Travemünde between seafaring and the Baltic Sea
Accommodation in Travemünde
Travemünde combines maritime history with views of the Baltic Sea. Its attractions range from seafaring and local marine life to watching ships come and go. To help plan your visit, start with a simple question: would you like to focus mainly on historic ships and buildings, the Baltic Sea world, or routes along the water? Your answer can also help you organise your search for accommodation in Travemünde.
Maritime history: the PASSAT and the Old Lighthouse
The four-masted barque PASSAT is moored at the mouth of the Trave and has become a floating landmark of this seaside resort. A maritime exhibition on board features diary entries by a 15-year-old boy, offering a glimpse into his life at sea. He signed on to the PASSAT in 1932 and sailed around the world aboard her. The combination of diary entries and a circumnavigation brings seafaring to life through one person’s story.
Travemünde’s Old Lighthouse dates back to 1539 and houses a maritime museum. The PASSAT and the lighthouse offer history enthusiasts two different points of interest: a floating landmark that offers a diary-based perspective, and a historic building with a museum.
The Baltic Sea world on the Priwall
On the Priwall, the Ostseestation Travemünde features Baltic Sea aquariums with local marine life and a small marine museum. An interactive tour lasting around an hour offers an additional insight: visitors can touch marine life, feed voracious flatfish and ask questions. The tour’s hour-long duration makes it easy to include as a set-length activity in your day. The aquariums and hands-on tour offer different ways to explore the Baltic Sea world: observe, get involved and ask questions. If you’d like to learn more about the Baltic Sea as a habitat, this offers a different focus from historic seafaring.
Promenades, ferries and watching ships
Experiences along the water differ, too. The promenade loop connects the Trave promenade on the Travemünde town side with the new promenade on the Priwall side, and includes two leisurely short ferry rides across the mouth of the Trave. If you’re planning this loop, allow for two ferry crossings; check the ferry timetable before your visit. The two crossings shape the character of the loop just as much as the two promenades do.
The crescent-shaped Nordermole breakwater, made of reinforced concrete, extends around 250 metres out to sea. From there, you can watch ships coming and going, including small fishing boats and sailboats. This gives you a choice between two different experiences by the water: the loop with its ferry rides, or a visit to the breakwater to watch the ships. If you’re especially interested in ship movements, you can compare the Nordermole with the story of the PASSAT: here, the focus is on boats coming and going; there, it’s on a ship and its maritime past.
Experiences to help guide your accommodation search
If you appreciate maritime history, you can include the PASSAT exhibition and the Old Lighthouse as two different points of interest; if you’re interested in Baltic Sea life, add the interactive tour to your itinerary. For watching ships, the Nordermole offers a specific option, while the promenade loop includes two ferry crossings. Compare accommodations based on which of these experiences you’d like to shape your stay.
Discover more destinations: Lübeck, Sankt Jürgen.
Back to the main travel overview: Lübeck.
