Villas in Lüneburger Heide

Bispingen and Schneverdingen suit heath walks, Lüneburg and Bleckede suit the Elbe, and Bad Bevensen suits a quieter spa stay. The heather flowers purple from August into September. Homes are holiday houses and flats rather than villas, spread across a wide area between Hamburg and Hannover, so you will need a car.

Where

Villas: 87
From, per week: £313
Cheapest month: December
Nearest airports: Hamburg suits the north and the Elbe, around 45 minutes to an hour away. Hannover suits Walsrode and the Südheide. Flights from London to Hamburg or Hannover take around an hour and a half.

Where to stay in Lüneburger Heide

The central heath (Bispingen, Schneverdingen, Walsrode)

This is the Lüneburg Heath most people picture, with juniper and heather around the Wilseder Berg and the car-free village of Wilsede, reached on foot, by bike or by horse-drawn carriage. Schneverdingen holds a heath festival each August. Bispingen has the Snow Dome indoor ski slope, the Heide Park theme park is at Soltau, and Walsrode has a large bird park. Hamburg and Hannover airports are each around an hour away.

Best for: Heath walks, carriage rides and big days out with children

Not for you if: You want the heath to yourself in late August: car parks around Wilsede fill early.

Lüneburg and the Elbe (Bardowick, Thomasburg, Pommoissel, Bleckede, Amt Neuhaus)

Lüneburg grew rich on salt, and its old town of brick gables and the German Salt Museum are a short drive from Bardowick, Thomasburg and Pommoissel. Bleckede sits on the Elbe, with a small ferry across to Amt Neuhaus, which was part of East Germany and only joined Lower Saxony in 1993. The river meadows are a UNESCO biosphere reserve, with storks in the villages in summer. Hamburg airport is about an hour away.

Best for: A historic town base and cycling along the Elbe dykes

Not for you if: You came for heather: this eastern side is river meadow and farmland, with the open heath 40 minutes to an hour west.

The Elbmarsch and the Hamburg edge (Marschacht, Tespe, Stelle, Seevetal, Toppenstedt)

Marschacht and Tespe are dyke villages on the Elbe, with cycle paths along the river and the Geesthacht weir close by. Stelle and Seevetal sit just south of Hamburg; from Stelle the city centre is roughly half an hour by regional train. Toppenstedt is further south, on the northern fringe of the heath, with Lüneburg around half an hour away. Hamburg airport is around 45 minutes to an hour from most of this area.

Best for: Combining Hamburg days with flat cycling by the river

Not for you if: You want heath and forest outside the door: this is flat marsh and commuter country.

Bad Bevensen and the Uelzen heath (Bad Bevensen, Suderburg)

Bad Bevensen is a small spa town on the Ilmenau river, built around an iodine brine pool complex, with Medingen convent on its edge. Uelzen, around 15 minutes south, has a railway station remodelled by the artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser, all onion domes and coloured tiles. Suderburg lies further south among woods and smaller patches of heath. Lüneburg is about 25 minutes from Bad Bevensen. Hamburg and Hannover airports are each around an hour and a quarter away.

Best for: Spa days and quiet walks from a small town

Not for you if: You want late nights: Bad Bevensen is a spa town that goes quiet after dinner.

The Südheide and the Aller (Winsen an der Aller, Wietze, Sprakensehl)

The southern heath is more forest than open heather. Winsen and Wietze sit on the Aller, a slow river used for canoeing, and Wietze has the German Oil Museum on the site of an early oilfield. Celle, with its ducal palace and streets of half-timbered houses, is around 20 minutes away. Sprakensehl is further east, near the otter centre at Hankensbüttel. Hannover airport is around 45 minutes from Winsen and Wietze.

Best for: Forest walks, canoeing and Celle's half-timbered old town

Not for you if: You want the classic purple heath: here it is mostly pine forest, with heather in smaller patches.

When to go to Lüneburger Heide

The heather flowers from early August into September, and those weeks are the busiest, with heath festivals and full car parks around Wilsede. May and June are quieter, with fresh green birch woods and good cycling weather. School holidays in Hamburg and Lower Saxony fill the theme parks in July and August. Winter is grey and quiet, though the Snow Dome and the spa pools stay open, and Lüneburg's Christmas market runs through Advent. Some carriage rides and cafés on the heath close from November to March.