Schleswig: Gottorf Castle, Holm and the City Harbour
Accommodation in Schleswig
Schleswig offers a range of ways to plan a stay: museums and archaeological finds, local history, sculptures and activities at the city harbour. The city’s cultural attractions include Gottorf Castle, St. Peter’s Cathedral, the City Museum and Holm. If you’re looking for a hotel in Schleswig, you can plan your itinerary around these interests: would you like to focus mainly on collections and traces of the past, or also include a boat trip on the Schlei? The following highlights offer some concrete ideas.
Museum Island at Gottorf Castle: Archaeology and Art History
Museum Island at Gottorf Castle in Schleswig brings together the Museum of Archaeology and the Museum of Art and Cultural History. The Museum of Archaeology at Gottorf Castle houses more than ten million finds spanning 80,000 years of human history. Archaeological finds on display on Gottorf’s Museum Island include the Nydam Boat and the bog bodies. This timespan gives the collection a broad historical context; these named finds offer specific points of interest for anyone particularly interested in archaeology. The second museum also makes art and cultural history part of the island’s offerings.
Sculptures from the late 19th century to the present
The sculpture park on Schleswig’s castle island offers a different approach to art. It features more than 50 figurative and abstract sculptures dating from the late 19th century to the present day. The themes are therefore quite distinct: the Museum of Archaeology focuses on finds, while the sculpture park is devoted to sculpture. If sculptures are of interest to you, you can include this highlight in your travel plans alongside the archaeological collections.
Holm, the Town Hall and the Cathedral Tower
Holm offers a way to trace the changes in the city’s history: for centuries, the fishing district was an island, until it was connected to the mainland of Schleswig in 1933. The Holm Museum documents changes in the Holm district through historical and more recent photographs. The Town Hall complex includes a hall built in the second half of the 13th century, where extensive medieval wall paintings have been uncovered. The cathedral tower rises above the Old Town as a landmark. The historical themes thus range from Holm’s former status as an island and changes captured in photographs to medieval paintings.
The City Harbour and the Schlei
The city harbour in Schleswig offers a different focus. It has 185 berths for visiting and permanent boats, as well as a bicycle rental service. Boat trips on the Schlei are available from there. The harbour also has cafés, bistros and restaurants, including places serving fish rolls. The boat trips bring the Schlei into focus, while the bicycle rental service and dining options add other interests to the harbour’s offerings. When planning your trip, you can weigh up museum visits, local history and activities by the water.
Schleswig within the wider Schleswig-Flensburg destination
In the wider Schleswig-Flensburg destination, Haithabu and the Danevirke have been UNESCO World Heritage Sites since June 2018. The sites are associated with Viking Age trade, border fortifications and the Schleswig isthmus. Visitor museums include the Haithabu Viking Museum and the Danevirke Museum. The region also offers natural attractions: the Schlei Nature Park has gentle hills, forests, hedgerows, rapeseed and grain fields, sandy beaches and bathing coves. The Schlei’s brackish waters provide a habitat for numerous endangered bird species.
Discover more destinations: GlĂĽcksburg, Gelting Bay, Harrislee, SĂĽderbrarup, Langballig, Kappeln-Land, Mittelangeln, Arensharde
Go to the main travel overview: Schleswig-Flensburg.
