Selmsdorf: Heathland Trails and Border History

Explore Selmsdorf through its distinctive landscapes and history: the Palinger Heath offers hiking trails in the Green Belt, Teschow is a peninsula between three bodies of water, and its churches and memorial sites reveal historical details. This lets you choose the focus of your stay: active hours outdoors, waterside scenery, or cultural history.

Hiking trails in the Palinger Heath

The Palinger Heath is an inland dune area, protected since 1992 and part of the Green Belt. Numerous hiking trails offer views of the Green Belt, including sections of the historic Kolonnenweg (Column Road). On a hike, you can take in both the protected natural area and traces of a historic route. Trail conditions may change, so check the current route before setting out. The Selmsdorfer Forstweg public transport stop is a possible starting point for hikes along the Selmsdorf banks of the Trave. If you plan to travel by public transport, check the timetable in advance.

Teschow between three bodies of water

Teschow is a historic triangular village on a peninsula between the Trave, Pötenitzer Wiek, and Dassower See. These three bodies of water define its location precisely. From a viewpoint on the peninsula, you can look towards the Travemünde ferry port, the Trave, and Dassower See. Paved hiking and cycling trails connect the banks of the Trave, Dassower See, and Teschow. So, as well as visiting the viewpoint, you can explore the area on foot or by bike. This gives you a practical choice when planning your day: focus on a viewpoint or follow trails linking the landscape features mentioned above.

Church history and memorial sites

The Church of St. Mary contains two features from clearly distinct periods. The organ was made in 1869 by Barnim Grüneberg, an organ builder from Stettin. The church also preserves a wooden epitaph from 1658, which came from the previous church. The dates clearly distinguish the two: the epitaph is from the 17th century and the organ from the 19th. This offers visitors interested in culture a tangible comparison between a preserved furnishing and a later instrument.

The regional project “Grenzenlos von Lübeck nach Boltenhagen” (“Beyond Borders from Lübeck to Boltenhagen”) offers another historical perspective. Memorial steles and information boards there recall the region’s division and its earlier history. A location overview from December 2020 listed five sites in the Selmsdorf area at the time: at the Lübeck-Schlutup border, Alte Grenzstraße, the former barracks, Teschow, and Zarnewenz. The area’s historic transport routes are also part of its history: the historic transit route from the Selmsdorf–Schlutup crossing followed the former F104 and F105 towards the ferry connections to Gedser and Trelleborg.

Explore by bike and choose your accommodation

A section of the Lübeck–Grevesmühlen cycling tour follows a cycle path through Selmsdorf’s outskirts towards the town centre. This makes Selmsdorf a destination to explore as part of a cycling tour, not just through individual hiking trails or historic sites. Check the current route before setting out, as trail conditions may change.

When looking for accommodation in Selmsdorf, it helps to first decide what you want to do each day. If hiking or cycling is your priority, take your chosen starting point and the route into account when planning. If you’re more interested in cultural history, the church, memorial sites, and historic transport routes offer different points of reference. That way, your choice is guided by the experiences you’re actually looking for.

Discover more destinations: Menzendorf, Roduchelstorf, Papenhusen, Niendorf, Dassow, Grieben, Groß Siemz, Lüdersdorf.

Back to the main travel overview: Amt Schönberger Land.