Cover picture © credits to chris90
Cover picture © credits to chris90

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Get German island feeling on Baltrum

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Baltrum is situated in the chain of the seven East Frisian Islands of Germany. As the smallest one you can experience real island idyll without car noise and with fresh sea air. On the island the waste of its 500 inhabitants is still transported away by horse carriage and bins are emptied by hand. It is a different existence on Baltrum. Pay Baltrum a visit and get its special island feeling!

How to get to Baltrum

There are several ways to access the island. By car, train, airplane or bus. In all cases, except by airplane, you have to take the ferry, which takes about 30 minutes from Neßmersiel to Baltrum and which operates three times a day. The most convenient way to reach the ferry is by train to Norden. From there a shuttle bus takes you to the departure location in Neßmersiel. The Baltrum ferry is tide dependent, so check beforehand its operation hours.

Picture © credits to Wikipedia/W. Bulach
Picture © credits to Wikipedia/W. Bulach

On the ferry the holidays can already start. On the way you can get a good view of wild seals while the ferry is passing the neighboring island of Norderney.

Picture © credits to iStock/waeske
Picture © credits to iStock/waeske

With the bus company flixbus you can reach the Norden bus station from which the shuttle bus operates. The flixbus takes you for example from Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Essen, Köln and Wuppertal directly to the bus shuttle.  

By airplane is also possible to enter the island idyll. Moreover you gain the opportunity to see the East Frisian Islands of Germany and the surrounding North Sea from above. There are charter flights which only take eight minutes to Baltrum or sightseeing flights. For more information check out www.baltrum-flug.de or www.inselflieger.de.

Baltrum ferry departure
Baltrum ferry departure
Strandstraße 1, 26553 Dornum, Deutschland

Arriving at the island idyll

Baltrum is just six km long and one and a half wide and is also called the sleeping beauty of the North Sea. The island is six and a half square kilometers and 475 inhabitants live mainly from taking care of the 70,000 guests visiting the island idyll each year. There are three main districts on Baltrum: West Village, East Village and the Old East Village.

On the island you can pay a visit to the tidal museum ('Gezeitenhaus') or do fishing with seal watching. Furthermore, at the hatchery Norddeich, stranded or orphaned seals are taken care of, which is definitely worth a visit if you want to have a closer look on and get to know more about these fascinating animals.

Seehundstation Nationalpark-Haus
Seehundstation Nationalpark-Haus
Dörper Weg 24, 26506 Norden, Deutschland

Another nice activity on the island or rather around it is a wadden hike when the tide is low. The lugworm (Arenicola marina) builds heaps in the Wadden Sea and creates an unique landscape. Take your rubber boots with you and go for it!

Picture © credits to Wikipedia/Cdling
Picture © credits to Wikipedia/Cdling

Besides all that, on Baltrum is the youth education center of the north German turner youth (NTJ), offering a lot of activities such as singing around campfires, developing game festivals, rehearsing circus programs or conquering the island like little pirates. A great destination for teenagers and families.

Youth education center
Youth education center
Baltrum, Baltrum, Deutschland

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The author

Christian Stascheit

Christian Stascheit

Hi. My name is Chris, currently living in Valencia. I love to travel and take photos. My passion is to discover nature (through campfires and fishing), cities, culture and get to know the people living there.

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