February 20, 2025, 3:47 pm | Read time: 6 minutes
At the northernmost tip of the German Baltic Sea coast, you will come across magnificent views, untouched nature, and rare bird species. The Holnis peninsula is like a balm for the soul, especially in freezing temperatures and out of season. Our author was there.
Drei becomes my temporary home. That’s the name of the small settlement on the Holnis peninsula, which juts out into the Baltic Sea like a slender leg. In the midst of a bitterly cold February, the Baltic Sea beach is deserted. Although I only live 24 kilometers away, I need this little escape and a view. In the middle of a writing project, I felt the walls closing in on me at home, my mood sank, my concentration waned, and I preferred to dream of the sea.
Overview
Deserted Holnis in the Low Season
Dreamt it, did it. When I arrive on Holnis, I rejoice inwardly and congratulate myself on my decision. My room in the “Ostsee Strandhaus Holnis” has a direct sea view, and when I open the sliding door to the balcony a small crack, I can hear the waves crashing, the wild geese chattering, and the seagulls screeching. Still no one on the promenade. Should I write or go out? I’ll be constantly caught up in this inner conflict over the next few days.
Of course, I put on my boots and go for a walk outside. Strand Drei is pleasantly manageable, not overwhelming in the slightest. An Italian restaurant, a beach café, a campsite, and the mini golf course “Adventure Fjordgolf Holnis” with motifs from the surrounding area. For example, with a replica of the white-moated castle of the town of Glücksburg, just four kilometers away. Outdoor fitness equipment with a view of the water. There’s a surf school and even a kayak vending machine, a ‘kayakomat’. On the path parallel to the beach, I only encounter two dog owners. What a difference to the summer months, when all the beach chairs are occupied, the SUPs glide across the water, and the white sandy beach is filled with people. Now, there is absolute silence, except for the sounds of nature. I can only hear my own footsteps. A few Galloway cattle chew comfortably on the grass of the salt marshes.
The Northernmost Tip of the German Baltic Sea Coast
Over the Holnis Cliff, I follow a narrow path to Holnis Point. I have now reached the northernmost tip of the German Baltic coast. The water is shallow and clear, and every shell and stone on the sandy bottom is clearly visible. It’s tempting – you really want to go for a swim, but the sub-zero temperatures in the air chase this idea away immediately. The coast of Denmark is just 1.7 kilometers away, close enough to touch. Theoretically, you could swim across, maybe in summer. Now I can see the Gråsten marina, with the white church of Broager with its striking twin towers to the right. As a fan of Denmark, I’m delighted at this sight. It’s very reassuring to be so close to this great country.
I continue along the “Theodor Fontane Hiking Trail.” Fontane traveled here as a war correspondent and also mentions Holnis in his novel Irretrievable. Satisfied and well-ventilated, I return to my accommodation and sit down at my desk. The whole building is quiet, very quiet. Could it be possible that I’m the sole occupant here? It’s a strange feeling. I listen intently. I look again from outside and see that there really is only one light on – and it’s in my room. On the one hand, I immediately feel like the lady of the house, but on the other, I feel a little queasy. Sure, I wanted silence, but the absence of people can cause anxiety.
Beate Uhse Once Lived on Holnis
The next day, the wind is blowing hard. But today, I have set my sights on Schausende, the western shore of the peninsula, facing the inner Flensburg Fjord. If you want to walk around Holnis, it’s a good eleven kilometers. That’s too far for me. I prefer to walk in stages. In Schausende, I see a marina, a few prefabricated buildings from the 1970s, a narrow path along the water, and a bathing jetty near the lighthouse. Beate Uhse, the founder of the erotic company of the same name, had it built.
Above the jetty, out of sight, lies her former estate. Two hexagonal buildings shaped like honeycombs. A 10,000 square meter property with an outdoor pool, eight rooms inside, and panoramic windows. Beate Uhse’s son Ulrich Rotermund lived in the larger 570 square meter building, while she herself lived in the “smaller” house of around 400 square meters, including a library and squash court. In summer, the entrepreneur liked to go windsurfing or waterskiing right outside the door. The experienced pilot often looked at her beloved Baltic Sea landscape from above from the cockpit of a “Piper,” which she piloted herself. To enjoy this view every day must have been a dream come true.
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Holnis Offers Numerous Nature Reserves
Honestly, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world right now. Now, in winter, in solitude, this little corner of the world seems to have fallen out of time. I find myself walking ever slower, taking in the details, gathering pieces of sea glass. Large parts of Holnis are a nature reserve, including the Noor, with breeding grounds and habitats for many animal and plant species. Shelducks feed in the salt marshes, oystercatchers, lapwings, little ringed plovers, and terns build their nesting sites here. Cormorants dry their outstretched wings in a stubborn posture. 130 bird species have been counted, some of which can be observed from the lookout. I even see a deer – for the first time in years.
Sometimes, I have a guilty conscience: I should be sitting at my laptop. But I calm down. Because good ideas, thoughts, and connections come to me while I’m walking. The writer Jean-Jacques Rousseau put it like this: “There is something in walking that stimulates and invigorates my thoughts; my body must be in motion if my mind is to be.” I will be alone in the hotel for three nights. Sure, it’s during the week, it’s February, who wants to go to the Baltic Sea? Small “Shining” fears emerge. What if someone has sneaked in? What if someone is lurking behind the elevator with an axe? Everything is peaceful. On the fourth day, an Asian couple finally moves into the room next door. They sing, they take photos, they laugh – life at last. I calm down and go out into the fresh air to count oystercatchers.
Many hotels on the coast are putting together attractive off-season offers until the Easter vacation. You can find discounts of up to 25 percent or take advantage of a ‘3 for 2’ deal, where you pay for two nights and receive the third night at no extra charge. Reduced prices are also often offered for vacation apartments at this time of year. So it’s worth taking a look at the northernmost point of the German Baltic Sea coast outside the main season.