Blankenstein was first mentioned in a document in 1392 and today has 1100 inhabitants. The municipality lies in the middle of the south-eastern part of the Thuringian Slate Mountains/Upper Saale Nature Park on the slopes of the Saale, Selbitz and Thuringian Moschwitz river valleys that open up here, at an altitude of 410 - 530 meters above sea level. Blankenstein is known as the starting and finishing point of the 168.3 km long "Rennsteig", one of the most important European long-distance hiking trails. Monuments such as the "Wassererle" at Selbitzsteg, the "Julius Pläncker Memorial Stone", "Der steinerne Rennsteigwanderer" at the railroad station, the "Rennsteigbrunnen" at Köchers Hölzchen and the "Drei Eichen" in Absang bear witness to this. With the opening of the inner-German borders in 1989, the village regained its importance in the field of tourism. The surrounding area offers rewarding excursion destinations, such as the romantic "Höllental", the "Wiedeturm" viewing point, the "Bastei" in Blankenberg and the valley of the Thuringian Moschwitz.