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The coastal region of the Rostock District stretches along 62km (39mi) of the Baltic Sea in North Germany. On the edge of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state, it surrounds the university city of Rostock and has many seaside resorts and spas to its name.

Rostock District Map

To the south it touches the northern edge of the Müritz Lakeland. There it is filled with many lakes and waterways, including the large Inselsee to the south of the district capital, Güstrow, and the river Warnow running through from south-west to the north.

The whole area is very popular with the national population as a tourist destination, but the state as a whole is sparsely populated.

The town of Bad Doberan is one of the most popular bathing resorts in the area. It also used to be the summer ducal residence because of its great location, climate and vistas.

Neighboring Heiligendamm is one of the oldest seaside resorts in the country, and was the location of a G8 Summit in 2007.

And the delightful Kühlungsborn along the coast has a very long beachfront and wide promenade following almost its entire length.

Many of the coastal resorts in the Rostock District are linked by the narrow gauge steam railway known as the Molli, except for the beautiful town of Graal-Müritz which is the only resort on the “other side” of Rostock. It is locally famous for its extensive rhodedendron gardens and certainly worth a visit.

Heading to the south of the Rostock District, the ancient figure of Henry the Lion is celebrated here — the most powerful prince of his time. His grandson founded the town of Güstrow over 800 years ago.

This is the location of a delightful 16th century Schloss sitting on a huge lake and with extensive landscaped gardens. It also has one of the best examples of a brick-gothic cathedral with their 13th century structure.

The forested nature park Nossentiner-Schwinzer-Heide sits to the south of the Rostock District and is a perfect location for outdoor activities. Although relatively flat, the scenery offered by the natural wetlands brings along all kinds of wildlife to the area — including ospreys.

In the southwest of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is the very flat region of the Ludwigslust-Parchim District. It borders onto Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, and Brandenburg on three sides. Further more, it touches the state capital of Schwerin in its north and is part of the Müritz Lakeland to the east — the huge Lake Plau marking its western edge.

Ludwigslust-Parchim District Map

The eastern half of this area is also crossed by the massive Elbe on its way from the mountains of the Czech Republic to the North Sea.

Famous as a ducal residence, this region has many links to its namesake Prince Ludwig. He built himself a hunting lodge in the area and kept land free for his pleasures. Now, there is the late Baroque Ludwigslust Schloss on an ornate lake in Ludwigslust — sitting in 120 hectares of gardens and woodlands.

Other towns in the Ludwigslust-Parchim District show signs of its communist past. Boizenburg (Elbe) has a whole host of such architecture and relics from this era, including large paintings and mosaics on external walls of important buildings.

The area is also famous for horse breeding, and horses can be found on the coat of arms of many towns and villages around here.

The western half of the Ludwigslust-Parchim Districtis famous for its wildlife, due to its wetlands and large open spaces. With more than ninety lakes near the old town of Sternberg, there are plenty of opportunities to see osprey, cranes and even otters.

The Ruhner mountains in the southeast and the Naturpark Nassentiner-Schwinzer-Heide to the east offer even more outdoor adventures.

Parchim, the district capital on the river Elde, is filled with monuments to almost everyone and everything imaginable. You’ll come across them as you wander around the ancient Altstadt and through the busy streets.

It is also on the European Route of Brick Gothic (EUROB), due to its fantastic buildings including the huge, towering Rathaus (Town Hall). The route takes you across Denmark, Sweden, Poland and Germany, discovering gems like this extraordinary spot.

Right at (or in) the Baltic Sea is the flat expanse of the Vorpommern-Rügen District. Surrounding the district’s capital of Stralsund, the northern coastline is protected by a great peninsula, enclosing a long bay.

Rügen itself, Germany’s largest island, has some of the best beaches in the country.

Vorpommern-Rügen District Map

The Fischland-Darß-Zinst peninsula is really three distinct areas which shelter the lagoons (bodden) they have created behind them. Locally just known as the Darß, this sandbank and the lowland territory are an excellent location to spot migrating cranes and geese — and have quite a large forest housing other wildlife.

This entire area is part of the Western Pomerania Lagoon Area National Park.

Grimmen is a delightful old town with plenty of photogenic buildings and architecture. The area is known for its large zoo, with over 250 different enclosures and detailed information. Take time to relax here before heading back out for adventure. :-)

On the Island of Rügen

Rügen’s coasts and lagoons make up the Island’s Naturpark and includes the protected offshore Bioshärenreservat Südost and the National Park Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft. It is also a great location for observing both migrating and endemic wildlife from the Baltic.

Many of the fantastic seaside resorts, including Putbus, are connected to each other with the narrow gauge steam railway — affectionately known as Rasender Roland.

Sassnitz has a large zoo and a floating submarine museum — the decommissioned HMS Otus — to explore.

The largest of the resorts is Binz — and it has a little secret: a huge holiday camp-type complex sprawling along the coast. Built by the Third Reich, this huge and rather ugly “hotel” was built to house 20,000 German holiday-makers and is now protected due to its unique architecture.

