Germany has two seas, and they could hardly behave more differently. On the North Sea coast, the water rises and falls by about 3 m (10 ft) twice a day. On the Baltic, the tide moves roughly 20 cm (8 in), which you’ll barely notice.
Even the North Sea tide doesn’t arrive everywhere at once. The flood wave comes in from the Atlantic. High water reaches Borkum about six hours before it gets to Brunsbüttel at the mouth of the Elbe.
So the two coasts suit very different trips. Here’s how they work.
The North Sea Goes Out Twice a Day
At low tide, large parts of the Wattenmeer (Wadden Sea) fall dry. Off Cuxhaven, the exposed seabed stretches up to 20 km (12 mi) out. These are the largest tidal flats on earth, and they’ve been a World Heritage Site since 2009.
The mud is busier than it looks. Each year, ten to twelve million migrating birds stop here to feed on the way between their breeding grounds and their winter quarters.
You can walk on the seabed, but go with a certified guide and check the tide tables first. Tidal channels fill fast when the water comes back.
The classic route runs about 12 km (7 mi) from Cuxhaven to the island of Neuwerk. Horse-drawn carriages cover the same route for anyone who’d rather ride. Oddly enough, Neuwerk belongs to Hamburg. :-)
North Sea Islands
Along the coast of East Frisia, a chain of islands sits in front of the flats. Borkum and Norderney still allow cars, with limits. Juist and Spiekeroog keep them off the island entirely, and so do Baltrum, Langeoog, and Wangerooge.
Farther north, in North Frisia, Sylt is the best known, with Amrum and Föhr close by. Between them lie the Halligen, ten small islands without proper dikes. Their houses stand on Warften, artificial mounds. During a storm tide only those mounds stay above the water.
Then there’s Helgoland, a red sandstone rock far out in the German Bight. Its landmark is the Lange Anna, a sea stack 47 m (154 ft) tall. Cars and bicycles aren’t allowed on the island. People often call it Germany’s only high-sea island, although that isn’t strictly true in geographic or legal terms.
After World War II, the British military tried to blow the whole island up with thousands of tons of explosives. The rock held. Its evacuated residents were allowed back in 1952.
On the mainland, harbor towns like Büsum and Cuxhaven sit right on the flats. The Jade Bay and the Dollart cut into the coast farther west.
The Baltic Sea Stays Put
Without much tide, the Baltic coast was shaped by ice instead. In Schleswig-Holstein, Ice Age glaciers and their meltwater carved long, narrow inlets that the sea later flooded. There are four of them: the Flensburg Fjord, the Schlei, the Eckernförde Bay, and the Kiel Fjord. All four open into the Kiel Bay. Sheltered at their ends, Flensburg and Kiel grew into cities.
East of Fehmarn, the coast bends around the Mecklenburg Bay, the largest bay on the German Baltic coast. The Hanseatic ports of Lübeck, Wismar, and Rostock grew up along its shore. Wismar sits at the tip of the Wismar Bay, with the island of Poel just offshore.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the ice left low hills that the sea flooded into shallow lagoons, called Bodden. Around Zingst, you can stand on the beach facing open water, then cross the dunes to a calm lagoon on the other side. The lagoon shores are about three times as long as the open coast.
On Rügen, Germany’s largest island, white chalk cliffs rise to 118 m (387 ft) at the Königsstuhl. Caspar David Friedrich painted them in 1818. The cliffs keep breaking off, so stay behind the barriers.
Rügen is reached by bridge from Stralsund. Next door, Hiddensee keeps cars off the island entirely.
Seaside Resorts and Beach Chairs
Heiligendamm, founded in 1793, was Germany’s first seaside resort. The fashion spread along the whole coast, and so did the white villas with balconies and turrets known as Bäderarchitektur (resort architecture). You’ll see it at its best in Binz on Rügen and in the Imperial Baths of Usedom. The pier at Ahlbeck there, built in 1898, is the oldest in Germany.
The Strandkorb (beach chair) comes from this coast, too. A Rostock basket maker named Wilhelm Bartelmann is credited with building it in 1882. His wife opened the first beach chair rental in Warnemünde the following year. It’s a wicker armchair with a roof, which tells you everything about a North German summer. ;-)
Where the Two Seas Meet
The Nord-Ostsee-Kanal (Kiel Canal) cuts about 98 km (61 mi) across Schleswig-Holstein, from Brunsbüttel on the Elbe to Kiel. It opened in 1895 as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Kanal, and it’s now the busiest artificial seaway in the world.
Which Coast for Which Trip
If you want to walk on the seabed, pick the North Sea. If you want to swim whenever you feel like it, the Baltic makes that easier, because the water stays where you left it.
On both coasts, most resorts charge a visitor tax, the Kurabgabe, for each night you stay. It pays for beach cleaning and lifeguards, and you usually get a guest card with discounts in return.
| North Sea | Baltic Sea | |
|---|---|---|
| Tidal range | about 3 m (10 ft) | about 20 cm (8 in) |
| Coastline | tidal flats, dikes, and salt marshes | fjords, lagoons, chalk cliffs, and long sandy beaches |
| Typical experience | guided walks on the seabed | promenades, piers, and swimming |
| Islands | East and North Frisian Islands, the Halligen, Helgoland | Rügen, Usedom, Fehmarn, Hiddensee, Poel |
| Islands without cars | Juist, Spiekeroog, Baltrum, Langeoog, Wangerooge, Helgoland | Hiddensee |
For the water inland, see German lakes and German rivers. The coastal landscapes themselves are on German regions.