Over the sound to Burg: A summer return to Fehmarn

I first visited the north German island of Fehmarn in the summer of 2020, months before I knew I’d spend the next two years working just across the sound on the Danish island of Lolland. The first year or so, I was stuck in Denmark due to Covid-19 restrictions, but when summer 2022 came around, I felt it was finally time for a return to Fehmarn.

In the morning of a cloudy and warm day in late June, I caught the ferry from Rødbyhavn and sailed over the calm Fehmarn Belt to Puttgarden. This is where most Danes stop on Fehmarn to shop at the enormous border shop which apparently is the largest of its kind in the world. A sight to behold, but not my destination for the day. So I caught the train north and eight minutes later, I reached Burg, Fehmarn’s largest town.

Burg is a well-preserved medieval town, which is home to around 6000 souls. I was expecting there to be many people in the streets as it was a nice day, but I was not expecting the town to be as heavily trafficked as it was. While I loved Burg’s old town feel with its crooked doors, intricately decorated historic houses and cobbled streets, the traffic took away from the atmosphere and made me want to immediately escape to the countryside.

So I did.

I followed a random trail taking me away from the crowds and to the tiny village of Sahrensdorf. Desperate for some shade and a break from the burning sun, I hid behind a bush with a view to Burg in the horizon. There, I sat resting and eating for over an hour until my butt hurt and it was time to get a move on. Back on the hot country roads.

Soon, I reached a road leading down to Südstrand, one of the most popular beaches on Fehmarn. That was something I hadn’t realized that when I picked out the beach as my destination, hoping to find some beautiful nature and a good ocean view.

But with three ugly Soviet-style high-rises in the horizon and hoards of cars and bikes headed that way, I decided to ditch the beach and head for the harbour instead, hoping to find an ice cream shop and a nice shady place to rest. The cloud coverage that the forecast had promised and that I so desperately needed had only held true for the morning; in the afternoon, the sun was out in full force. And since Fehmarn is all flat farmlands, it’s not easy to find shade. I was literally roasting.

From the harbour, I walked back towards the train station along a path that covers the old railway tracks, which were still visible in a few sections.

I wasn’t successful in finding a vegan ice cream until fifteen minutes before my train back to Puttgarden, but I gobbled it up like never before. I can’t remember the last time I’d felt so hot and worn out! It was the most amazing feeling when I could finally park myself on a chair on the ferry deck and peek into the horizon as we sailed back home to Lolland.

My second trip to Fehmarn wasn’t as successful as the first, but I’d say that’s mainly due to the unbearably hot weather. While I did find Burg beautiful, I liked my day up north much more as there were hardly any people, even on the beaches – and this was also in the summer.

So if you do want to visit Fehmarn for a day, I’d recommend spending a few hours exploring Burg before heading up north for a hike along the coast and into the peaceful countryside.