Nürburgring

The Nordschleife was built between 1925 and 1927 through the Eifel hills as a public works project, and at 20.8 kilometres with around seventy-three corners and three hundred metres of elevation change it is unlike any modern circuit; Jackie Stewart called it the Green Hell. Grand Prix racing left it after Niki Lauda's crash in 1976 and moved to a new shorter circuit built alongside. The Nordschleife now hosts endurance racing and, on published open days, Touristenfahrten, when anyone with a road-legal vehicle can buy a lap ticket and drive it under one-way public road rules.

What you actually see

• The Nordschleife - 20.8 kilometres and about seventy-three corners.
• The public laps - open sessions where anyone can drive their own car.
• The elevation - three hundred metres of climb and descent through the Eifel.
• The endurance races - the 24-hour race and long-distance series each year.

When to go

April to October for open sessions, which are published in a calendar and cancelled in rain or after incidents. Race weekends close the track to the public.

Honest expectations

Public sessions run under road rules: crashes are the driver's liability and repairs are charged. Sessions close constantly for incidents. Insurance rarely covers the track.

Nearby

The Eifel maars lie south; Cologne is north.