In the National Park:
Ban of bivouacking from 20.05. until 06/15/2022:
From 20.05. to June 15th, 2022, it is temporarily forbidden to spend the night outdoors in the Saxon Switzerland National Park. In the future, to protect endangered animal species and their offspring, it will be forbidden every year during the breeding and settling season, from 01.02. until 15.06. to spend the night in the Saxon Switzerland National Park.
The effectiveness of this measure will be reviewed by 2025. Measures that will be necessary in the long term are then discussed together with mountain sports, nature conservation and tourism associations.
After 15.06. the rules below for free overnight stays apply:
In the National Park it is forbidden to sleep outdoors in the open.
As an exception, and in respect of the tradition of Saxon climbing, it is possible to spend the night outdoors in 58 marked bivouacs only, if this is done in connection with rock climbing activites. All official bivouacs are marked as such. They are located outside the core zone.
The number of nature lovers, who visit the area to bivouac, continues to rise. With this number the strain on the area can increase too. Therefore, the behavior of each individual is crucial as to whether that exception in the National Park can continue to exist in such manner. Spending the night at other than the official sites can not be admitted and will be prosecuted. It is forbidden to light fires. The careful use of camping stoves and candlelights are accepted.
Try to leave the place in the same way you found it, or in even better condition (e.g. also take others’ garbage). In that way the visitors after you can have the impression to be the first in this location. We wish you an intense and unforgettable experience!
A list of approved bivouacs was published in the Saxon State Ministry for Environment and Agriculture publication on the management and development plan for the Saxon Switzerland National Park / part mountain sports concept, section bivouacking, on 12 August 2002 (in German).
For downloads you can access:
BS-Konz Boofen _Karte (overview map)
BS-Konz Boofen _Bekanntmachung (related provisions in German)
In the Saxon Switzerland Conservation Area:
Spending the nights outdoors is generally permitted in the Conservation Area but tents are banned.
There are exceptions, however, in nature reserves, such as the NSG Pfaffenstein. Here both tents and bivouacking are prohibited.