The highlight of the Vorpommern-Greifswald District is the Baltic Coast and the sandbanks at and around the Usedom island. Plus, it is protected within the Stettiner Haff, a large harbor shared with Poland. This mostly flat region sits in the valleys of the Uecker and Randow rivers. It is also one of the least developed regions in the whole of Germany.

Vorpommern-Greifswald District Map

The Vorpommern-Greifswald District is a great place for outdoor adventures, and is covered in lakes, forest and heath with some steppe flora unique to the area. It has a small area for wine production, too.

By the way, you can visit a Mushroom Museum here and walk to Poland across one of the pedestrian border crossings.

In the port town of Ueckermünde, you will find some great seafront architecture and plenty of comfortable double deckchairs on the sandy beaches. Add to this endless streets of half-timbered buildings and gabled merchants houses to wander through for good measure. It is also home to the last palace of the Dukes of Pomerania still to be found on German soil.

Its main island with many bays, lagoons and inlets is known as Usedom and is half-owned by Poland. It is the second largest island in Germany after its neighbor, Rügen.

It holds many of the regions seaside resorts including Heringsdorf which has the Heringsdorf Airport (HDF), a traditional pier, an observation tower, and many great houses and mansions on the waterfront.

The Usedom island also protects the estuary of the river Peene, which helps to surround the ancient Hanseatic city of Greifswald on the eastern coast.

Anklam in the center is also Hanseatic and still well fortified. The busy town offers considerable river trade opportunities and is well known for its shipbuilding. Its extensive agricultural lands away from the coast have filled its ships with produce over the centuries and continues to do so today, keeping the town’s docks alive.

You could spend several lifetimes attempting to learn each of the lakes and rivers of northeastern Germany’s Mecklenburg Lakes by heart (German: Mecklenburgische Seenplatte) — a.k.a. the Land Of A Thousand Lakes. But you only have a vacation in which to enjoy the best of this region of more than 1,800 (!) interconnected glacial lakes and three Nature Reserves. So why not start with Müritz, the largest lake in Germany?

The eastern shore of Müritz lies in Müritz National Park, where ancient forests and heaths give way to glorious meadows of wild-flowers where sheep and cattle peacefully graze. The waters here are off limits to powerboats, because they are home to a wide variety of endangered birds including cranes, storks, and Germany’s national emblem, the noble sea eagle.

It only makes sense, when you are vacationing in the Mecklenburg Lakes, to do most of your traveling on the water itself. Think about booking a pleasure cruise from the old lakeside town of Waren, but before you do, take in some of Waren’s own attractions.

Not the least of these is the town’s new Visitors’ Center, which is actually partly submerged in the lake! There you’ll find a regional natural history collection, as well as an enormous freshwater aquarium, in the 100,000 liters or 26,000 gallons of which more than forty species of fish feel quite at home! The star of the show is a 27-year-old carp which tips the scale at an impressive 20 kilos or 44 pounds!

Arrange your boat tour of the lake through one of the boat lines which operate from the Waren marina. They last between one and seven hours, costing between €7 and €20, with children half-price. If you have the time and are comfortable managing your own boat, you can also rent a kayak, dinghy, catamaran, or even a windsurf board!

Waren is at the northwest corner of the National Park, but the park’s southwestern region is where you will find most of its wildlife. The best way for you to see as much as possible of the Park is by bus, although its many trails attract hundreds of cyclists each week. Hiking can be a challenge simply because the park is so vast in the trail so long, but cycling is fine even for novice bikers, because very few of the Park’s hills are strenuous climbs!

When you’ve had enough of the Mecklenburg Lakes outdoor charms, why not go to Wismar? One of the founding cities of the 14th-century Hanseatic League and later expanded into one of the largest European fortresses, it has undergone enormous restoration since the reunification of Germany.

Wismar’s Altstadt has northern Germany‘s largest marketplace. The Marktplatz‘ bewildering variety of architecture will give you some idea of the city’s history of ruin and recovery, and the Schabbelhausmuseum has a marvelous selection of medieval artifacts and historical paintings documenting Wismar’s past.

An August vacation in the Mecklenburg Lakes can certainly include a trip to the Warnow River town of Rostock, within 10 km or 6 miles of the Baltic Sea. August draws over a million visitors to the town to celebrate Hanse Sail, when over two hundred tall ships are docked between the city’s harbor and the Baltic Sea. They unfurl their sails in degrees as they approach the open sea!

While you’re there, enjoy a day trip to the shore district of Warnemünde, and if you’re not bashful (and not afraid of those nippy Baltic breezes) take a dip off one of the city’s nude beaches! A December visit to Warnemünde will be in time for the largest Christmas market in northern Germany. :-)

Below is one Pfalzgrafenweiler webcam showing you what’s going on in Pfalzgrafenweiler right in this moment.

Note: Click on the webcam image or title to view its large version.

• Pfalzgrafenweiler City Center, Marktplatz
  This webcam shows the Marktplatz in the city center of Pfalzgrafenweiler.
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  • Courtesy of pfalzgrafenweiler.de