September 28, 2024, 6:46 am | Read time: 5 minutes
Discover Germany’s coasts in the cold season – on long walks on the beach, hikes, and cozy coffee breaks. But what if it rains all the time, or you get the shivers despite bundling up for your walk on the beach? Then you have to warm up. Wellness, weather escapes, hot meals: TRAVELBOOK presents the hotspots on the Baltic Sea peninsula Fischland-Zingst-Darß.
65 kilometers of fine sandy beaches and cliffs surround the peninsula between Rostock and Stralsund on the Baltic Sea. This is why Fischland-Zingst-Darß is a popular destination for holidaymakers, especially in summer. The wild and romantic landscape with the Bodden chain in front of it is not only suitable for swimming but is also perfect for beautiful excursions: long walks, cycling, or horse riding tours. But what’s there to do when the weather turns stormy, rainy, or snowy? Here are nine cozy suggestions to keep you warm:
Warm up your body
Wide white beaches and the typical windswept trees dominate the coast of Fischland-Darß-Zingst. The nine-kilometre-long western beach between Ahrenshoop and “Darßer Ort” in the Western Pomerania Bodden Landscape National Park is particularly beautiful for beach hikers. But the beach on the peninsula’s north side is also suitable for long walks, as are the extensive forests between the coasts.
Warm your insides
Nestled in one of the island’s many quaint tea and coffee bars, you can indulge in a steaming hot drink paired with a slice of delectable cake. At the Teeschale in Prerow (Waldstraße 50), for example, you can choose your favorite variety from a wide range of tea creations. There are also delicious homemade cakes and tarts. The associated store sells teas and accessories such as pots and cups as souvenirs to take home. You can admire old ceramics and buy new ones in the artists’ café, Café Tonart in Born (Chausseestrasse 58), housed in an old fisherman’s cottage. With delicious cakes, coffee, and tea, of course.
Warm living
Cozy thatched-roof houses can be rented as vacation accommodation anywhere on the peninsula – some even have a sauna and fireplace. Alternatively, you might opt for a room in one of the numerous wellness hotels, offering a chance to thaw out in the sauna, steam bath, whirlpool, and beyond.
Warm bathing
If you don’t have direct access to a spa in your vacation home or hotel, the Bodden-Therme in Ribnitz-Damgarten is a bathing paradise in which to warm up. The water temperature is a delightful 32.5 degrees Celsius, perfect for a soothing dip. And if you like it hotter, head to the sauna world and sweat in the Finnish infusion sauna at 87 degrees or in the log cabin sauna at 95 degrees.
The Aquadrom in the Baltic Sea spa town of Graal-Müritz is well worth the trip to the nearby mainland, as you can bathe in warm Baltic Sea water here, and there is also a heated floating bed. Wrapped in Baltic Sea algae, you are immersed in 36-degree warm water without coming into contact with it.
Hot meals
While fish sandwiches were the summer’s delight, our palates now crave the comfort of warm fish soup, sizzling grilled platters, and more. You can dine at Restaurant Buhne 12 in Ahrenshoop (Grenzweg 12), which has a magnificent view of the Baltic Sea. It serves regional cuisine with many fish and game dishes. More sophisticated cuisine with creatively prepared dishes can be found at the Namenlos café and restaurant in Ahrenshoop (Dorfstr. 44). The Strandkate (Klosterstraße 8) in Zingst is a cozy place to sit and enjoy delicious fish and more.
Shopping for warm things
You won’t find any large shopping centers or shopping streets on Fischland-Darß. But you can warm up and dress up in Ahrenshoop and Zingst while doing some leisurely shop-hopping. The “Bunte Stube” in Ahrenshoop (Dorfstraße 24) is worth a visit in both summer and winter. Here, you can find local arts and crafts, paintings, jewelry, fashion, and more.
Warm up with art
In the quaint village of Ahrenshoop, art holds a place of great significance. At the end of the 19th century, several painters, including Paul Müller-Kaempff and Fritz Grebe, founded an artists’ colony and a painting school here. The blue-painted “Kunstkaten” (Strandweg 1) displays local art, and there are changing exhibitions.
Hot cooking
Cooking courses for parents and children are offered by Kulturkaten “Kiek In,” which is housed in an old captain’s house in Prerow (Waldstraße 42). Painting and creative courses also take place here regularly, as well as concerts, readings, exhibitions, and theater performances throughout the year.
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Go into the sea without getting wet
Immerse yourself in the water and living worlds of the northern seas at the Ozeaneum in nearby Stralsund. Setting aside an entire day is advisable to experience the marine museum’s wonders fully. There are several aquariums and five permanent exhibitions on 8,700 square meters.
The original of this article was published in 2017.