Völklingen Ironworks

The works produced pig iron from 1873 until the blast furnaces were shut down in 1986, and instead of being demolished the whole plant was left standing with its machinery in place. In 1994 it became the first industrial monument of the era to enter the UNESCO World Heritage list, cited as the only complete surviving example of an integrated ironworks from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Visitors walk the ore shed, the sintering plant, the blowing engine house and up onto the furnace platform at about twenty-seven metres. Parts have been left to vegetation as a Paradise garden growing through the structures, and large exhibitions use the halls.

What you actually see

• The complete plant - furnaces, sheds and machinery left in place since 1986.
• The furnace platform - a walkway at about twenty-seven metres.
• The blowing engine house - a hall of vast gas engines still in position.
• The Paradise - industrial ground reclaimed by vegetation.

When to go

April to October for the outdoor routes; the site is open year-round with shorter winter hours and some walkways close in ice or storm. Exhibitions run in the halls.

Honest expectations

The site is very large with much walking, stairs and open metal walkways. High routes close in bad weather. It is industrial and grimy by nature.

Nearby

Saarbrücken lies east; the Saar Loop is northwest.