Surprise! Germany Has Tons Of Islands And They're Stunning

Pack the beer and bratwurst. We're going to the beach.

While you might not think of sandy dunes and oceanic horizons when you picture Germany, the country that borders both the Baltic and North Seas and is perforated with lakes, boasts dozens of offshore and inland islands.

They range from huge -- Rügen, in the brisk Baltic Sea, has 357 miles of coastline -- to super small, but many are beautiful, with cliffs, sheep, windmills, lighthouses, vast fields of tulips and rich histories.

Sylt, a small, narrow island in the North Sea, and Rügen in the east played host to each side's elite when Germany was divided during the Cold War. Sylt was the base for the German navy during the world wars and eventually grew into a luxurious destination for its upper echelon; Rügen on the other hand was what Conde Nast Traveler called the "Soviet version of the Hamptons."

Today, you can travel to many of the islands in Germany's archipelago, or you can bask in their peacefulness in the photographic tour below.

Sylt Island
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Usedom Island
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Fred Froese via Getty Images
Rügen Island
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Jorg Greuel via Getty Images
Bernhard Lang via Getty Images
Hiddensee Island
Photo by Lars Oppermann via Getty Images
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Föhr Island
Ralf Wilken via Getty Images
Ingeborg Knol via Getty Images
Ingeborg Knol via Getty Images
Borkum Island
Oliver Hoffmann via Getty Images
Karl Johaentges / LOOK-foto via Getty Images
Konrad Wothe / LOOK-foto via Getty Images
Amrum Island
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F. Lukasseck via Getty Images
Uwe Steffens via Getty Images
Mainau Island
Leonid Andronov via Getty Images
Wolfgang Ehn / LOOK-foto via Getty Images
Daniel Schoenen / LOOK-foto via Getty Images

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