About HAM to Heide Park & Heath
The Lüneburg Heath is a wide landscape of heather, juniper and pine forest between Hamburg and Hanover, much of it protected as a nature park. Heide Park Resort in Soltau is one of Germany's largest theme parks, with roller coasters, themed areas and its own hotel and holiday camp.
Straight down the A7
From the terminals in Fuhlsbüttel, your driver joins the A7, passes through the Elbe tunnel and follows the motorway south past Harburg towards Hanover. If the tunnel is congested, the A1 over the Elbe bridges to the Maschen junction and on to the A7 is the alternative. The distance to Soltau is roughly 95 to 105 km. Without delays the drive takes 70 to 90 minutes; on summer Saturdays with holiday traffic, two hours are possible.
Arriving at Heide Park Resort
The resort is signposted from the A7 exit Soltau-Ost. Your driver brings you to the entrance area, so you do not need a parking ticket for the large car parks. Guests staying overnight can be dropped at the Adventure Hotel or the Holiday Camp, both on the resort grounds.
The park usually opens in spring and closes in early November, with Halloween events in October. Opening days and hours vary, so check the calendar on the official Heide Park website ↗ before you set your pickup time for the return trip.
Soltau: town, outlet and holiday homes
Not everyone heading for Soltau is going to the theme park. The town has a pedestrianised centre, a designer outlet near the motorway and many holiday homes in the surrounding villages. Rural addresses often have long farm driveways or several houses sharing one number, so add a note such as the name of the farm. Your driver then finds the right gate without a phone call. The same applies to the return ride to the airport: describe the pickup spot at the holiday home as precisely as on the way in.
Into the heath: Wilsede, Undeloh, Niederhaverbeck
The heart of the heath around Wilsede is closed to cars. The village and the Totengrund valley can only be reached on foot, by bike or by horse-drawn carriage. Your transfer therefore goes to one of the edge villages, typically Undeloh or Niederhaverbeck, where guesthouses, car parks and carriage stops are. Enter the address of your accommodation, not "Wilsede", so you are not dropped at a car park with your luggage.
When the heath gets busy
- Heather bloom – usually from August into early September; weekends then bring heavy traffic in the villages and on the roads off the A7.
- Summer holidays – the A7 between Hamburg and Hanover is one of Germany's busiest holiday routes, especially on Saturdays.
- Halloween weekends – evening opening at Heide Park means queues at the Soltau-Ost exit around closing time.
Checklist for families and groups
- Select child seats when booking; the page on child seats explains the options.
- Choose a minivan for a family with a pram and cases, or a minibus for a school or club trip of up to twelve.
- Book the return ride with a pickup time after the park closes, plus some time for the walk to the exit.
- Read the tips on family transfers if you are travelling with small children.
Combining the heath with a town visit? Lüneburg is a good stop on the way, and other far destinations are listed under long-distance transfers.
