Holiday in Binz

About Binz

Binz on Rügen is Germany's largest and most elegant seaside resort and the jewel of spa architecture. The snowy white splendor of the villas along the beach promenade, the fine sandy beach, and the 370-meter-long pier make Binz the epitome of German seaside tourism. The spa architecture is the unique feature of Binz: Over 50 magnificent villas from the Gründerzeit and Art Nouveau line the beach promenade and the adjacent streets. These white holiday homes with their playful balconies, towers, bay windows, and wooden verandas were built between 1870 and 1910 and are now lovingly restored. A walk along the promenade resembles an open-air museum of architecture. The pier of Binz extends 370 meters into the Baltic Sea and serves as a dock for excursion boats to the chalk cliffs of Cape Arkona, to Sassnitz, and to the island of Hiddensee. At the end of the pier lies the diving gondola experience: A gondola descends beneath the water's surface, allowing views into the underwater world of the Baltic Sea. The Colossus of Prora, just 4 km north of Binz, is one of the most remarkable buildings from the Nazi era: A 4.5-kilometer-long complex that the KdF organization (Strength Through Joy) planned as a seaside resort for 20,000 vacationers but never completed. Today, the Colossus houses holiday apartments, a museum, and the NVA Museum — a place that makes German history palpable in a haunting way. The Granitz Hunting Lodge, located on the highest hill of Granitz, offers a panoramic view of southeastern Rügen from its 38-meter-high observation tower. It is accessible by the historic Rasender Roland — a narrow-gauge railway that has been puffing through Rügen since 1895.