A few days free near Dortmund

Have you been on the Wuppertal Schwebebahn yet? Unique.

I suggest to visit the UNESCO sight "Zeche Zollverein" in Essen ( Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex).

https://www.zollverein.de/zollverein-unesco-world-heritage-site/

Munster would be worth it on the "farther away" list. Besides the middle ages, Munster is noted for its art museum and a huge amount of outdoor sculpture.

Note that Düsseldorf is nice, if not quite as nice as Cologne. Check if the monthly "Fish Market" (riverside food/beer fair, not a fish market) might be your weekend in Düsseldorf. In my opinion, Cologne cannot be fully seen in two days. Do not make the mistake of thinking that the Dom is the only big attraction there.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/germany/can-i-see-enough-of-cologne

It is the other way, but if there are busses from Düsseldorf, Monschau has considerable touristy charm.

If you rather stay in a smaller place other than a big city as is Dortmund but not too far from it, then I heartily suggest Soest/Westf., the oldest town in Westphalia.

Given the two prefer Düsseldorf over Dortmund, generally. . Comparing Dortmund with Düsseldorf is like chalk and cheese. I know Düsseldorf much better that Dortmund as it is a train junction point day and night. Lots of interesting towns and sites here in the lower Rhine area.

Forget the towns of Hagen and Hamm. I went to Hamm once about 10 years ago, not really worth it at all, unless you want to see more examples of that ugly post-war architecture of the early 1960s which can be seen in numerous western German cities.

If you look 3h by train to the north, Pappenberg is an interesting, ship building town with a charming city center full of canals, bridges, flowers and brick buildings. It is very close to the Netherlands.

If you look south of your area I really liked Marburg when we visited this summer.

Then there’s Aachen 1.5 to the west of Düsseldorf, with it’s famous cathedral and bust of Charlemagne.

Maybe with knowing about the size of the town/small city you’d like to spend a couple of days in and any special interests you have I could find something more to your likening. We’ve been to a lot of places in this region over the years.

I second Wuppertal! My husband and I spent a lovely day there last fall. The Schwebebahn “flying train” is something very special and the town has even more to offer. We took the flying train the full length and back again. We stopped at the zoo, explored some leafy residential areas with art nouveau architecture and walked through the town pedestrian shopping area to the Von der Heydt Museum.

"I think I'd prefer to make the most of seeing that region over trying to skip to another major city"

If you want to do this in the greater Dortmund area accessible by the U-Bahn from Dortmund Hbf, to the outlying districts then transferring to buses to the suburbs, , ie way out there, I would recommend Dortmund-Hohensyburg, good hiking area aside with a decent panoramic view. It was lovelier, more scenic in 1987 , my first time there than in 2007, my last time because of buildings spouting up in a formerly rural area,

If you're looking ( historically ) for German military memorials, these soldier remembrance plaques of WW1, they can be seen there too, usually in wooded areas on stone walls. Get out to these rural, rustic areas, Unna, Schwerte, Reichsmark, etc you'll get a different feel.

Thank you for all of these great replies and recommendations. Because this was tied in with a work trip, it made it really hard, in the end, to make most of these ideas feasible but they're still great.

A few notes of what I did see: I passed through Wuppertal on the regional train and saw their suspended train over the river. That was incredible and I'd go back to see more of it.

Neheim and Arnsberg were really charming towns with lots to see around them. I stayed at the Dorint in Neheim. It's a business hotel, but there's a very charming old lodge and inn next door called Rodelhaus which serves traditional and very good food. Spargel was in season.

The area is a bit of a recreational destination. There's hiking around Neheim and old ruins situated within the Arnsberg Forest, and the towns are part of an east/ west biking trail that extends through the Saarland. There's a lake to the north, and I was told people visit the area around the Dorint hotel for sledding in the winter. There are also several caves with tours nearby, and breweries like Veltins and Grevensteiner offer tours.

From Arnsberg, I took the regional Saarland train east to Kassel to connect to an ICE to Frankfurt. A day in Frankfurt turned out to be more feasible for me before my flight. That said, if I'd had another week, I think I could have easily used it up throughout this region. Cologne was great to visit and it seems like a great jumping off point to many other cities and towns in Westphalia.

Thank you all for the great recommendations.

Hi,

Thanks for the information on Arnsberg and Nelheim.

Did you have a chance to see the Moehne See and its dams? You weren't that far from the oldest town in Westphalia, the town of Soest. I've been in Westphalia numerous times but more to the northeast from Nelheim. It's all a lovely area.

I saw pictures of the dam. I almost went to Soest but just didn't have time. I'm glad you brought that up because the locals did recommend it and it sounds like it's a must in that area.

@ pmuller.....I would agree with the recommendation for visiting the Moehne See and its dams. Next to Soest the place is worth your time. Two other places I would recommend on your next trip there are Münster and Warendorf. Since Osnabrück is ca. one hour from Münster, you can get there too easily by train. I went to Münster and Osnabrück my first trip to Germany. Soest was several years later. Warendorf has a major history museum if you're into that too.