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Cuxhaven
Mudflat near Cuxhaven.
Cuxhaven
Coordinates	53°51′40″N 08°41′40″E / 53.86111°N 8.69444°E / 53.86111; 8.69444
Administration
Country	Germany
State	Lower Saxony
District	Cuxhaven
Mayor	Arno Stabbert
Basic statistics
Area	161.91 km2 (62.51 sq mi)
Elevation	2 m  (7 ft)
Population	52,095  (31 December 2005)
- Density	322 /km2 (833 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate	CUX
Postal codes	27472, 27474, 27476, 27478
Area codes	04721-04724
Website	www.cuxhaven.de

Cuxhaven is an independent town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the shore of the North Sea at the mouth of the Elbe River. Cuxhaven has a footprint of 14 km (east-west) by 7 km (north-south). Especially its town quarters Duhnen, Döse and Sahlenburg are popular vacation spots on the North Sea and home to about 52,000 residents.

Cuxhaven is home to an important fisherman's wharf and ship registration point for Hamburg as well as the Kiel Canal until 2008. Tourism is also of great importance. The city and its precursor Ritzebüttel belonged to Hamburg from the 13th century until 1937. The Island of Neuwerk, a Hamburg dependency, is located just northwest of Cuxhaven in the North Sea. The city's symbol, known as the Kugelbake is a beacon once used as a lighthouse; the wooden landmark on the mouth of the Elbe marks the boundary between the river and the North Sea and also adorns the city's coat of arms.

History

Water tower in Cuxhaven.

Ritzebüttel, today a part of Cuxhaven, belonged to the Land of Hadeln, first an exclave of the younger Duchy of Saxony and after its de facto dynastic partition in 1296 of the Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg, established de jure in 1260. In 1394 the city of Hamburg conquered the fortress of Ritzebüttel and made it its stronghold to protect the estuary of the river Elbe, which connects that city with the open sea. On March 15, 1907 Cuxhaven gained city status within the state of Hamburg. In 1937 Cuxhaven became an urban district of the Stade Region within the Prussian Province of Hanover by the Greater Hamburg Act. In 1972 some municipalities of the neighboured rural district of Land of Hadeln were incorporated into the urban district of Cuxhaven. In 1977 Cuxhaven lost the status as urban district and was integrated into the new rural District of Cuxhaven, being its capital.

During the First World War Cuxhaven-Nordholz with its airship hangars was one of the major German naval airship stations.

Between 1945 and 1964 various experiments in rocketry were performed near Cuxhaven.

Other information

Elbe estuary.

A few kilometers off the Cuxhaven coast lies the island of Neuwerk. At low tide the water recedes so far from the coast that the island can be reached either by mudflat hiking or by horse carriage.

A modern landmark of Cuxhaven is the Friedrich-Clemens-Gerke Tower, a telecommunication tower built of concrete, which is not accessible to the public. It is not really a landmark, for all the cities in Germany have a similar tower as that. The High test peroxide (HTP) Submarine U 1407, was raised from where she had been scuttled in Cuxhaven after WWII and rebuilt by the British, being commissioned as HMS Meteorite. It was the catalyst for a series of German-made Air-independent propulsion submarines such as the Type 212 submarine and Type 214 submarine.

Cuxhaven has been twinned with the Cornish district of Penwith since 1974.

See also

• Rocket experiments in the area of Cuxhaven

External links

• Official site (German)
• Operation "Backfire" and rocket experiments at Cuxhaven (German)
• Panoramic views from Cuxhaven

