I would like to go from Dresden to Saxon Switzerland National Park without a car.

The walk up to the Bastei has a big change in elevation and would be absolutely exhausting unless you're very energetic. A more leisurely idea is to get the bus from Pirna railway station (the second stop down on the timetable, ZOB/Bahnhof) to the Bastei. Yes, the Bastei is in the park and there are various walks starting from it.

If you're seriously into exploring the park, I would get a detailed map of it once you get to Dresden.

You take the S-Bahn (S2) to Pirna and a bus (#237) from there to the Bastei. You can find schedules in Enlgish on the Verkehrsverbund Oberelbe (VVO) website. It's a price level 3 ticket for 6,50€.

Thank you so much for your replies. Very helpful!

I guess the Bastei is interesting, but I found the Königstein fortress on the other side of the river far more impressive.

How would we get to the Fortress I saw it in a picture online. It is huge.

I found this in my notes from last night. I think I was looking the park up online. It said to take the S-Bahn and exit at Konigstein (Sachs Schw Station 9-1 line possibly. I also wrote down to exit at Bad Schandau, go to the Tourist information and that there is a tram to Kirnitizsch Valley, Bad Schandau to waterfall of Lichtenhain with stops along the way to pubs and inns. This is supposed to be the way to get to the Koningstein Fortress. Does any of this make sense to anyone?

Bad Schandau's a long way from Koenigstein. I think you have two different destinations there - the Kirnitzschtalbahn is a completely separate attraction.

Because the OP only says "without a car", and does not say "for cheap", I would add that you can get there on the river day-boat, which is charming and has several interesting stops. I think the boats in the direction of Saxon Switzerland don't stop at the Porcelain factory area. Was there several years ago, took the one "replica steam-powered" ship. That's a little "hotter" on a hot day!

It said to take the S-Bahn and exit at Konigstein (Sachs Schw Station
9-1 line possibly. I also wrote down to exit at Bad Schandau, go to
the Tourist information and that there is a tram to Kirnitizsch
Valley, Bad Schandau to waterfall of Lichtenhain with stops along the
way to pubs and inns. This is supposed to be the way to get to the
Koningstein Fortress. Does any of this make sense to anyone?

No. Königstein, Bad Schandau and the Bastei are several kilometres away from each other. If you exit at Königstein you visit Königstein Fortress. Either you walk up to the fortress, which takes a while, or you take one of those tourist trains. From Königstein, the town, you can take the S-Bahn and visit the Bastei, which is 5km or so down the river. But this would be a very long day, and the hike up to the Bastei is exhausting. Not recommended. Bad Schandau is 10km or so up the river (from Königstein). Also reachable by S-Bahn. The Kirnitzsch tram simply follows the river and brings you deep into the park... but that'a completely different part of the region, and really nowhere near Königstein. From the last stop, Lichtenhain waterfall, many people leisurely walk to Kuhstall or the Schrammsteine, the most spectacular part of the mountains.

It sounds like the best option for us is to take the S-Bahn to Pirna and then bus #237 to the Bastei. Using the S Bahn would count as a day on our Eurailpass, so I think we will just buy tickets, unless I see that I have an extra day to spare. Thanks all for the info. I remember seeing an explanation on how to get to the park by rail and bus by seat 61, but it all seemed too complicated and I haven't found it back. That was a few months back.

Using the S Bahn would count as a day on our Eurailpass, so I think we will just buy tickets

Not only would you use a day of your rail pass just for the S-Bahn, but you would still have to pay for the bus, which, since Pirna to Bastei is a two zone ticket, would be 4,30€ per person each way (17,20€ total for two, assuming full fare). For 2 adults, a VVO Area Day Ticket would be 20€ (2,80€ more) and would give you unlimited use of the S-Bahn and buses in the entire VVO district all day and wouldn't use a day of your rail pass.

A VVO Area Day Ticket would also allow you to use buses and/or trams in Dresden to get to the S-Bahn.

You didn't indicate the number of people and ages in "we", so I am just assuming a pair of adults.

Thank you so much. This seems to be the solution! I went to the VVO ? website, but didn't get very far. This is what we need to do. Yes, it is for 2 adults.

What section of the park would be the best thing to see if we didn't want it to take us the whole day?

The Fortress as you said before? What would be the best way to get there and would it take all day?

I see that we go to Konigstein to see the Fortress. Does anyone have a time estimate on how long it would take to get there from Dresden and back? Thank you.

Does anyone have a time estimate on how long it would take to get there from Dresden and back?

With all due respect, that all depends on how long you spend in Königstein. I love fortresses, and I spent most of the day exploring it. It's reallly interesting.

For me, I would say plan on spending your entire day getting there, seeing it, and getting back.