My wife and I will arrive at the Rostock port for one full day in June. We were thinking of a walking tour (on our own) then taking the train to Schwerin for the afternoon, visit the castle and return back by train to Rostock early evening. The ship docks in Rostock, not Warnemunde. How far is the Rostock Hbf from the port, as well as how far is it to the Schwerin Castle from the Schwerin Hbf? Is there a recommendation where to have lunch in Schwerin and dinner in Rostock?
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
I'm not sure that forum answers to a recent, similar question were very satisfactory, but maybe you'll hear from someone else. Google Maps and the DB link at How to Look Up Train Schedules and Routes Online are two starting points, but you probably want to also check a cruise-focused forum.
Posted by
Washington DC
28078 posts
I am not familiar with Rostock, but you can probably figure out the distance between port and hauptbahnhof on Google Maps.
The castle in Schwerin is a bit less than a mile from the hauptbahnhof. I hope that link will work for you; you may need to zoom in or out. The castle (Schloss Schwerin) is surrounded by gardens on a small island in the lake and is marked with a suitable icon. The hauptbahnhof is NW of the castle. The walk between the two will take you through part of the old town, which is very pretty and definitely worth time to see, so try to take different routes in and out if you walk both ways.
I'm sorry that I don't remember where I ate in Schwerin. I can tell you that there's a very good chocolate shop in the old town, though!
Be careful about your train plans. Although most of the Rostock-Schwerin trains take about an hour, there are a few that require connections and are twice as long.
Posted by
the Netherlands
2487 posts
That »castle« in Schwerin is a mid-nineteenth-century mock-medieval building. You might find Wismar a much more interesting destination. Little Unesco World Heritage former Hansa city with a nice market square, some old churches, a harbour. Perfect place for some relaxed wandering around. The railway station is a 10-min walk from the centre.
Posted by
Huntsville, AL, USA
8319 posts
We were on a cruise that stopped in Warnemunde 18 months ago. We found the little port city and the beaches to be very nice. Otherwise, the coastal region is pretty flat and not really that scenic.
We were content to walk the city, drink a little great beer and head back to the ship.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
Here's an earlier thread discussing options for a Rostock port stop: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/germany/berlin-excursion-from-cruise
A coworker, on recommendation from that thread, took the Mega Mecklenburg tour from Friends of Dave. She said it was a very busy but very rewarding day.
Posted by
San Francisco
14980 posts
Hi,
On where to have lunch or dinner, I would suggest in Schwerin. In Rostock I've only been there to change trains, had about one hour at the Hbf. If you intend on going to visit the old town (Altstadt) in Rostock, be advised that this part of Rostock was one of the first targets in 1942 of the British night bombing campaign to flatten areas. Rostock was hit several times.