Follow Goethe's Footsteps Across Europe
The European Goethe Ways bring Goethe's multifaceted world of thought to life through itineraries that can be discovered by car, by bike or on foot — connecting the places and people that shaped his journeys across the continent.
The Association · By the Numbers
Organisations
Countries
Legacy carried toward
of the Council of Europe 2026
Our goal is to become a Cultural Route certified by the Council of Europe and to join the Cultural Routes programme. In doing so, we aim to make Goethe’s world of ideas accessible across national borders — just as his own thinking always was.
A Living Portrait of Goethe's Europe
Johann Wolfgang Goethe (1749–1832) was a poet, civil servant with a wide variety of duties, and a traveller who visited many countries — making his house in Weimar a meeting place for international guests.
Most of Goethe's life took place in Central Europe. He often travelled between Frankfurt and Weimar, where he was born and where he died. Political commitments took him as far west as Luxembourg and Lorraine, and as far east as Poland. As a nature lover, he travelled the mountain heights from the Harz to the Alps — though his special love belonged to Italy, where he spent almost two years of his life.
Read Our Full Story
News & Announcements
15th Annual Advisory Forum on the Cultural Routes in Yerevan, Armenia
15th Annual Advisory Forum on the Cultural Routes in Yerevan, Armenia
It was co-organised by the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) and the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of the Republic of Armenia, in partnership with the European Institute of Cultural Routes, the Tourism Committee of the Republic of Armenia, and the Foundation for the Development of Culture, with the support of the Municipality of Yerevan.
During the Forum, several important meetings of stakeholders of the Cultural Routes programme were held, including an informal meeting of members of the Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement; a meeting of the 52 certified Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, a meeting of the University Network for Cultural Routes Studies and of independent experts.
The programme featured a series of general sessions and interactive breakout sessions where participants were invited to share their own experience. There was also a certification ceremony for the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe that have received certification in 2026 and awards recognising inspiring practices of Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.
As part of this event, the official candidate routes for the 2026–2027 Evaluation Circle—which includes the European Goethe Ways—were also presented. Françoise Tondre, vice president of the association, and Daniela Stefanie Hauf, managing director of the route, attended the event on behalf of the European Goethe Ways and presented the route.
Upcoming Events
Permanent exhibition about Goethe and Switzerland
The Sasso SanGottardo museum features the first and only permanent exhibition in Switzerland dedicated to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and his three historic journeys through the Gotthard Pass.
Exhibition “On the first day of my stay…”
The Greater Region in travel writing from the early Enlightenment to the Vormärz.
Until the first decades of the 19th century, accounts and depictions of travel experiences and observations were a literary form as popular as it was widespread. Poised between scientific and literary, subjective and socially critical aims, the genre embraces a wide range of forms (such as the report, the diary, the letter, the collection of letters or the autobiography).
Travel accounts also differ widely in how they perceive the familiar and the foreign, in their claims to authenticity, in the author’s style and powers of observation, and in how far what they depict is fictionalised. In the end, only the journey itself — a phenomenon outside the text — allows them to be defined formally as a literary genre.
Downloads
Key documents of the association — from the route flyer in six languages to the statutes and the membership application. Choose a language to download.
Statutes
Satzung — adopted 14 June 2025
German, English and French side by side in one document
Membership Fee Regulations
Beitragsordnung — in force from 1 January 2026
German, English and French side by side in one document
Obligations and Advantages
Rights and duties of member organisations
German, English and French side by side in one document
Application for Membership
Aufnahmeantrag — includes direct debit authorisation
German, English and French side by side in one document
Entry in the Register of Associations
Amtsgericht Weimar — VR 131551 — 18 September 2024
Recognition of Charitable Status
Anerkennung der Gemeinnützigkeit — Finanzamt Jena, § 60a AO
European Goethe Ways — Route Flyer
Association flyer with the illustrated member map
PDF · choose a language
Member Area
A protected space for the members of the European Goethe Ways — internal documents, working materials and announcements from the Board of Directors, in one place.
- Documents
- Downloads
- Announcements
Contact Us
Questions about the association, the routes or membership? Write to us — we look forward to hearing from you.
Cooperation Partners
Alongside its member organisations, the association works with companies and institutions that support the European Goethe Ways in their own field — from cultural production to publishing and tourism.
Sponsors
Public bodies and institutions supporting the work of the European Goethe Ways.
