Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein is Germany's only state with coastline on two different seas — the North Sea Wadden coast to the west, and the Baltic fjord coast (Fördenküste) to the east — and the tidal contrast between them is dramatic. The western North Sea coast is macrotidal: spring range at Husum and List auf Sylt reaches 3.5 to 4.0 metres, and the Wadden Sea tidal flats exposed at low water are among the largest in the world, UNESCO World Heritage-listed and critically important for migratory shorebirds. The eastern Baltic coast is effectively non-tidal: the Kieler Förde and the Flensburger Förde have tidal ranges under 0.2 metres, driven more by wind than gravity. Kiel at the head of the Kieler Förde is Germany's primary Baltic sailing city, hosting the Kieler Woche regatta (late June, 5,000 sailors, 50 nations) and home to the Kiel Canal's eastern terminus — the world's busiest artificial waterway by ship count. Flensburg, 40 kilometres north at the head of the Flensburger Förde, sits 7 kilometres from the Danish border and retains a bilingual German-Danish character. For authoritative German tide data, consult BSH (Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie).