Sight-running - latest craze for tourists in a hurry

By Veronika Seidel Jun 30, 2011, 3:06 GMT

Dusseldorf - Modern-day people often seem to think that nothing can go too quickly for them. Just think about the coffee-and-sandwich bought 'to go.' And now, for those tourists who are really in a hurry to do their city sightseeing, there is a new format: 'to run.'

In what is a new craze called 'sight-running,' people go jogging from one city monument to the next in order to do their sight-seeing in the shortest time possible.

Whether it's Berlin, Munich, Hamburg or Dusseldorf - 'sight-running' has now become an attraction in many German cities. At Dusseldorf's Burgplatz square, three women in a hearty mood and dressed in bright-yellow running outfits have gotten together.

'For many centuries a royal castle stood on this spot, but it burned down several times and then the city tore it down completely in the 19th century,' tour guide Steffi Buss tells the group. 'Only the tower remains.'

Steffi Buss is showing the two other young women, Daniela and Gabi, all the attractions of the city on the Rhine river - while running. 'I read about sight-running in a sports magazine,' says one of the young women. 'This is something different.'

Dusseldorf's most scenic attractions are there to be jogged past in about an hour - an accomplishment certainly only for those who are fit enough. 'Both of us run regularly, so we don't expect to tire out,' says one of the two young women with a laugh.

Buss starts the sight-running tour: 'We'll start out jogging for a while along the Rhine River promenade,' she says and then mentions the historical flood of the year 1921, the decimal clock on the Rhine Tower, and the architecture of the state parliament building.

'I was always interested in the city's history and taught myself everything from reading,' the former track-and-field athlete says. Buss launched her sight-running tour called 'Run and see Dusseldorf' in 2009.

'You can see a lot more in the shortest time, and I tell people the most important facts because we never stop, or maybe only take a short break,' she says.

Many of her clients are business people or those visiting a trade fair in Dusseldorf and so have only a limited time to spare for sight-seeing and trying to stay fit. The sight-running trend has caught on in other cities as well. In Berlin there are several competing tours to choose from.

'Here in Germany we have the heaviest concentration of sight-running offers anywhere in the world,' says Michael Horstmann of the 'German Running Tours' network in Berlin. He reckons that now, besides the big cities, sight-running will start to reach many smaller cities.

In Dusseldorf, the trio of women are still jogging. 'The pace is optimal. This is like having a nice, easy chat,' says one of the women, Daniela. The three gracefully trot through the narrow alleys of the old city centre, where the tour ends.

The other woman, Gabi, is enthusiastic. 'This is a great thing. You are totally flexible when you're out running. You can go looking here, or maybe over there, independent of the traffic.'

And her companion Daniela says she is just getting warmed up. 'We could easily have gone on for another hour.'