Altena Castle

Altena Castle sits on a steep rocky spur of the Klusenberg ridge high above the Lenne river, making it one of the best-preserved hilltop castles in the Sauerland region. Founded around 1100 as the ancestral seat of the Counts of the Mark, it served for centuries as the administrative center of the County of Mark. The castle gained a unique footnote in modern travel history when Richard Schirrmann established the world's first permanent youth hostel here in 1914, a milestone that launched the global youth hostel movement. Today the restored castle houses a regional museum covering the history of the County of Mark, alongside a working youth hostel that continues Schirrmann's legacy. The forested trail up from the Lenne valley rewards visitors with open views across the rolling Märkisches Sauerland.