Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

Mecklenburg (originally pronounced with a long "e") Vorpommern is the least densely populated German state, but has been a major (domestic) tourist destination as early as the 19th century. As some of Germany's (historically) most important Baltic ports are here, its cities were among the preeminent in the Hanseatic League (though it was de facto led by Lübeck just across the state border to the west), as well as a desired prize for all Baltic powers. As such pieces of it belonged to Sweden for a long time, starting with the thirty years war (1618-1648) and later Prussia acquired the eastern parts.

Trade and shipbuilding have always been important for coastal cities like Rostock and its port Warnemünde and the GDR heavily depended upon its Baltic seacoast both for tourism and other economic activities such as fishery and ship-building. After the fall of the GDR the crisis hit this area particularly hard, as the shipyards could not deal with the new competition (mostly from Korea) and East Germans eager to explore their new-found freedom of travel stopped vacationing in the seaside resorts. However, starting in the mid 1990s tourism has bounced back, as even Western Germans have discovered the allure of the Baltic Sea and many East Germans returned to the vacation spot of their youth. While the shipyards still haven't quite turned the corner they have now specialized in (more expensive) military and specialist vessels.

Another promising field is renewable energy, as the coast is very windy and the entire state is rather flat, making it the ideal site for windmills and their production. Tourism is still mostly geared towards Germans and (to a lesser degree) their neighbors to the east, particularly Poland. As this was the main beach destination in GDR times FKK (Freikörperkultur, that is naturism or nude bathing) is the norm rather than the exception.

Tourist information:

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania tourism website

By plane:

Rostock airport (Laage, RLG IATA) has few international flights, so the best choices are usually Berlin Brandenburg Airport or Hamburg Airport.

By train:

Trains from Hamburg and Berlin to the major cities (Rostock, Schwerin, Stralsund) leave every 1-2 hours. There are also regular train connections from Poland (Szczecin).

By boat:

From Denmark (Gedser) there are frequent ferry connections to Rostock. Trelleborg in Sweden has several departures a day to Rostock and Sassnitz on Rügen. There are also ferry lines from several Eastern Baltic ports, primarily to Rostock.

By car:

The fast motorway network (Autobahn) has been considerably extended during the last years and all larger cities now have excellent connections. In the summer months, especially on weekends, the motorways and all roads to the coast can be congested.

By bus:

While they are a comparatively new phenomenon, Intercity buses in Germany serve most major and some minor towns throughout the country with prices often surprisingly low to compete with the better comfort and journey time of trains.