Cape Arkona

Cape Arkona (Kap Arkona) near the village of Putgarten is the dramatic northern tip of Rügen, Germany's largest island, on the Baltic coast of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Chalk and clay cliffs rise up to 43 meters above the sea, crowned by two historic lighthouses, a naval radio tower and the ramparts of a pagan Slavic temple fortress. It's one of the most visited spots on the German Baltic, and a great day out for anyone exploring Rügen.

Why Cape Arkona is special

Few places pack so many layers of history into such a small headland. From the 9th to the 12th century, the Slavic Rani tribe worshipped their four-headed god Svantevit at the Jaromarsburg, a temple fortress protected by a rampart about 25 meters high. In 1168 the Danish king Valdemar I stormed it, destroying one of the last great pagan sanctuaries of the Baltic Slavs. Parts of the rampart still stand at the cliff edge, though much of the fortress has long since fallen into the sea.

In the 1820s the cape got its first lighthouse, designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel, Prussia's most celebrated architect. The square brick Schinkel Tower began operating in 1828 and was replaced in 1905 by the taller 35-meter lighthouse next door, which still guides ships today. A direction-finding tower from 1927 and Cold War-era bunkers recall the cape's military past; East Germany's navy used the site until 1990.

Things to do at Cape Arkona

• Climb the lighthouse: 164 steps lead to a platform with views over northern Rügen, Hiddensee and, on clear days, the Danish island of Møn.
• Visit the Schinkel Tower, whose ground floor is a popular wedding venue.
• Explore the direction-finding tower (Peilturm) with its glass dome, crafts and exhibits, and the bunker museum with ship models and old navigation equipment.
• Walk the cliff-top trail south to Vitt, a tiny fishing village of thatched cottages with an octagonal chapel.
• Go down to the beach for close-up views of the pale cliffs. Keep your distance from the cliff face: rockfalls happen, especially in winter and spring.

Tickets and opening hours

The cape, the trails and Vitt are free to visit. The Kap Arkona Card covers the lighthouse, the Peilturm, the bunker museum and a sea rescue exhibition: €8 for adults, €4 for children and €20 for a family (two adults plus children under 14), as of October 2026. You can buy it at the tourist information office by the parking lot or online. The lighthouse opens April through October; daily times aren't published online, so call the tourist office before you go. The tower underwent renovation from fall 2025, with reopening planned for the 2026 season.

How to get to Cape Arkona

Putgarten is closed to private cars. Drivers leave their vehicle at the paid parking lot at the village entrance and walk just under 2 kilometers to the lighthouses, or ride the little Arkona road train or a horse-drawn carriage. By car the cape is roughly a four-hour drive from Berlin and about an hour from the Hanseatic city of Stralsund.

Without a car, take Deutsche Bahn to Stralsund and on to Bergen auf Rügen, then a regional bus north to Putgarten. Regional trains and local buses in Germany accept the Deutschlandticket, but check current timetables, as connections to the north of the island are limited.

Is Cape Arkona worth visiting?

Yes, especially if you combine it with a hike. Allow three to four hours for the towers, the rampart and Vitt; walking the cliff path from Altenkirchen makes it a full day. Summer middays are busy, so arrive early. Spring and September bring mild weather and fewer crowds. Kids love the road train, the bunker and the stony beach; the paths around the towers work for strollers, but the tower climbs and beach stairs do not. There are cafés and snack bars in Putgarten and at the lighthouses. Prices are in euros, and cards are accepted at the tourist office.

Nearby

• Gellort, Rügen's true northernmost point, about a kilometer to the northwest.
• Jasmund National Park and the famous Königsstuhl chalk cliffs, about an hour's drive.
• The seaside resorts of Binz and Sellin and the Granitz Hunting Lodge in the southeast of the island.