Fichtelberg Schwebebahn
Aerial Cable Car
Kurort Oberwiesenthal, Germany
ABOVE: On the ride up, you can see the
Talstation (valley station) and Kurort Oberwiesenthal, the highest-elevation
town in Germany. INSET BELOW: A Schwebebahn car awaits passengers.
by Durant Imboden
 Germany's
oldest cable car is thoroughly modern: The Fichtelberg Schwebebahn, which
entered service in 1924, has been updated repeatedly over the years, and the
current cars take just 3½ minutes to whisk tourists
or skiers from the valley station in Kurort Oberwiesenthal to the summit of the
Fichtelberg. (The difference in elevation is 303 meters, or 994 feet, and total
travel distance is 1.175 km or about three-quarters of a mile).
The Fichtelberg Schwebahn is one of
several lifts on the Fichtelberg and its neighboring mountain. It provides
access to winter ski trails and summer hiking paths, but you can purchase a
roundtrip ticket if you simply want to ride the cable car and enjoy the view.
For
more information, including a timetable and prices, visit
www.fichtelberg-ski.de. (The site is
in German only, but the operating hours and Tarife, or prices, are easy
to decipher.)
Tip:
Combine a ride on the Fichtelberg Schwebebahn with a trip on the
Fichtelbergbahn Steam Railway, which connects
the resort of Kurort Oberwiesenthal with Cranzahl. (It's worth noting that
Oberwiesenthal is the highest town in Germany, with an elevation of 893 meters
or 2,930 feet above sea level.)
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