Hello sea! I was back at the Baltic Sea last weekend. This time it was hard work to get there though, biking 330km from Berlin to Zinnowitz. I couldn’t have enjoyed it more, stunned by the beauty of Germany’s varied landscape.

Day 1: Berlin Pankow – Prenzlau, 132km

Our starting point to the long-distance cycling route is at the home of my friend Peggy, instead of the Berlin Cathedral a few kilometres away. I am carrying just a bike bag with a few clothes to change and a front basket to store water, food and valuables. This year I didn’t yet have many occasions for cycling (and I don’t like the route to my work), but at least I have a good bike compared to my friend Coco who is still on her 3-speed hub gear. But who cares, we just want to be active and outdoors.

The first part until Bernau is an easy one as we already cycled it last year. We are cycling through Barnim on well maintained routes, through forrests, along lakes and rivers. It’s fathers day and we get to meet far more (drunk) men on their (motor)bikes than we would like to, but somehow it’s also fun. When we bike into the Uckermark, the landscape changes, gets more hilly and there are endless bright yellow canola fields. We are taking breaks as we need them but when we are close to Warnitz, we feel rather tired. By phone we couldn’t book any room in the area and on place it seems even worse. We continue and decide to call some hotels in Prenzlau, luckily the first one has a 3 bed room available. My butt aches and I feel like I cannot sit anylonger on the bike, but finally at the other side of the lake we can see the cathedral of Prenzlau. Soon we are sitting at the nice terrace of our hotel and enjoy our dinner before falling in our beds.

Tour on Komoot: https://www.komoot.de/tour/8915329

Day 2: Prenzlau – Leopoldshagen, 85km

We wake up to another beautiful day, after some Yoga exercise and breakfast it’s a bit of a pain to be sitting again on the bike but after a few minutes I get used to it again. After a short visit of Prenzlau and the cathedral, we are heading towards a beautiful road with the cherry trees blooming just for us. We take time for pictures, luckily there is just one car disturbing us. There will be a lot of road driving today, usually on not too much frequented roads. We enjoy our time even though we start having some pain and especially Coco has some knee problems. Some coffee break, some lunch breaks, some cake break and some biking of course! The weather couldn’t be better, we have left spring for perfect summer days. Arriving in Mönkebude we decide it’s time to stop for the day and luckily arrive just one minute before the tourist agency closes… and get a small room about 5km away in Leopoldshagen. Some ice cream at the “beach” of Münkebude (people are already swimming!) and we head to our accommodation for the night.

Tour on Komoot: https://www.komoot.de/tour/8942021

Day 3: Leopoldshagen – Swinemünde, 80km

This morning we take our time for breakfast, sitting outside in the sun. One of the most beautiful parts of the tour is ahead of us, biking right through the Stettiner Haff. Water to the right and the left, birds, reed, bog forrest, it is incredibly beautiful. The pictures cannot capture how amazing the nature is, so we just admire. In Anklam we take our first break for a coffee and some food. I am even buying a short, it’s just getting too hot! Next is the town of Usedom for lunch, before heading to Poland and spending the night in Swinemünde (as everything else is booked out). It feels a bit surreal to drive into Swinemünde, the buildings, industry, people, after spending so much time in the nature. For one night it is ok, but I cannot recommend it. So rather book a nice accomodation in advance in Ahlbeck or Heringsdorf instead of having to make this detour. We still have a nice dinner and walk at the beach and promenade.

Tour on Komoot: https://www.komoot.de/tour/8977781

Day 4: Swinemünde – Zinnowitz (+Beach), 15km

This is the final day and there are not many kilometers left. We already tackle a few of them driving along the big promenade into Germany and to Heringsdorf. We enjoy breakfast outside again and while I am meeting some friends on holidays, the others go for some sunbathing. We continue and get to discover all the small towns or camping places in Usedom. Our heart is set on Ueckeritz, a place that staid natural with lots of camping space and 2 restaurants with view directly above the sea. Perfect last lunch before we continue to our final destination in Zinnowitz… not to forget the memorable train ride home with hundreds of other bikers and not enough space for everyone. We are just lucky to have gotten in early!

Tour on Komoot: https://www.komoot.de/tour/9006358

Conclusion

The bike tour Berlin-Usedom is about 330km and it is definitely worth the effort. The nature is impressive and there are very nice accommodations on the way. It is rather easy to navigate using the signs, there were only few times we had to look at our guide to see which direction is next. Book ahead to avoid too long days and to make sure you get a nice accommodation. Pack very light because even on a bike it gets tiring to push all your gear. Get one additional day to relax at the sea.