By train and bike alongside the water — Tours in northern Germany

After seaside rides and riverside spins? Then take your bike on the train! In northern Germany, you can get to the starting points of the most beautiful cycling routes by the waterside easily by train. Hop on your saddle right at the stations on the rail routes and let yourself be enchanted by the diversity of the federal states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein. You'll cycle alongside clear rivers and lakes, let your gaze wander from green dykes over the flat countryside and inhale the salty breeze by the sea.

In this Collection, we’ve put together seven varied Tours for you along the regional railway lines in Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein. The start and end points of the rides are all located at a railway station, so you can travel to and from the routes by train.

To take your bike with you on the train, it's best to buy a day ticket for local transport. Check beforehand whether the route you want to take will be busy or not, as there’ll need to be enough space for your bike – you can also use the DB Ausflug app for this. It also offers great cycling features such as information on local repair shops and bike rental companies so you don’t even need your own bike. For the Tours in this Collection, we've already picked out rental shops so you can hire a bike near a station. You can find information on more rental companies here bahn.de/service/individuelle-reise/bahn_und_fahrrad/rad-nahverkehr or on callabike.de.

The starting points of the Tours are in Wunstorf, Schleswig, Hamburg, Westerland, Bad Zwischenahn, Nienburg and Meppen. From Wunstorf, you cycle to and around Lake Steinhude; Schleswig is the starting point for a ride alongside the Schlei; and from Hamburg, you can cycle around the Elbe. North of Westerland, you can explore Sylt and go to the northernmost point of Germany; Bad Zwischenahn is the starting point for a leisurely ride around Lake Zwischenahner. From Nienburg, you can cycle along the Weser Cycle Path, alongside the Regional Express route, to Bremerhaven and you have plenty of options to change to the train if the cycle path is too long for you. From Meppen, you'll explore a section of the beautiful Ems Cycle Route with its destination in charming Papenburg.

After your adventure, you can simply jump back on the train and relax as the landscape whizzes by, reminiscing about your beautiful ride.