Rügen Island

Introducing Rügen Island

Rügen is much mythologised in the German national imagination. Frequented in the late 19th and early 20th century by the country’s good and great, including Bismarck, Thomas Mann and Einstein, its chalk coastline was also immortalised by Romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich in 1818.

Unfortunately, Hitler was also beguiled by Germany’s largest island, choosing one of its most beautiful sandy beaches to build a monstrous holiday resort for his loyal troops. Later, GDR governments made Rügen the holiday choice for dedicated comrades, as well as top apparatchik Erich Honecker.

Although it boasts 574km of coast, much of Rügen is covered in leafy vegetation. Driving across the island, you’ll pass beneath lush canopies of chestnut, oak, elm and poplar trees. Its surrounding waters are national parks or protected nature reserves.

Many visitors make a beeline for the main resort of Binz and the Stubbenkammer area of white chalk cliffs in the Jasmund National Park. However, Rügen has many corners to explore and also features some interesting, historic buildings.

Its resorts’ white villas have been refurbished since 1990, as the island has reclaimed its place in tourist itineraries. A couple of flights of architectural fancy are found in the planned town of Putbus and the Jagdschloss Granitz.

Last updated: Mar 2, 2009