Sternberg – Old Town, Lakes and Nature

Lake District and Trails in the Nature Park

Sternberg lies in the heart of the Sternberg Lake District Nature Park. The landscape is characterized by rolling hills, almost 100 lakes and the Warnow and Mildenitz rivers. This gives the surrounding area its mix of water and land, while the historic town center offers a distinct focus for visitors interested in culture.

On the edge of town, the nature park has a roughly 4.5-kilometer trail around Lake Luckow. Its information boards were developed and designed in 2006 as part of a student project by 12th-grade students at David Frank Gymnasium in Sternberg. You can plan the route as a separate day trip; the information boards also show how the trail came about through the project.

Sternberg Lake is a local bathing spot. Visitors can also enjoy a relaxing day on the lake in rowboats and pedal boats. Those who want to focus on nature and water will find a different kind of experience here than on a visit to the historic buildings and local history museum.

Old Town, Town Church and Local History

Sternberg’s entire historic town center, including the Mühlentor gate and the ramparts, has been preserved. In the Middle Ages, the town wall and the Mühlentor gate enclosed the old town. Of the four original town gates, only the Mühlentor, with its entrance and exit, remains today. These architectural traces give a walk through town a tangible connection to its history.

The Church of St. Mary and St. Nicholas is a three-aisled hall church with a massive tower. Inside the tower, 189 steps lead to a platform beneath its neo-Gothic cap. From there, visitors can look out over the town and the surrounding lakes and forests. The 66-meter-high tower can be climbed; the steps and the view are a distinct part of a visit to the church.

The church also reflects the history of the Reformation: a fresco by Fritz Greve depicts the last state parliament held in the open air at Sagsdorf Bridge on June 20, 1549. It was there that the Mecklenburg estates decided to adopt the Reformation. The church also houses a Walcker organ, the only surviving one of three early European Walcker organs with high-pressure stops.

Local History Museum and Traces of Sternberg Cake

After extensive renovation, the Sternberg Local History Museum reopened on April 6, 2024. Its exhibition covers important periods in the town’s history and the way earlier generations lived. From 1310 to 1329, the site was home to the former castle of the Mecklenburg prince Henry II, known as the Lion, and from 1500 until the Reformation in 1549, to an Augustinian monastery. Visitors can also view limestone containing fossil inclusions at the museum. Group activities and guided tours can be arranged by appointment.

The fossilized seabed commonly known as “Sternberg cake” formed 26 to 25 million years ago, during the Upper Oligocene of the Paleogene. At that time, the area lay beneath a warm tropical shallow sea known as the ancient North Sea. Storm surges and tidal currents deposited the shells and casings of dead marine animals in layers between relatively fossil-poor sand. Across the wider region, the fauna of Sternberg rock includes more than 620 species. The material has been the subject of more than 130 scientific publications over roughly the past 300 years.

For directions, Sternberg Tourist Information provides a town map of Sternberg to download. Other town pages in the same section: Borkow, Blankenberg, Weitendorf, Kuhlen-Wendorf, Dabel, Brüel, Hohen Pritz and Zahrensdorf.

For the broader travel overview: Sternberg Lake District Office.