Lonstrup

Lonstrup is a village on the North Sea coast below a high cliff of glacial clay that the sea is steadily taking, at a rate that has already removed roads and houses and continues to be measured every year, which gives the place a particular relationship with its setting. The beach below is reached down gaps in the cliff, the best known at Mardrup Gab. The village has a long association with artists and craftspeople and has a concentration of workshops, potters, weavers and glassmakers, which sets it apart from the resort towns nearby. Rubjerg Knude, the lighthouse moved inland in 2019 to escape the same erosion, stands a short way north, and the Mardrup and Nr Lyngby cliffs run along the coast.

What you actually see

• The retreating clay cliff - erosion measured and visible year to year.
• Mardrup Gab - the gap in the cliff giving beach access.
• Craft workshops - potters, weavers and glassmakers in the village.
• Rubjerg Knude nearby - the lighthouse moved inland to escape the sea.

When to go

May to September for the workshops and the beach; the coast is dramatic in winter storms but everything closes. Half a day. Workshop opening depends on individual makers, so weekdays in summer are safest.

Honest expectations

The cliff edge is genuinely unstable and collapses happen; keep well back from the top and away from the base. The village is very small. Workshop opening is irregular. Parking is limited in summer.

Nearby

Rubjerg Knude lighthouse is north; Lokken lies south along the coast.