Towns and municipalities in Cuxhaven (district) Appeln · Armstorf · Bad Bederkesa · Belum · Beverstedt · Bokel · Bramstedt · Bülkau · Cadenberge · Cappel · Cuxhaven · Dorum · Drangstedt · Driftsethe · Elmlohe · Flögeln · Frelsdorf · Geversdorf · Hagen im Bremischen · Hechthausen · Heerstedt · Hemmoor · Hollen · Hollnseth · Ihlienworth · Kirchwistedt · Köhlen · Kührstedt · Lamstedt · Langen · Lintig · Loxstedt · Lunestedt · Midlum · Misselwarden · Mittelstenahe · Mulsum · Neuenkirchen · Neuhaus · Nordholz · Nordleda · Oberndorf · Odisheim · Osten · Osterbruch · Otterndorf · Padingbüttel · Ringstedt · Sandstedt · Schiffdorf · Steinau · Stinstedt · Stubben · Uthlede · Wanna · Wingst · Wremen · Wulsbüttel

From Wikitravel

Cuxhaven is a seaside resort city in Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen), Germany situated on the mouth of the river Elbe on the North Sea coast.

Understand

Until 1937, Cuxhaven was part of Hamburg; in a reorganization two towns near Hamburg that were part of Prussia were given to Hamburg in exchange for Cuxhaven. With 55000 citizens, Cuxhaven isn't a very large city. It still can boast roughly 3 million booked nights a year, making it one of the largest seaside resorts in Germany.

Tourism is one of the traditional businesses of Cuxhaven. The other two are the fish industry, and the harbour. The city is trying to expand the latter and has invested a lot of money in the modernization and expansion of the port facility. Still, the economic situation isn't all too good and tourism remains the major industry of the city. Many people have left Cuxhaven in the past decades to settle elsewhere. Many of those who remain are retired, contributing to the small, quiet town ambiance.

Near Cuxhaven, between 1945 and 1964 about 500 rockets were launched [1]. The best known rocket launches which took place in the area of Cuxhaven, were the launches of three V2 rockets in the operation Backfire, in order to demonstrate Allied forces the technique of the "wonder weapon" V2 in October 1945. The only thing remembering to rocketry at Cuxhaven is a trough near the way from Arensch to Sahlenburg.

Cuxhaven is a quiet place. If you're looking for action and parties, it's probably not the right destination. If you're looking for a quiet city by the sea, Cuxhaven becomes a much more interesting choice.

Get in

Most people come to Cuxhaven either via train or car. Some ferry services exist, but they are overall negligible.

By car

Major road (not Autobahnen/highways) lead to Cuxhaven. From Hamburg, it's about two hours along the B73; from Bremen the drive should take closer to one hour. Be wary that the roads also serve commuters to many smaller cities and villages in between and can be crowded and tricky. The B73 especially is known for motorists with bad driving style and deadly accidents; some extra caution should be employed.

By train

A real alternative to the car is a train drive to Cuxhaven. It will take roughly the same time, but it's more relaxing than using a car. However, the German rail company tends to be more expensive if you travel with several people unless you catch a special deal. Travelling with Happy Weekend Ticket or Länder Ticket (allowing 5 people at a total price 37 Euros) is a recommended option when travelling from Hamburg, since the ordinary train takes only around 1 hr 45 minutes for this journey.

Cuxhaven's railway station is right in the center of the city. The bus terminal is in front, and taxis can easily be hired as well. On foot, it should take you about five minutes to get to the Nordersteinstrasse shopping area.

• A ferry service to Harwich in England exists (but not been in operation since November 2005).
• A domestic ferry services [2] the connection to Brunsbüttel.

Get around

There are limited choices when it comes to moving around Cuxhaven. You can walk, bring your own car, hire a taxi, or use one of the bus lines.

By bus

You can find a map of the bus lines here (pdf): [3]

