The elbe cycle route

This guide describes the Elbe Cycle route which runs from the river's source in the Krkonose mountains on the Czech/Polish border to Cuxhaven, on the German North Sea coast. Possibly the easiest long-distance cycle route in Europe in terms of gradient, it visits a part of the continent that was mostly inaccessible to foreigners before the fall of Communism in 1989 and which has changed dramatically since opening up to visitors.
On its gentle descent to the sea, the route passes through many small towns that were ignored during the Communist period but have now reemerged as medieval gems, as well as larger cities such as Prague, Dresden and Magdeburg which have been rebuilt and restored since the fall of the Iron Curtain.