Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [666]
BOAT
Reederei Ostsee-Tour ( 038392-3150; www.reederei-ostsee-tour.de, in German) will carry you around the coast from Göhren to Sassnitz, via Sellin and Binz between April and October. Sample fares include Göhren–Binz (€7), Göhren–Sassnitz (€8) and Sassnitz–Binz (€6).
BUS
RPNV Buses ( 03838-822 90; www.rpnv.de, in German) link practically all communities, though service can be sporadic.
Fares are according to distance: Binz–Göhren, for example, costs €4.30. A day card for the whole network is often a good deal at €11. Local tourist offices have timetables and maps (€1).
CAR & MOTORCYCLE
If you don’t have much time, a car is the most convenient (if not the most environmentally friendly) mode of transport on Rügen Island. The main artery is the B96.
TRAIN
More than just a tourist attraction, the Rasender Roland ( 038301-801 12; www.ruegensche-baederbahn.de, in German) steam train serves as a handy mode of transport as it chuffs between Putbus and Göhren (check online or with tourist offices for seasonal schedules). En route, it stops in Binz, Jagdschloss Granitz, Sellin and Baabe; several services a day also go beyond Putbus to Lauterbach Mole. Much of the narrow track passes through sun-dappled forest.
The route is divided into five zones, each costing €1.60. Bikes cost €2.10. There are discounts for families.
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Binz
038393 / pop 5600
Rügen’s largest and most celebrated seaside resort, ‘Ostseebad’ (Baltic Sea spa) Binz is a romantic confection of ornate, white 19th-century villas, white sand and blue water. Its roads are signed in Gothic script and lined with coastal pines and chestnut trees. Even if all the signs of 21st-century capitalism abound, especially along jam-packed Hauptstrasse, you can still feel the pull of history.
The town’s spruced-up Bäderarchitektur (spa architecture) – as the villas with their wrought-iron latticework or carved wooden balconies are collectively called – is separated from the beach by the long tree-lined Strandpromenade. Once you step onto the sand, you have glorious views of Prorer Wiek bay and its white chalk cliffs.
INFORMATION
Tourist information (www.ostseebad-binz.de; 9am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-6pm Sat & Sun Apr-Oct, 9am-4pm Mon-Fri, 11am-4pm Sat & Sun Nov-Apr) is available from the following:
Fremdenverkehrsein ( 665 740; Paulstrasse 2) Room bookings.
Kurverwaltung ( 148 148; Heinrich-Heine-Strasse 7) General information. Has internet access.
Rügener Reiselotse ( 337 89; Proraer Chaussee 3f) Room bookings and holiday apartment rental.
Note that Binz has two train stations, the main Ostseebad Binz Bahnhof, serving RE and IC trains, and the Kleinbahnhof, 2km southeast, serving the Rasender Roland steam train (see opposite). Both are well signposted.
SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES
Strandpromenade
A highlight of Binz is simply strolling its 4km-long north–south beach promenade lined with elegant villas. At the southern end of the built-up area, you’ll find the palatial Kurhaus (opposite), a lovely-looking 1908 building housing a luxury hotel. In front of it is the long pier. Strandpromenade continues further south from here, but becomes markedly less busy.
At the northern end of the beach is the IFA holiday park and its state-of-the-art Vitamar pool ( 911 02; Strandpromenade 74; adult per hr €3; 7.30am-10pm), with slides, whirlpool, saunas and waterfalls.
For catamaran and windsurfing lessons and equipment hire, contact Sail & Surf Rügen ( 411 30; www.segelschule-ruegen.de, in German).
Jagdschloss Granitz
A grandiose hunting palace built in 1723 on top of the 107m-high Tempelberg, Jagdschloss Granitz ( 2263; adult/concession/child €3/2.50/1.50; 9am-6pm Tue-Sat May-Sep, 10am-4pm Tue-Sun Oct-Apr) was significantly enlarged and altered by Wilhelm Malte I (including the addition of the 38m-high tower). Malte’s flights of fancy also gave Rügen the grandiose Putbus.
From Binz, you can travel to the palace aboard the forest-green Jagdschlossexpress ( 338 80; www.jagdschlossexpress.de, in German; adult/child