jgwagner4

For this year’s family vacation/visit the in-laws we will be meeting up on the North Sea, probably staying somewhere near Aurich. This is the area that my wife and her family used to spend many of their summer vacations when she was a child. Actually, they always stayed on Langeoog, but I do not want to spend 12 days on an island when I am sure there is so much more to see in the area. While she is relaxing on the beach (I will spend a few days doing that as well), I plan to get out and see the countryside and some of the larger cities as well, including Bremen.

I am seeking any advice on other not-to-miss sights or sites in the area.

Here are the specifics of our trip:
- Flying into Amsterdam via Iceland (we will be in Iceland three days!)
- Driving to the Aurich area and spending 12 nights in vacation rental house (TBD)
- Travelling with wife and two girls (6 and 3 years old) so kid friendly ideas are appreciated but I will also have opportunities to spend days to myself as well.
- Rental car to get from point A to B
- Willing to drive 2 hours each way or perhaps a bit more for something really good
- I am interested in anything with historical significance especially medieval. I saw that they have some Viking museums near the Danish border but probably too far to drive unless I get enough glowing reviews on how they should not be missed.
- Also interested in good restaurants.

I look forward to your advice!

Cowboy1968

Well, to be honest, East Frisia (Ostfriesland), the region where your wife will drag you to is not exactly know in Germany as a region where would be "so much more to see".

First of all, anything close to the DANISH border, like the Viking museum, is definetely too far.
Bremen is the most worth while city day trip from that region. Another option could be Groningen unless you already make a stop there on your way from AMS.

While I understand that you don't want to spend 12 days on one of the islands, it would be an excellent day / boat trip. I think your kids might like that.

In addition, you should check out the regional TI's website:
www.ostfriesland-tourism.com
They also have a section on kid-/family-friendly activities, e.g. the seal nursery.

Have fun!

hetismij2

Maybe you could persuade your wife to have a rental for 7 nights - a much more normal period to rent a holiday house anyway, and spend sometime in Friesland and Groningen on your way to Germany? Or in Denmark if you like that idea better - Legoland for the kids, Vikings for you, great beaches for the missus.

quokka

>Well, to be honest, East Frisia (Ostfriesland), the region where your wife will drag you to is not exactly know in Germany as a region where would be "so much more to see".

Because most people do not know much about it and because of the reputation the locals enjoy thanks to all those jokes. This is a region with a rich history and surely there is 'something' to see and do!

Allow me a few links to my Virtualtourist pages so I don't have to type it all again.
Emden, including some general tips about the area: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/100e0/
Aurich: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/12e28/
Leer: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/a648/
Greetsiel: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/e8e4/
Rysum: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/59b6/
Oldenburg: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/76b5/
Borkum island: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/11e10/

Then there is for example Papenburg with the Meyer shipyard where they build those big cruise ships, Jever palace, the leaning steeple of Suurhusen which makes the one in Pisa look like a joke. And of course the islands.

If your family wants a beach holiday, though, the islands are a must, staying on the mainland is a bad idea. The coast of the mainland has dykes, salt meadows and muddy tidelands but no beaches.

Cowboy1968

quokka.. don't take it so seriously.. after all, East Frisia is part of my home state
What I meant was: When tourists benchmark East Frisia with Upper Bavaria and King Ludwig's castles or the dozens of castles along Rhine and Mosel, or the Loire valley, or Tuscany, it takes a second look to discover the obvious and hidden gems of NW Lower Saxony.

quokka

OK Cowboy I won't take you seriously any more in the future;-)

I was trying to point out that this region is well worth the second look. By the way, Lower Saxony is my home state, too, although I don't live there any more.

Do you think we should equip the OP with some East Frisian jokes...?

lavandula

I've spent a lot of time in the area and have a couple of sights to add. Cowboy is right, it's not Bavaria, but it's its own style and should be appreciated for what it is, which is still pretty and interesting in its own way.

You might go visit the open air museum (Freilichtmuseum) at Cloppenburg for beautiful old farmhouses from all over Lower Saxony (lots of different styles). Really worthwhile!

