Discover 20 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Schwerin (Germany). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Schwerin Castle, Staatliches Museum Schwerin, and Lake Schwerin. Also, be sure to include Burgsee in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Schwerin (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania).
Table of Contents
Schwerin Castle
Also known as: Schweriner Schloss
19th-century island castle and art museum. Schwerin Castle, is a schloss located in the city of Schwerin, the capital of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state, Germany. It is situated on an island in the city's main lake, Lake Schwerin.
For centuries, the castle was the home of the dukes and grand dukes of Mecklenburg and later Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Today parts of it serve as the residence of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state parliament (German: Landtag), other parts are open for tourists.
Major parts of the current castle were built between 1845 and 1857, as a cooperation of the renowned historicist architects Gottfried Semper, Friedrich August Stüler, Georg Adolf Demmler and Ernst Friedrich Zwirner. The castle is regarded as one of the most important works of romantic Historicism in Europe and is designated to become a World Heritage Site. It is nicknamed the "Neuschwanstein of the North".[1]
Address: Lennéstraße 1, 19053 Schwerin
Staatliches Museum Schwerin
Art gallery in Schwerin, Germany. The Staatliches Museum Schwerin is an art gallery and museum in Schwerin in Germany. It was established by Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1882 its historicist Haupthaus as the Staatsgalerie next to the Staatstheater. Its other locations are opposite the Schweriner Schloss and in the former residences at Schloss Güstrow and Schloss Ludwigslust.[2]
Address: Alter Garten 3, 19055 Schwerin
Lake Schwerin
Also known as: Schweriner See
Lake in Germany. Lake Schwerin is a lake in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, northern Germany. It was named after the city Schwerin, on its southwestern shore. The smaller town Bad Kleinen is on the north shore of the lake. Its surface is approximately 61.54 square kilometres, and its maximum depth is 52.4 metres. The natural outflow of the lake is the river Stör, a tributary of the Elde, and part of the Elbe watershed. The Wallensteingraben, a 16th-century canal, connects the lake with the Baltic Sea at Wismar.[3]
Burgsee
Lake in Germany. Burgsee is a lake at Schwerin, Nordwestmecklenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 37.8 m, its surface area is 0.111 square kilometres.[4]
Schwerin Cathedral
Also known as: Schweriner Dom
Evangelical church in Germany. Schwerin Cathedral is an Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral located in the town of Schwerin, Germany. It is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and Saint John. Along with St. Mary's Church, Lübeck and St. Nicholas' Church, Stralsund, it is one of the earliest large examples of Brick Gothic architecture.
It was built following the move here of the seat of the Bishopric of the Abodrites, established by Henry the Lion, from the old city of Mecklenburg in the late 12th century. The first cathedral was built of timber. The foundation stone of the stone cathedral of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin was laid in 1172. After a construction period of seventy-six years, it was consecrated in 1248. During the Reformation in 1524, it was confiscated from the Catholic Church and given to the Lutherans. It is now the seat of the Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Mecklenburg.
In 1222 Count Henry of Schwerin returned from a crusade with a reliquary of the Holy Blood, an alleged drop of Christ's blood contained in a jewel. This was placed in the cathedral, and caused it to become a place of pilgrimage.
During the 14th century the nave and transept were completed, as well as the chapter buildings. At the end of the 15th century the cloister on the north side was finished.
