Norderney

Norderney was established as a sea bathing resort in 1797, the first on the German North Sea coast, and grew through the nineteenth century into a fashionable spa with a Kurhaus and promenade. It is about fourteen kilometres long and mostly dune, with a fourteen-kilometre beach on the seaward side and the Wadden Sea on the landward. The Wadden Sea, the largest unbroken system of intertidal sand and mud flats in the world, was UNESCO-listed in 2009; guided walks called Wattwanderungen cross the exposed flats at low tide, which must be done with a guide because the tide returns fast and channels fill.

History

Norderney is the youngest of the East Frisian islands: the Grote Mandrenke flood of 1362 split the larger island of Buise, whose western part vanished in the St Peter's Flood of 1651, while the eastern remnant, Ostrende, grew and appears in a census of 1550 as "Norder neys Oog", with a church and 18 houses. The island is first recorded in 1398, and by 1650 it was about 8.3 kilometres long with about 18 houses and 101 people; a severe storm flooded it at Christmas 1717, and in the 1830s shellfish gathering became the islanders' main work. Crown Prince George of Hanover first came in 1836 and from 1851 held court here each summer, a 950-metre promenade was built in 1858 and the windmill in 1862, and by 1899 the island had 4,018 inhabitants and 26,000 guests (Wikipedia, Norderney).

What you'll find

• The 1797 resort - the first German North Sea bathing place, with its Kurhaus.
• The dune island - fourteen kilometres of dunes and beach.
• The Wadden Sea - UNESCO-listed tidal flats on the landward side.
• The mudflat walks - guided crossings of the exposed sea floor at low tide.

When to go

May to September for the beach; the island is quieter and starker in winter. Mudflat walks run to the tide table and must be booked with a guide.

Things to know

Crossing the flats without a guide is genuinely dangerous. Ferries run to tide-dependent timetables. The North Sea is cold and windy even in August.

Nearby

Juist lies west; Baltrum and Langeoog are east.