Svaneke

Svaneke is the smallest of Bornholm's market towns and the easternmost town in Denmark, a compact port of half-timbered and brick houses in yellow and red running down to a rocky harbour, and it was awarded a European gold medal for town preservation in 1975, which set the tone for how it has been looked after since. The harbour is cut into granite rather than built on sand. Around it are the things Bornholm is known for: a brewery on the harbour front, smokehouses with their distinctive white chimneys turning out smoked herring, and glass, ceramic and craft workshops that make up a significant part of the island's economy. Three windmills stand above the town, including a rare post mill.

History

The name, recorded as Swencke in 1410, comes from the old Danish words for swan and inlet. Svaneke probably dates from the 12th or 13th century, when herring was fished along Bornholm's east coast, and it was a market town by the early 16th century, with a mayor and council by 1543. Almost half the town burned in 1610, and from February 1658 to May 1660 it was briefly part of the Swedish Empire with the rest of Bornholm. Trade and shipbuilding grew in the 18th and 19th centuries, when the merchants' houses that still line the harbour were built; the population, 663 in 1801, doubled after the new harbour of 1816 opened up shipbuilding. Unlike other Bornholm towns, Svaneke escaped modernisation after the island's railways opened in the early 20th century, and later the Friends of Svaneke stopped inappropriate renovation. It is Denmark's easternmost town (Wikipedia, Svaneke).

What's there

• Half-timbered harbour streets - the preserved town centre in yellow and red.
• A granite-cut harbour - the port carved into rock rather than built out.
• Smokehouse chimneys - the white cones of the herring smokeries.
• Craft workshops - glass and ceramics that the island trades on.

When to go

May to September; Bornholm largely closes in winter and ferry and flight schedules thin. Half a day for the town, longer with the workshops. July is busy with Danish holidaymakers.

Before you go

The season is short and much shuts from October. In July the town is crowded and accommodation is expensive and booked far ahead. Getting to Bornholm takes effort from anywhere. Craft prices are high.

Nearby

Gudhjem is north along the coast; Christianso is reached by boat from here in season.

Key facts