Heringsdorf is a semi-urban

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

and a popular

seaside resort A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germ ...

Usedom Island Usedom (german: Usedom , pl, Uznam ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It is north of the Szczecin ...

Western Pomerania Historical Western Pomerania, also called Cispomerania, Fore Pomerania, Front Pomerania or Hither Pomerania (german: Vorpommern), is the western extremity of the historic region of Pomerania forming the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, Weste ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It is also known by the name Kaiserbad ('' en, Imperial Spa''). The municipality was formed in January 2005 out of the former municipalities of Heringsdorf,

Ahlbeck Ahlbeck is a village (''Ortsteil'') of the Heringsdorf municipality on the island of Usedom on the Baltic coast. It is the easternmost of the so-called ''Kaiserbäder'' ("Imperial Spas") seaside resorts on the German part of the island, situa ...

and Bansin. Until January 2006, the municipality was called ''Dreikaiserbäder'', literally meaning ''Three Imperial Spas'', a reference to several vacation visits of the German emperor Wilhelm II until 1918. For the same reason, the fine sandy beach stretching about 12 km (7.5 miles) from Bansin over Heringsdorf to

and Swinemünde (nowadays a Polish spa), is also called ''Kaiserstrand'' (Imperial Beach). The continuous

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

beach of

has an overall length of exactly 40 km (25 miles) and an average width of 40 m (130 feet).

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

is the dominant economical sector of the Imperial Spas, with an increasing number of hotels and vacation homes every year.

Overview

Heringsdorf is located on the

coast of the island of

Usedom Usedom (german: Usedom , pl, Uznam ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It is north of the Szczecin ...

, about 10 km as the crow flies northwest of

Świnoujście Świnoujście (; german: Swinemünde ; nds, Swienemünn; all three meaning "Świna ivermouth"; csb, Swina) is a city and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, located in the extreme north-west of Poland. Situated mainly on the islands o ...

. Heringsdorf has been one of the most popular resorts on the German Baltic shore since its foundation. It consists of three parts:

on the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

border, Heringsdorf proper (central part) and Bansin in the west. These three ''Kaiserbäder'' were the favourite spas of the

German Emperor The German Emperor (german: Deutscher Kaiser, ) was the official title of the head of state and hereditary ruler of the German Empire. A specifically chosen term, it was introduced with the 1 January 1871 constitution and lasted until the offi ...

s, and also called the ''bathtub of Berlin''. They feature clean beaches and numerous scenic houses and mansions in the distinct style of ''

Bäderarchitektur Resort architecture (german: Bäderarchitektur) is an architectural style that is especially characteristic of spas and seaside resorts on the German Baltic coast. The style evolved since the foundation of Heiligendamm in 1793, and flourished esp ...

'' (resort architecture).

Partner municipalities

Heringsdorf is partnered with other towns and municipalities, namely Beckum in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

(Germany),

Folgaria Folgaria (Cimbrian: ''Folgrait'', from the Latin ''filicaria'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about southeast of Trento. As of 31 December 2013, it had a population ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

La Celle-Saint-Cloud La Celle-Saint-Cloud () is a commune in the Yvelines department of the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is a western suburb of Paris, from the center. Population Transport La Celle-Saint-Cloud is served by two stations on th ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

; as well as

Grodków Grodków (; szl, Grodkōw) is a town in Brzeg County, Opole Voivodeship in Poland, the administrative seat of Gmina Grodków. It is located in the Silesian Lowlands of the Oder basin, in the historic Upper Silesia region, about south of Brz ...

Tolkmicko Tolkmicko (pronounced , german: Tolkemit) is a town in northern Poland, on the Vistula Lagoon, about 20 km northeast of Elbląg. It is located in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in Elbląg County. Its population is 2,766 (2004). History Middl ...

and the neighbouring

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. In addition, Heringsdorf is in frequent contact with

Djerba Djerba (; ar, جربة, Jirba, ; it, Meninge, Girba), also transliterated as Jerba or Jarbah, is a Tunisian island and the largest island of North Africa at , in the Gulf of Gabès, off the coast of Tunisia. It had a population of 139,544 ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and the embassy of

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Transportation

The area is served by

Heringsdorf Airport Heringsdorf Airport (german: Flughafen Heringsdorf) is a regional airport located near Garz on the island of Usedom in Germany. It used to be an East German airbase and today features summer leisure routes from cities in Germany and Switzerland ...

. Heringsdorf Station is the hub and headquarters of the

Usedomer Bäderbahn The Usedomer Bäderbahn (UBB) with its head office in Heringsdorf, northeastern Germany, is a 100 percent-owned subsidiary of the German national railway, Deutsche Bahn and the owner and operator of the railway network on the island of Usedom ...

Images

Image:Seebruecke Ahlbeck 2.jpg,

Ahlbeck pier Ahlbeck Pier ( German: ''Seebrücke Ahlbeck'' Polish: ''Molo w Czerninie'') - a pier located in Ahlbeck, on the island of Usedom; it is the oldest pier in Germany. The pier stretches from the ''Imperial Beach'' for 280 metres into the Baltic Se ...

Image:Usedom-Heringsdorf-Okt2004.jpg, Beach of Heringsdorf Image:Bansin Usedom Seebruecke pier.jpg, Bansin promenade seen from the pier File:Usedom Karte Map Heringsdorf Ahlbeck Bansin Swinemünde.png, Map of Heringsdorf including

and Bansin and neighbouring city of Swinemünde/Świnoujście in Poland

References

External links