The Best Day Trips From Lübeck (2 Hours or Less Away!)

Travemünde 

Best way to get here: Regional Express (RE) train – 20 minutes 

Henry the Lion built up Lübeck’s “little sister” at the mouth of the Trave River to help protect its access to the Baltic Sea and protect the port of Lübeck. 

I adore sleepy little Travemünde, but I only recommend taking a day trip here if you plan on laying out at the beach. It’s been a popular seaside getaway since the 1800s and there’s not much else to do in the city center besides window shop, eat good seafood, and work on your tan. 

Claire’s Tip: The beach here isn’t free! You’ll need to purchase a day pass from one of the ticket machines along the beach promenade. The fee is minimal (around 3 Euros), don’t worry! 

Hamburg 

Best way to get here: Regional Express (RE) train – 45 minutes 

Hamburg is Germany’s second largest city, so you can’t see it all in a day. But you can definitely see most of the attractions in the Old Town and enjoy a Fischbrötchen (fish sandwich) while you’re at it.

If you’ve only got a day in Hamburg, I recommend the following: 

• Alster Arkaden — A Venetian-style shopping arcade just off the Alster, a tributary that feeds into the Elbe River.  
• City Hall — You won’t have time to take a tour of the inside, so content yourself with soaking in the beautiful exterior of this Neo-Renaissance town hall that opened in 1897. 
• Speicherstadt — A massive warehouse district (the world’s largest, in fact!) made entirely of red brick. There’s a coffee roastery tucked away here, as well as Miniatur Wunderland, which shows the world in miniatur. 
• Deichstraße — Arguably Hamburg’s prettiest street! It’s lined with Baroque facades and half-timbered buildings. Make sure you snap a photo of the backside of the buildings from the Hohe Brücke (High Bridge); the buildings all back onto the water and it looks like something from a postcard! 
• Elbphilharmonie — Thought to be the best classical concert hall in the world. Whenever I’m in Hamburg, I like to ride the world’s longest escalator up to the viewing platform to see the port from above. 

Wismar 

Best way to get here: Rental car – 55 minutes 

Wismar is a pint-sized city on the Baltic Sea with one of the best preserved ancient town centers in the region. Most of the Old Town escaped WWII unscathed, unlike Lübeck. 

There are enough things to do in Wismar to keep you busy for nearly a full day. I recommend making the tourist information office your first stop so you can pick up a map; I followed the walking route labeled on the map and suggest you do the same! 

Some of the highlights of a day trip to Wismar include: 

• Church of the Holy Spirit — There are several churches in the Old Town, but this one’s my favorite because the ceilings are covered in murals that date back to 1687. 
• Market Square — One of the biggest in Northern Germany. Look for the old pumping station that supplied Wismar with fresh water until 1897.  
• Old Harbor — Its layout hasn’t changed since the 1200s, so it really feels like you’re walking through history when you visit. Save the Old Harbor for lunchtime because there are boats selling the best fish sandwiches of your life! 

Schwerin 

Best way to get here: Regional Express (RE) train – 1 hour 15 minutes

Schwerin is one of the gems of the north, make no mistake! You can see most of it in a day, which is why it’s one of my top day trip recommendations. 

While in Schwerin, you HAVE to tour the Neo-Renaissance castle that sits on an island in Lake Schwerin. Part of the castle has been preserved to showcase what it would have looked like upon completion in 1857, and the other part is where the parliament of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania meets. 

You’ll likely spend most of your day exploring the castle and its gardens, but the Old Town is worth visiting too! It’s a lovely area to wander around aimlessly, and if you need an afternoon pick-me-up I love the cakes at Cafe Prag (address: Schloßstraße 17). 

Rostock

Best way to get here: Rental car – 1 hour 25 minutes

Rostock is yet another city in the area with major maritime flair, but it feels much more modern when compared to the medieval red brick architecture around Lübeck. That’s because Rostock was the GDR’s most important port and it’s still one of the most active in Germany today. 

Of the attractions in Rostock, here are my favorites: 

• Old City Wall — Just a small section of the 1-kilometer long city wall remains, but it’s pretty spectacular! I particularly loved the small Klostergarten (garden) by the section of the wall behind the Cultural History Museum. 
• St. Mary’s Church — A gorgeous Gothic red brick church built in 1472. The astronomical clock inside is a real highlight; it’s wound at noon each day, and the biblical figures at the top of the clock dance around after being wound! 
• Cultural History Museum — A small but interesting museum that explains the history of Rostock. Entry is free, so it’s worth popping inside to learn a little about the city. 

Warnemünde  

Best way to get here: Rental car – 1 hour 30 minutes

Just outside of Rostock is one of my all-time favorite beaches in the north. Warnemünde has a stunning 5-kilometer white sand beach dotted with blue and white striped Strandkörbe, a unique type of beach chair that’s common in this part of Germany.

In comparison to Travemünde, which is just 20 minutes from Lübeck and also has a lovely beach, Warnemünde is much larger and has more things to do. 

Besides laying out at the beach (a must!), here are some fun things to do in Warnemünde: 

• Alter Strom — This is the main shopping area, with lots of local boutiques and nice cafes. There are also boats docked by the quay selling (you guessed it!) the fish sandwiches that are so beloved in this part of Germany as well as other fish-based dishes. 
• Lighthouse — Built in 1897, the historic Warnemünde lighthouse offers a fantastic bird’s eye view of the town from above (entry is around 2 Euros). 
• Weekend fish market — On Saturdays and Sundays, there’s a sizable fish market on the opposite side of the Alter Strom. Get your hands on some of the local smoked fish, if you can! 

Ludwigslust 

Best way to get here: Rental car – 1 hour 30 minutes

An underrated day trip destination is quaint Ludwigslust, which is the only place on this list that’s not on the Baltic Coast. If you’ve already been to Schwerin but want to see another castle, Ludwigslust is a good second choice! 

The main attraction is the Baroque castle and its sprawling park. It was built as a hunting lodge for the dukes of Mecklenburg-Vorpommen, who resided in nearby Schwerin. 

The castle has been undergoing extensive renovations over the past few years, so expect at least one or two rooms to be covered in scaffolding during your visit. I still think the castle is worth visiting though because it costs less than 7 Euros to enter (a bargain!) and the parkland it sits on is incredible! 

Claire’s Tip: Depending on how long you take to explore the park and gardens, you might only need half a day in Ludwigslust. Besides the castle the only other real attraction is the church, which has the most amazing altar made from Ludwigslust Board (a type of papier mâché). 

Bremen

Best way to get here: Rental car – 2 hours 

I have the Brothers’ Grimm to thank for my visit to Bremen — the city is featured in their popular fairytale “The Town Musicians of Bremen,” a story about aging farm animals who form a band to avoid being abandoned or eaten by their masters who no longer have uses for them. 

It’s yet another lovely coastal city with a rich maritime trading history and lots of red brick buildings. 

My favorite things to do in Bremen are: 

• Schnoor Quarter — Where you’ll find the oldest houses in the city. Most of them have been converted to boutiques and cafes, so this is a great area to window shop and relax. 
• Roselius House — Although this house museum looks like it was plucked straight from the medieval era, it was actually just styled to look old! Ludwig Roselius (the inventor of decaf coffee, fun fact!) purchased the property in the early 1900s and remodeled it with the intention of opening it as a house museum one day. 
• Schlachte Embankment — The old harbor has been turned into a nice walk-around area, and there’s a flea market on Saturdays.