Sylt

Sylt is a long thin island held against the North Sea by dunes, with open beach down the whole western side and the sheltered mudflats of the Watt on the east. The causeway built in the 1920s carries only the railway, so cars arrive loaded on a shuttle train from Niebull, which sets the island's rhythm and part of its price. Westerland is the main town and mostly modern; Kampen has the Rotes Kliff, a red-brown bluff above the sand; List at the northern end runs out into the Ellenbogen, a bare dune spit that is the top of the country. Keitum keeps the thatched captains' houses.

History

Sylt was once part of Jutland, with signs of people at the Denghoog as early as 3000 BC, and Frisians settled in the 8th and 9th centuries; in 1386 it was divided between the Duke of Schleswig and the King of Denmark, and in 1435, apart from List, it became part of the Duchy of Schleswig. Whaling, fishing and oyster farming brought wealth in the 17th and 18th centuries, when Keitum became the island's capital and a home for rich captains, and in 1855 Westerland became a seaside resort, later replacing Keitum as capital; since 1927 the Hindenburgdamm has linked the island to the mainland (Wikipedia, Sylt).

The landscape

• The Rotes Kliff - the red-brown cliff standing above the beach at Kampen.
• The Ellenbogen - the dune spit at the northern tip, the northernmost point of Germany.
• The west beach - close to forty kilometres of open sand facing the North Sea.
• Keitum - thatched captains' houses and hedged lanes on the sheltered Watt side.

When to go

June to September gives the warmest water and the fullest island, with everything open and nothing cheap. May and late September are quieter and still workable for walking and cycling. Autumn and winter bring storms worth seeing but a thinner choice of places open, and the wind on the west beach is serious in any month.

Practical notes

Sylt is expensive in a way that surprises first-time visitors, and July and August book out months ahead. Westerland's centre is blocky and unlovely. The sea rarely gets past eighteen degrees, the wind blows constantly and the beach shrinks after big storms. The car-train queues at the start and end of holiday weeks, and once on the island parking near the good beaches is limited.

Nearby

Amrum and Fohr by ferry, the Wadden Sea flats, and the mainland town of Husum.

Key facts