The Darß or Darss is the middle part of the peninsula of
Fischland-Darß-Zingst on the southern shore of the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
in the
German state of
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ranks 14th in population; it covers an are ...
. The peninsula's name is of
Slavic origin. There is a large forest in the Darß. In recent times, the name "Darß" has also been used to refer to the entire peninsula.
The Darß is famous for being a resting place for tens of thousands of migrating
cranes and
geese. Tourism has long been a source of income and has increased since
German reunification
German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...
, but the Darß is still far from being a crowded tourist place.
Location and character
The Darß lies northeast of
Fischland and west of the peninsula of
Zingst, its boundary with the latter being formed by the inlet of the
Prerower Strom. To the north lies the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
; to the south the lagoons of
Saaler Bodden and
Bodstedter Bodden, which belong to the
Darss-Zingst Bodden Chain. The Darß measures between from north to south and from east to west and is home to the villages of
Born a. Darß,
Prerow and
Wieck. The village of Ahrenshoop in the municipality of
Ahrenshoop belongs to Vordarß, whilst the southern villages in Ahrenshoop,
Althagen and
Niehagen, are part of Fischland.
Most of the Darß is covered by the woodland of the
Darß Forest, in area. On the northern tip of the Darß, at
Darßer Ort, is a
lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Ligh ...
of the same name. The National Park exhibition in Wieck a. Darß provides information about the geological development as well as the flora and fauna of the
Western Pomerania Lagoon Area National Park, as does the
Natureum in Wieck a. Darß attached to the
Darßer Ort Lighthouse, as outstations of the
German Oceanographic Museum in
Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish language, Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Stralsund (German language, German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklen ...
. Darßer Ort is an extended chain of sandbanks running in a northeasterly direction. The entire area around Darßer Ort as well as the northwestern part of the Darß Forest is part of Protection Zone I of the National Park and may only be visited on marked paths. The rest of the forested region is also part of the National Park.
External links
official siteDarß Auf der Sonnenseite
{{DEFAULTSORT:Darss
German islands in the Baltic
Peninsulas of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
Fischland-Darß-Zingst