• Alte Liebe (Old Love) is a former quai turned viewing platform at the entrance to the Cuxhaven harbour. Good view of passing ships. Loudspeakers announce their names and origin.
• Schloß Ritzebüttel Small castle-like building near the Nordersteinstraße shopping area.
• Harbor
• The Kugelbake marks the geographic point where the Elbe river ends. Originally intended as a navigation aid, it is one of the more notable constructions in the region. It was incorporated in the Cuxhaven coat of arms when the city was incorporated and remains one of its primary landmarks.
• Water Tower
• Semaphor Located next to the Alte Liebe, the Sempahor is a construction from the year 1884 that is used to communicate wind strength and direction to passing ships. It is still set every day.
• Wrackmuseum (Ship Wreck Museum). Dorfstraße 80, Stickenbüttel. +49 4721 23341 (fax: +49 4721 690876). Open March 28th to November 4th (in 2004, may vary each year), Mon closed, Tue-Fri 10AM - 6PM, Weekend + Holiday 10AM - 5PM. Only museum in Europe that has ship wrecks as its topic. € 3.00 for adults, € 2.00 for teenagers.
• Elbe 1 A retired lighthouse-ship [4].
• Relics of the launch pad of operation Backfire, the last launch of V2-rockets in Germany in form of a trough near the way from Arensch to Sahleburg and some shelter remnants [5], [6]

• Beach/Dunes
• This is the area of the sea where the water recedes during low tide. It's one of the main reasons why people visit Cuxhaven. You can take walks, look at crabs, build castles from the sand and the mud, and so on. Be warned that the rising water can be tricky! See the "stay safe" section.
• Go via ship to Helgoland
• Take horse carriage to Neuwerk
• BEWARE! You have to pay for entering the beach! If you like pay-free beaches you have to travel a few miles to the north and try the coastline of Schleswig-Holstein.

Buy

The Nordersteinstraße is the primary shopping area of Cuxhaven. It is geared towards the general population and not really too touristy. Prices are rather normal as a result; the downside is that you cannot expect a store to accept credit cards. "EC" bank cards are usually accepted, however.

Eat

Cuxhaven is a traditional fishing town, so do not leave out some fresh fish or crabs while you are there.

• Zum Park Restaurant, Südersteinstrasse 76 (near Nordersteinstrasse shopping area), tel. +49 4721 64461, Daily 11:30am - 2:30pm, Mon+Sun also 5:30pm-10:00pm, Tue-Sat also 5:30pm - 11:30pm. Offers various international dishes. Excellent service, very reasonable prices, pleasant place. Highly recommended. €10-€20 per person, all dishes available for take-out.

• Gaestehaus Heidi Weiss, Alter Deichweg 2 (City Center/Harbour), ☎ 0049472137628, [7]. checkin: 14:00; checkout: 12:00. Family Run Bed and Breafast place. Very cosy rooms with friendly service and comfy location. Nice Breakfast included. Next to harbour and sea embankments, shopping centre (Lotsenviertel) and Grimmershoern Bay withhin 5 minutes walking distance. from 35 EUR.  edit

• Youth Hostel (Jugendherberge) Cuxhaven-Duhnen. Schlensenweg 2, 27476 Cuxhaven-Duhnen. +49 4721 48552, fax +49 4721 45794, jhcuxhaven@djh-nordmark.de, [8] (website only in German).

• Haus Stranddüne - Holiday flat in Cuxhaven-Duhnen [9]. Carl-Vinnen-Weg 40, 27476 Cuxhaven-Duhnen, Tel. +49 201 512972, strandduene@web.de.

Stay safe

When enjoying a walk in the Wadden Sea in front of the coast, you must take some simple precautions as the rising waters can be dangerous. If you are far from the beach and the tide surprises you, your life will be in danger.

Always remain within sight of the land, and do not walk out too far. Take care of fog and mist. Enter the area only after high and prior to low tide, and return shortly after low tide, i.e. as soon as the water starts to return and the high tide sets in. Keep a watch with accurate time, and memorize the times of low and high tide. The water does not rise in all places at the same speed. Some areas are lower, and Priele (creek-like arms or canals of water) can well flood very early, cutting you off from land.

You should ask for advice and rules on-location; there are several lifeguard stations and most tourist information places will be able to provide you with basic information as well. Ask for a tidal calendar (German: Tidenkalender).

• Continuing your vacation with a maritime theme, a day trip to Bremerhaven to take a look at the Schiffahrtsmuseum (Museum of sea travel) maybe be worth your time.
• For a few days in a quite different environment, take a ferry to Helgoland

From LoveToKnow 1911

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