Binz

Binz needs 2 days: the seaside promenade with its iconic wooden pier (Seebrücke) and late-19th-century white spa architecture, on one day, and a trip to the chalk cliffs of Jasmund National Park, with the Königsstuhl viewpoint, on the other. June-September is best. It's mid-to-high priced by German standards. It's the largest and most elegant beach resort on Rügen, Germany's largest island, and its white chalk cliffs -immortalized in paintings by Romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich- are one of the country's most iconic natural landscapes.