Wilsum and Neuenhaus (Niedergrafschaft)
Wilsum has the largest group of homes on this page, a few kilometres from the Dutch border. The country around it, the Niedergrafschaft, is flat farmland, pine woods and small heaths crossed by signed cycle routes. Neuenhaus, around 15 minutes away, is a small town where the Dinkel meets the Vechte. Coevorden, a fortress town in the Netherlands, is a short drive west. Münster Osnabrück airport is around an hour and a quarter away.
Best for: Quiet cycling, woods and short hops into the Netherlands
Not for you if: You want shops and restaurants on foot: Wilsum is a small village, and supplies mean a drive.
Nordhorn
Nordhorn is the main town of the Grafschaft Bentheim, laced with canals and arms of the Vechte, with canoe and pedal-boat hire in summer. The Vechtesee on the edge of town has a path round it, and the Tierpark Nordhorn is a family zoo with a strong focus on farm animals. Bad Bentheim, with its hilltop castle, is about 20 minutes away. Münster Osnabrück airport is around an hour by car.
Best for: Families who want a town base with a lake, a zoo and canals
Not for you if: You want a pretty old town: Nordhorn is a former textile town, more practical than handsome.
Twist and Meppen (central Emsland)
Twist sits on the edge of the Bourtanger Moor, a raised bog straddling the Dutch border, now part of a cross-border nature park. The Emsland Moor Museum at Groß Hesepe, about 15 minutes away, covers peat cutting and the families who settled the moors. Meppen, the district town, stands where the Hase meets the Ems, with a compact old town and riverside paths. Bremen and Münster Osnabrück airports are each around an hour and a half away.
Best for: Moorland walks, flat cycling and peat-cutting history
Not for you if: You want rolling scenery: this is very flat, with long straight roads across reclaimed bog.
The Hümmling and the lower Ems (Dörpen, Lathen, Börger, Neubörger, Surwold)
The Hümmling is a low ridge of sandy woods and heath east of the Ems, scattered with megalithic tombs. Börger, Neubörger and Surwold are among its villages, and nearby Sögel has Clemenswerth, a baroque hunting lodge with its pavilions set in a star around it. Dörpen and Lathen are on the Ems, 15 to 30 minutes from Papenburg, where the Meyer Werft visitor centre shows cruise ships under construction. Bremen airport is about an hour and a quarter away.
Best for: Shipyard visits, Stone Age tombs and the Ems cycle path
Not for you if: You don't drive: buses across the Hümmling are infrequent and the villages are spread out.
