Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein likes to call itself the land between the seas, and indeed there is hardly a better destination for people who like sea air around their noses than the state in Germany's north. With around 330 kilometers of coastline on the Baltic Sea and another 200 kilometers on the North Sea, Schleswig-Holstein offers plenty of space for beach vacations, not to mention the islands on both sides. Gentle, often wide landscapes, marshland and fertile soils characterize the picture in the interior, where Flensburg, Kiel, Lübeck and many other cities are further highlights waiting to be visited.
Popular destinations in Schleswig-Holstein
We show you the most beautiful cities in Schleswig-Holstein.
Schleswig
At the end of the Baltic Sea arm Schlei, which idyllically stretches between the hilly landscapes of Angeln and Schwansen into the Schleswig-Holstein mainland, lies the town of Schleswig with its 25,000 inhabitants.
Schleswig is probably one of the most historically interesting cities in the state between the North Sea and ...
Husum
In the poem "The City" (1852), Husum's most famous son, Theodor Storm, has affectionately-roughly described his hometown as a "gray city by the sea". A city that has a certain brittleness, but is also absolutely lovable. Today Husum (23,000), the capital of the Schleswig-Holstein west coast district of Nordfriesland, appears more colorful ...
Flensburg
The third largest city in Schleswig-Holstein is located in the immediate vicinity of the Danish border in the far northeast of Germany on the Baltic Sea arm Flensburger Förde. Flensburg is famous, among other things, for its tradition as the North German rum capital. For some traffic offenders, Flensburg ...
Kiel
The bombs of the Second World War have not left much of the once picturesque port city, but Kiel is still worth a visit: The capital of Schleswig-Holstein is the cultural center of the region and comes with many varied museums. In addition, the most populous city in the state ...
Lübeck
Lübeck is perhaps the most traditional and historically significant city in Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of 215,000, Lübeck is the second largest city in the northernmost federal state and, apart from the state capital Kiel, the only municipality with metropolitan status. Not far from the border with Mecklenburg on ...
Popular regions in Schleswig-Holstein
Die 10 größten Städte in Schleswig-Holstein
01
Kiel
0.2 million inhabitants
The bombs of the Second World War have not left much of the once picturesque port city, but Kiel is still worth a visit: The capital of Schleswig-Holstein is the cultural center of the region and comes with many varied museums. In addition, the most populous city in the state ...
02
Lübeck
0.2 million inhabitants
Lübeck is perhaps the most traditional and historically significant city in Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of 215,000, Lübeck is the second largest city in the northernmost federal state and, apart from the state capital Kiel, the only municipality with metropolitan status. Not far from the border with Mecklenburg on ...
03
Flensburg
90,200 inhabitants
The third largest city in Schleswig-Holstein is located in the immediate vicinity of the Danish border in the far northeast of Germany on the Baltic Sea arm Flensburger Förde. Flensburg is famous, among other things, for its tradition as the North German rum capital. For some traffic offenders, Flensburg ...
04
Neumünster
80,200 inhabitants
Neumünster, a city of 80,000 inhabitants located pretty much in the middle of Holstein between Kiel and Hamburg, is not one of the most touristy cities in Schleswig-Holstein. Neumünster has rather the image of a sober service and industrial location. However, Neumünster can certainly score points with scenic ...
05
Norderstedt
79,400 inhabitants
Formally, Norderstedt, which borders the northern districts of Hamburg, is a city, but in fact the city of 80,000 inhabitants, founded in 1970, is merely the loose union of the almost village-like towns of Garstedt, Harksheide, Glashütte and Friedrichsgabe. Even half a century after the city was founded, no actual city ...
06
Elmshorn
50,000 inhabitants
Elmshorn, with a population of 50,000, is not officially the district capital of the Schleswig-Holstein district of Pinneberg, which adjoins Hamburg to the west (this is the small town of Pinneberg), but it is of outstanding municipal importance as the seat of the district administration. Economically, Elmshorn is characterized in particular ...
07
Pinneberg
43,700 inhabitants
The Holstein municipality of Pinneberg, with 40,000 inhabitants, is the district capital of the county of the same name. Bordering directly on Hamburg's western district of Rissen, Pinneberg is part of the outer metropolitan region of Hamburg often referred to as the "Hamburg Speckgürtel". Pinneberg enjoys the reputation of being ...
08
Ahrensburg
33,700 inhabitants
The name of the medium-sized town of Ahrensburg (population 35,000) in the Stormarn district of Schleswig-Holstein, which borders on the northeastern Hamburg urban area and is embedded in an attractive landscape, is derived from the Renaissance castle of Ahrensburg (16th century), which is open to the public. The castle is not ...
09
Wedel
33,700 inhabitants
The southern Holstein town of Wedel, located between the Elbe and the Marsch, is not only famous
35,000-inhabitant town of Wedel is not only famous among ship lovers for its Willkomm-Höft ship welcoming facility, which is known far beyond the borders of Germany. There, in the Schulau district, located ...
10
Itzehoe
31,800 inhabitants
With 32,000 inhabitants, Itzehoe, the capital of the Westholstein district of Steinburg, is the largest city near the Schleswig-Holstein North Sea coast. Situated on the small river Stör, between wooded Geest and treeless marshland, the medium-sized town is the service center of the nearby region. Itzehoe can look back on ...