Husum

Husum is the "grey town by the sea" — and if you've read Theodor Storm, you know it before you arrive. The inner harbour reaches into the old town; at high tide the shrimp cutters tie up right beneath the cafés on the quay. Husum is the gateway to the Wadden Sea National Park, the seat of NABU's protected area, and the market town for the entire region between the Eider and Denmark. What to see: the schloss vor Husum (crocus bloom in March), the Theodor-Storm-Haus, the harbour with its cutter fleet, and the Hafentage festival in August. Mudflat tours leave from the harbour for the Halligen islands, and boats run to the seal banks off Pellworm. Husum has no classic sandy beach — for swimming, drive 30 minutes to St. Peter-Ording or Nordstrand.