In and out of Germany, via Świnoujście

After two short trips to Świnoujście in the darkness (December 2022 and late-November 2023, the latter one here), I vowed a return when the days were longer. One reason was to see what could count as the strangest railway station on the territory of Poland – Świnoujście Centrum. A station that connects with no other station in Poland; it serves as the terminus of a line that serves 24 stations, 23 of which being in Germany. 

The railway, the Usedomer Bäderbahn GmbH (UBB, 'Usedom bathing railway', originally opened in 1911 to serve Baltic beach resorts. (Usedom is the German name for the Baltic island that's called Uznam in Polish; mostly in Germany, it also contains the Polish town of Świnoujście.)

In 2008, the line returned to Świnoujście (formerly Swinemünde), Polish since 1945. Today, the border between the two countries, crossed shortly after leaving Świnoujście Centrum, is almost invisible. No one checks passports or ID cards. Below: the 12:16 for Züssow waits for passengers at Świnoujście Centrum. If you enlarge, you'll see that German railways have the same passion for ridiculous track numbers as do Polish railways – Świnoujście Centrum has a Track (Gleis/Tor) 31 and Track 32, rather than the logical Platform 1 and Platform 2.

However, all is not straightforward. To buy your ticket, you need cash (cards not accepted) – and you'll need German cash (Polish złotys not accepted). There is no information on the station as to fare structure or timetable in Polish or indeed in English – this is in German. This is the one station in Poland for which I cannot buy a ticket via my Polish railway apps, Koleo or Portal Pasażera. The train conductor spoke only German. To her credit, it must be said that she was friendly and helpful. Below: the road border, seen from the train as it crosses over onto German soil.

The train passes four stations before reaching Heringsdorf Seebad, where it changes directions and reverses out to swing round into Heringsdorf Neuhof, and thence on to Züssow via Zinnowitz. From Züssow, Berlin is around two hours away (€17.50) by DB InterCity.  Below: a two-car vintage diesel railbus set stands outside the renovated station at Heringsdorf Seebad.

Below: terminus bay platforms after the departure of the Züssow train.

Below: the station has been sympathetically restored. It puts me in mind of many such buildings across western Poland.

On foot from Heringsdorf to Ahlbeck. First impressions of German seaside towns – tidy, clean, demographically older than their Polish neighbours, quieter, fewer attractions. 

On to the beach, to test Jonathan Meades' hypothesis about northern Europe – you should be able to get herring and schnapps or herring and vodka anywhere on the North Sea and Baltic coasts. And indeed, in Ahlbeck, there it is, Matjes Brötchen – herring in a warm, crusty bun, with Kümmerling, a herbal schnapps. 

Below: the last entrance onto the beach on the German side. The air is clean, the smell of pine trees and sea breezes, the cry of gulls. On the horizon, a line of ships entering Świnoujście harbour. On the either side of this entrance – the nudist beach, the FKK-Strand. [Back in Jakubowizna, my neighbour tells me (to my great surprise) that this nudist beach existed back in communist East Germany in 1985!]

And then, feet wet in the Baltic, back along the beach to Poland. Below: the next exit along onto the beach, between Germany and Poland.

Below: commemorative border gate, standing where once coils of impenetrable barbed wire divided the Polish People's Republic from the German Democratic Republic. Now a cycle path links links Ahlbeck and Świnoujście inland of the beach and the sand dunes. 

There is an environmental tourist tax of €2 per person per day; in theory to pay it, one merely snaps the QR code that's visible on many posters and signs – but the page that the QR code opens is only available in German. Tough! I'd have happily paid, but as with the monolingual, cash-only UBB, Germany is behind the times. I can see now why the Polish economy is growing faster than Germany's. Poland is ahead when it comes to systematic digitalisation.

Good to be back on the Baltic!

This time four years ago:
Back to the działka after lockdown

This time eight years ago:
The Network vs The Hierarchy in politics

This time nine years ago:
45 years under one roof

This time 11 years ago:
Pozytywki ponds after refurbishment

This time 12 years ago:
Mayday in the heat (don't exaggerate with the suncream!)

This time 14 years ago:
Bike ride across rural Poland

This time 17 years ago:
Into the mountains