The Lusatian erratic boulder park Nochten in Boxberg in eastern Saxony reopens on Saturday (March 15) for the first time after the winter break. As announced at the start of the new season, the sponsoring association hopes to attract more visitors over the next three years by cooperating with a Polish partner in the Hirschberg Valley. Joint events and marketing campaigns are planned to motivate guests to travel across borders.
The rock garden, which claims to be the only one of its kind in Europe, was created with around 7,000 boulders not far from the Nochten open-cast mine. Around 65,000 people visited the site in 2024, around 2,000 more than in the previous year. "There is an upward trend again," said association chairman Peter Scholze. Around 15,000 guests alone were counted over just three days at the beginning of November last year, when thousands of Herrnhut stars lit up the 20-hectare site.
Crocuses, snowdrops, Christmas roses, witch hazel and winter heather are currently blooming in the boulder park, which opened in 2003. A three-kilometre circular trail within sight of the Boxberg power station connects seven themed gardens, including the rock garden, heather moor and pond garden.
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