandstone of Saxon Switzerland. From Liebethal it runs down the Uttewalder Grund to the Elbe at Stadt Wehlen, climbs to the Bastei and goes through the Wolfsschlucht to Hohnstein. It crosses the Brand viewpoint, the Schrammsteine and the Großer Winterberg on the right bank, comes down to the Elbe at Schmilka and crosses by ferry. On the left bank it climbs the table mountains — Papststein, Pfaffenstein — passes below the Königstein fortress and the Rauenstein and ends in Pirna. Eight short days with nights in the villages; the waymark is a black M on a white ground.

Plan this trail

Your own day-by-day draft. The stages below are the trail's published ones; your plan is set by the days you have.

Overnight network: moderate

33km

Longest stretch with no mapped overnight

km 2–35

80 overnight places · 4 potable water
61 caves · 13 lean-tos · 2 bivouac boxes · +4 other
+10 more within 2 km off route

No mapped overnight here — carry water and food through.

View on map →

Statistics

561
m highest: 110
m lowest: +4 098
m ascent: −4 139
m descent: 14.6
km/day: 8
stages

Hardest stage Neumannmühle → Schmilka +782 m

Stages

Classic 8-stage division of the Malerweg (Liebethal → Pirna, OSM relation 114289) on the 2026-10-24 line; village nights, km from OSM place nodes; owner A 2026-10-24 · updated 2026-10-24

Good to know

Route: Liebethal (Pirna) → Pirna
Season: April–October
Daylight: 13 h 45 mid-April · 10 h 35 mid-October
Waymarking: Black M on a white ground
Managed by: Tourismusverband Sächsische Schweiz

Overnight rules: in the Saxon Switzerland National Park sleeping out and tents are not allowed. The only exception is the marked Boofen (rock overhangs) — for climbers only, and not from 1 February to 15 June. Outside the park, wild camping is not allowed either. Nights are in the villages: guesthouses, private rooms and campsites — book ahead in summer. Check the park's current rules.
Fire: open fire and smoking are banned in the park's forests — the 2022 fires burned large parts of the right bank.
Ladders and steps: the Wolfsschlucht and the Gohrisch have iron ladders and narrow steps; there are ways round both.
The Elbe is crossed by ferry at Schmilka; ferries also link Stadt Wehlen and Königstein with the S-Bahn on the other bank. Check their hours, especially in winter and at high water.
Getting there: the S1 S-Bahn runs Dresden – Pirna – Stadt Wehlen – Königstein – Bad Schandau – Schmilka-Hirschmühle, so every stage end is within reach of a train. Buses run from Pirna to Liebethal; the Kirnitzschtal tram runs from Bad Schandau towards the Neumannmühle.

Route & elevation: OSM relation 114289 (Malerweg, Liebethal → Pirna) + Copernicus GLO-30, 2026-10-24 · imported 2026-10-24

Elevation figures · full-res GPX, 10 m threshold

Plan your nights on Malerweg.

The planner lays out your days by where the roofs on the trail are, and shows where you need another option.

Plan this trail →