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National Park Kellerwald-Edersee

A national park within a nature park

The Kellerwald-Edersee National Park is located in the middle of the Kellerwald-Edersee Nature Park.

© Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee

The Kellerwald-Edersee National Park protects one of the last large beech forest stands in Central Europe on an area of ​​7.688 hectares. The national park was founded in 2004 and expanded north of Lake Edersee in 2020. Since 2011, parts of the national park have been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Ancient Beech Forests and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe”.

The Kellerwald-Edersee National Park is an important partner for the nature park. Cooperations exist, among other things, in the areas of hiking trail management (see quality region) and educational work (joint calendar of events).

Organizationally and economically, the two parks should be viewed separately: National parks are state institutions and funding comes from the state.

© Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee
© Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee
© Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee

The differences

We are often confused - the names are very similar. Still, there are some big differences.

The National Park...

  • is an area to be protected according to Section 24 Paragraph 1 BNatSchG

  • is little or not influenced by people

  • enables a natural dynamic of nature and thus promotes the development of wilderness and biotope and species diversity

  • serves scientific environmental observation, natural history education and people's experience of nature

  • may only be entered if certain rules are adhered to (do not leave paths, keep dogs on a leash, etc.)

  • may not be used commercially, e.g. by agriculture and forestry

The nature park...

  • is an area for development and maintenance according to Section 27 Paragraph 1 BNatSchG

  • is shaped by people (residential areas, agriculture, etc.)

  • serves for recreation, natural history education and people's experience of nature

  • promotes species and biotope diversity and environmentally friendly land use

  • serves to preserve, develop or restore a diverse landscape

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