When you visit Bremen there is a statue of the 4 Bremen City Musicians (a donkey, a dog, a cat and a rooster). Read the story before you go. Be sure to grab the feet of the donkey as this will ensure you return! See the Roland in the town square and eat at the Ratskeller. Visit the Schnoor district to see Bremen's old town, or go and have a meal in a funky restaurant or cafe in the Ostertorviertel; on Ostertorsteinweg there is also good shopping. I would also rate Bremen quite highly for this area. If you are interested in big ships you might also visit Bremerhaven.

Outside Bremen is a picturesque little village that gets lots of visitors, Worpswede. It's a (former?) artist's colony and the main artist who came from there is Paula Modersohn-Becker. The main beauty of the village is if you wander off the main streets. There are many farmhouses in the local style of Fachwerk. Read up about North German Fachwerk before you go - each house has a rhyming blessing carved into the wood above the doorway or on the front of the house, with the date. Some are very old indeed. http://www.deutsche-fachwerkstrasse....cont.php3?s=11

Emden is a pretty little town to visit (ask your relatives who Otto is) and you might be also interested to visit Volkswagen there: http://www.volkswagen.de/de/Volkswag...ung/emden.html
I hear Greetsiel, a fishing village, is pretty too but we haven't made it there yet, but we seem to get to Bremen every few years so I'm optimistic of getting there one day.

In that part of the world you might also be interested in seeing part of the Netherlands - Groningen is worth a visit and nearby, pretty much on the Dutch border, is tiny Bourtange, which is a star-shaped village-fortress. Real people do live there, and it pretty much only gets Dutch tourists and a few Germans. It's not well signposted. I really enjoyed this.

A little further away is Steinhuder Meer, which is part of a national park. There is an artificial island in the middle of it from the 18th century, with a fortress - some crazy prince apparently built it, I don't remember the story. Great natural beauty.

We've also been and explored the area between Bremen and Cuxhaven (Duhnen) (roads off E234). If not for the sea there it's less spectacular, although if you wanted to see the area it's rural and gentle countryside, a big contrast with what we saw around Bourtange. We stayed at Wingst (where there is a zoo - we travel with a little one), and also visited Bad Bederkesa, which is a spa town with quite a major building, the Burg Bederkesa, which you can visit, and a large lake. That was actually a nice little community. Skip Cuxhaven itself, there's only Schloss Cuxhaven there and the rest of the town is a little depressed. There's not even a Karstadt.

Of course you will want to explore the islands and I have yet to get there - I've been to Duhnen twice but never made it to the islands and they are probably more interesting and significant than many of the attractions that I describe. But have a good time anyway.

Lavandula

jgwagner4

Thank you for all of the replies so far.

I should have been clearer that we will be taking some day trips out to the islands. My wife wants to show us Langeoog and I want to do the walk out to Baltrum. I just do not want to be on the islands the whole time.

I realize that this part of Germany is not Bavaria, the Black Forest or the Middle Rhine and I am fine with that. I have been lucky enough to have many opportunities to see those areas over the last 20 years and with all of my wife’s family still living in Germany I suspect I will have additional opportunities as well.

Quokka, you always come through with great information. My wife and I are huge tea drinkers and now I will not embarrass myself by being ignorant to the customs of Friesland. Thank you for the great links!

Lavandula, I will definitely check out the Freilichtmuseum. I have been to the one in Detmold and also one down in the Black Forest near Gengenbach. Each museum was great by itself, but I found the style differences between the buildings to be fascinating, based on the climate and terrain of the area. I am very curious to see how the terrain affected the way the buildings were constructed in that area.

I also like the idea of heading east into the Netherlands a bit.

Are any of you familiar enough with the area to speak to where good farmers markets might be found?

lavandula

Here is a list of the farmers' markets (Wochenmärkte) to be found in each town in Niedersachsen:

http://www.marktgilde.de/markt/markt.php?lf_nr=6

I can't speak to how good any of these are, but many if not most towns have something, at least a few vans and stalls. Hope you find one you like.

Lavandula