The tower, 117.5 metres high, was constructed between 1889 and 1893. It is the tallest church spire in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.[5]
Address: Am Dom 4, 19055 Schwerin
Schelf Church
Also known as: Kirche St. Nikolai Schwerin
Evangelical church in Schwerin, Germany. The Schelf Church of St. Nicholas is an Evangelical Lutheran church dedicated to Saint Nicholas in the Schelfstadt quarter of Schwerin in Germany. The church is owned and used by a congregation within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern Germany. It was originally built in 1238, but was rebuilt in 1713 in the Baroque style after destruction by a storm. It is the family burial place of the House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, including Sophia Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.[6]
Address: Lindenstrasse, 19055 Schwerin, 19055 Schwerin
Große Karausche
Lake in Germany. The Grosse Karausche is a lake in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of ca. 38 m, its surface area is 0.017 km².[7]
Schwerin TV tower
Also known as: Schweriner Fernsehturm
Tourist attraction in Schwerin, Germany. The Schweriner Fernsehturm is a 136.5-metre-tall communications tower built of steel-concrete between 1960 and 1964 in Schwerin, Germany. Unlike most other TV towers, the ground plan is a spherical triangle and not a cylindric cross section. Also its tower basket, which also contains a restaurant, has no round form, but looks instead like a triangle with round sides. From 1991 to November 28, 1999, the restaurant was closed. In the neighbourhood of this tower at 53°35'30,98" N and 11°27'19,8" E, there is a 273-metre-high, radio mast for FM-radio and TV.[8]
Address: Hamburger Allee 72-74, Schwerin
Pfaffenteich
Pond in Germany. Pfaffenteich is a pond in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 39.2 m, its surface area is 12.3 hectares.[9]
Address: Alexandrinenstraße 1, Schwerin
Mecklenburg State Theatre
Also known as: Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater Schwerin
Theatre in Schwerin, Germany. The Mecklenburg State Theatre is the principal theatre of Schwerin in Germany. Its main theatre seats 650 people and is used for the performance of plays, opera, musical theatre and ballet. Designed by Georg Daniel, the present building was built between 1883 and 1886 after the previous court theatre had been destroyed by fire in 1882. It was inaugurated on 3 October 1886 with a performance of Gluck's Iphigénie en Aulide with Marie Wittich in the title role. The complex also includes the State Museum in Schwerin and a 240-seat concert hall, now used for performances of chamber works.
All theatres were closed for the autumn season of 1944, with the staff drafted wherever possible. By German standards, wartime casualties and destruction by bombing in Schwerin were small, in spite of nightly RAF raids and the droning of massive bomber pulks as silver specks on the sky during the day on their way to Berlin. Americans were the first to enter the town in the spring of 1945, handing it over to the British until the Russians arrived. These ordered the immediate reopening of the theatre, taking great interest in light operas and operettas as an art they very much appreciated, but until then out of their reach in most parts of Stalin's Soviet Union. Not familiar with Central European culture, one saw their well-fed ladies wearing night gowns during the invariably full houses as a substitute for an evening dress. In the immediate years to follow, there was a gradual exodus of key staff to the West, where few found equivalent employment. The ensuing vacancies provided new chances for many musicians, who were prepared to stay in East Germany to gain important positions there in their later career.[10]
Address: Alter Garten 2, 19055 Schwerin
Schleifmühle
The Schwerin Grinding Mill is an 18th-century grinding mill for processing stones, driven by an undershot water wheel, in Schwerin, the capital of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. After the mill ceased operation, it was converted into a museum display in 1985. The structure is a technical cultural monument.
The grinding mill is located at the outflow of the Lazy Lake in the Ostorf district, near the palace garden of Schwerin Castle. The water wheel uses the 0.5-meter drop in elevation between the water levels of the Lazy and Schwerin lakes. The ensemble includes the former residence of the stone grinder, the Schleifmüllerhaus.
Address: Schleifmuehlenweg 1, 19061 Schwerin
Ziegelsee
Lake in Germany. Ziegelsee is a lake in Nordwestmecklenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 37.8 metres, its surface covers 3 square kilometres.[11]
Fauler See
Lake in Germany. Fauler See is a lake in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 39.5 m, its surface area is 0.5 km².[12]
Grimkesee
Lake in Germany. Grimkesee is a lake in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of ca. 40 m, its surface area is 0.038 km².[13]
Medeweger See
Lake in Germany. Medeweger See is a lake in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 39.4 m, its surface area is 0.95 km².[14]
Neumühler See
Lake in Germany. Neumühler See is a lake in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 44 m, its surface area is 1.715 km².[15]
Mecklenburgisches Volkskundemuseum/Freilichtmuseum Mueß
Museum, Specialty museum, History museum, Children's museum
Address: Alte Crivitzer Landstr. 13, 19063 Schwerin
Lankower See
Lake in Germany. Lankower See is a lake in West Mecklenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 42.5 m, its surface area is 0.54 km².[16]
Eisenbahn-Bundesamt Schwerin
Museum, Specialty museum
Address: Zum Bahnhof 13, 19053 Schwerin
Ostorfer See
Lake in Germany. Ostorfer See is a lake in Nordwestmecklenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 39.5 m, its surface area is 2.089 km².[17]