Villas in Baltic Sea

Wismar Bay and Fehmarn suit families, the Darß suits walkers, and the whole German Baltic coast stays cool even in August. Boltenhagen and Insel Poel are the quickest drive from Hamburg, Fehmarn and Dahme add kitesurfing, and Ahrenshoop and Zingst have the wildest beaches. Rügen, Binz included, has its own page.

Where

Villas: 670
From, per week: £244
Cheapest month: November
Nearest airports: Hamburg is closest for Schleswig-Holstein, Fehmarn and Wismar Bay; Berlin Brandenburg suits Greifswald and the east; the Darß is around three hours from either. Flights from London take about an hour and a half to Hamburg and just under two hours to Berlin. Rostock-Laage is nearer the Mecklenburg coast but has few international flights.

Where to stay in Baltic Sea

Wismar Bay and Boltenhagen (Alt Jassewitz, Damshagen, Dassow, Insel Poel)

This is where most of our Baltic villas are. Alt Jassewitz sits just back from the sandy shore of the Wohlenberger Wiek, between Boltenhagen and Wismar. Boltenhagen has a pier and a long beach under low cliffs. Insel Poel, reached by a causeway, has quieter beaches at Gollwitz and Timmendorf. Wismar's old town is UNESCO-listed. Hamburg airport is around an hour and a half away.

Best for: Families who want shallow water and the shortest drive from Hamburg

Not for you if: You want a lively resort: outside Boltenhagen the villages are small and the shops are a drive away.

Rerik, Kühlungsborn and Heiligendamm (Mecklenburg coast)

Kühlungsborn is the classic Baltic seaside town, with white resort villas, a pier and a long promenade backed by woods. The Molli steam railway runs from Kühlungsborn through Heiligendamm to Bad Doberan, and Börgerende is a short cycle away. Rerik sits on a strip of land between the open sea and the sheltered Salzhaff, a lagoon popular with windsurfers. Rostock is around 40 minutes away; Hamburg nearer two hours.

Best for: Couples and families who want a proper resort town with a promenade

Not for you if: You want empty beaches in August: Kühlungsborn is one of the busiest resorts on this coast in summer.

Fischland-Darß-Zingst (Ahrenshoop, Born, Bodstedt, Zingst)

A thin peninsula with open sea on one side and shallow lagoons (Bodden) on the other. The Weststrand below the Darß forest is wild, with fallen trees on the sand, and Ahrenshoop has had an artists' colony since the late 1800s. Born and Bodstedt face the lagoon and suit sailing and kayaking more than swimming. Each autumn, thousands of cranes stop over around Zingst. Rostock is about an hour away.

Best for: Walkers and cyclists who want long, natural beaches and forest

Not for you if: You want a short transfer: from Hamburg or Berlin it is around three hours by car.

Fehmarn and Ostholstein (Bannesdorf, Großenbrode, Heiligenhafen, Dahme, Kellenhusen)

Fehmarn is a flat farming island joined to the mainland by a bridge, with beaches on every side and some of Germany's best-known kitesurfing. Bannesdorf is in the south-east, close to the main town of Burg. Heiligenhafen has a working fishing harbour and the Graswarder spit, while Dahme and Kellenhusen are small family resorts with long sandy beaches. Ferries cross from Puttgarden to Rødby in Denmark in about 45 minutes. Hamburg airport is under two hours away.

Best for: Families and kitesurfers who want sandy beaches and an easy drive

Not for you if: You dislike wind: Fehmarn is flat and exposed, which is exactly why the kitesurfers come.

Eckernförde, Damp and the Schlei (Hasselberg, Gelting, Brodersby, Westerholz)

Eckernförde has a sandy town beach a few minutes' walk from the old harbour, where sprats are still smoked. Damp is a purpose-built resort with a marina. Further north the Schlei, a long narrow inlet, runs inland to Schleswig and the Viking site of Haithabu, and near Gelting the Geltinger Birk reserve has wild horses grazing by the shore. Hasselberg and Westerholz are quieter still. Hamburg airport is one and a half to two hours away.

Best for: Couples who want quiet beaches, sailing water and small towns

Not for you if: You want a resort atmosphere: apart from Eckernförde and Damp, this is farmland and small villages.

Kiel Bay (Kalifornien, Hohwacht)

The Probstei coast north-east of Kiel has long sandy beaches with dunes and dykes behind them, at Kalifornien and Schönberger Strand. Laboe, with its naval memorial and a U-boat you can go inside, is about 20 minutes away. Hohwacht, further east, sits on a wide bay with low cliffs and a quieter feel. Hamburg airport is around an hour and a half by car.

Best for: Families who want long sandy beaches near Kiel

Not for you if: You want plenty of choice: there are far fewer villas here than further east.

Greifswald and the eastern coast (Ostseebad Lubmin, Ueckermünde)

Lubmin faces the shallow Greifswalder Bodden, so the water is usually calm. Greifswald, a university town with a brick Gothic centre and the ruins of Eldena Abbey, is around 20 minutes away. Ueckermünde sits on the Stettin Lagoon near the Polish border, with a small sandy beach and an old town. The island of Usedom is within an hour of both. Berlin is around two and a half to three hours by car.

Best for: Calm lagoon water and a base close to Usedom

Not for you if: You want open-sea waves: Lubmin and Ueckermünde face sheltered lagoons, not the open Baltic.

When to go to Baltic Sea

July and August are the warmest and busiest months, with German school holidays staggered by state from late June to mid-September. June and early September are calmer, and most people still find the sea swimmable. The Baltic stays cool all summer, so a heated pool helps if children want to swim every day. From November to March many beach kiosks and cafés close, but Wismar, Eckernförde and Greifswald carry on as normal and rates drop sharply.