North European Plain

The Achterwasser (Low German achtern = "rear, behind") is a lagoon forming a bay on the Peenestrom river, which flows into the Baltic Sea. This lagoon extends so far into the island of Usedom, that it is only separated from the Baltic Sea by a narrow barrier spit between Ückeritz and Zinnowitz. It is bordered to the north by the peninsula of Gnitz and to the south by the Lieper Winkel. The reed-lined south-eastern bay is called the Balmer See, and the one to the southwest, which can only be accessed with difficulty on its western shore, is the Krienker See. In past centuries the barrier protecting the lagoon was sometimes breached by the Baltic Sea during storm surges that flooded across the island of Usedom, when the narrowest part of the land bridge between Zempin and Koserow at Rieckgraben (near Lüttenort) was flooded. This land bridge between the Achterwasser and the Baltic Sea is only 300 metres wide. The Achterwasser is not very deep, and is a popular surfing and sailing area. The beach sand on the Achterwasser on the peninsula of Gnitz is not as fine-grained as that on the Baltic Sea beach of Usedom. The bottom of the Achterwasser is very stony. On some maps from medieval and early modern times, the lagoon is named as "Lassansches Water" or as plural "Lassansche Waters“. The description is related to the town of Lassan, which as the only town on the Achterwasser possessed the fishing rights for the waters.

Loddin is a municipality on Usedom Island, in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. A small coastal bathing resort, Loddin lies on an isthmus on the island of Usedom on the Baltic Sea. It is located within the Usedom Nature Park and is one of the four so-called Amber Spas on the island, connected by a 12 km long fine sandy beach called Amber Beach. The other three amber spas are Koserow, Ückeritz and Zempin. Loddin has some vineyards at the Baltic Sea. As of 2015, Loddin had a population of 969. The place can be reached by federal highway B111 and has a station on the Usedom island railway.

Koserow is a municipality on Usedom Island, in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. A small coastal bathing resort, Koserow lies on an isthmus on the island of Usedom on the Baltic Sea, near the border with Poland. It is located within the Usedom Nature Park and is one of the four so-called Amber Spas on the island, connected by a 12 km long fine sandy beach called Amber Beach. The other three amber spas are Loddin, Ückeritz and Zempin. As of 2013, Koserow had a population of 1,656.

Groote Beek (also: Große Beek) is a river on the island of Usedom, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany connecting the Schmollensee lake to the Achterwasser lagoon, which is connected to the Baltic Sea. The waterway begins at the Schmollensee to the east of the village Pudagla and runs approximately 2.1 kilometres in a north-westerly direction through wetlands to the Achterwasser.

Ückeritz is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. A small coastal bathing resort, Ückeritz lies on the island of Usedom on the Baltic Sea. It is located within the Usedom Nature Park and is one of four spas called Amber Spas on the island, connected by a 12 km long fine sandy beach called Amber Beach. The other three amber spas are Loddin, Koserow and Zempin. As of 2015, Ückeritz had a population of 1,007. The place can be reached by federal highway B111 and has a station on the Usedom island railway.

The Streckelsberg is an approximately 58-metre high coastal cliff on the island of Usedom in North Germany. After the Golm and the Kückelsberg, the Streckelsberg is the third highest elevation on the island. The Streckelsberg is located half a kilometre southeast of the former fishing village and present-day seaside resort of Koserow directly on the Baltic Sea shore. To the southeast is the village of Kölpinsee; the B 111 federal road and Usedomer Bäderbahn railway run past the hill to the southwest.

The Balmer See is the southeastern embayment of the Achterwasser on the island of Usedom off Germany's Baltic coast. The northwestern tongue of land, Cosim, together with the two small islets of Böhmke and Werder are designated as a nature reserve and bird sanctuary. To the south is the only golf course on the island - with 27 holes and 120 hectares in area. To the east are the two small villages of Balm (ca. 150 inhabitants) and Neppermin (350 inhabitants); the bay between Neppermin and the Schwedenschanze to the north is called Nepperminer See.

The uninhabited little island of Balmer Werder lies in the Baltic Sea, in the Balmer See, the southeastern part of the Achterwasser lagoon, between Usedom and the mainland off the village of Balm. Balm belongs to the municipality of Benz in the county of Vorpommern-Greifswald in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.The island is 6.3 hectares (16 acres) in area, 500 metres (1,600 ft) long from north to south and 200 metres (660 ft) wide at its widest point. Its maximum height above sea level (NN) is 5.9 metres (19 ft). The Balmer Werder, along with the smaller island of Böhmke, lies within a nature reserve, established in 1967, in Usedom Island Nature Park.

The Usedom Island Nature Park (German: Naturpark Insel Usedom) comprises the German part of the island of Usedom in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. In addition to the island itself, the park covers the waterbody between the island and the mainland as well as small strips of mainland in the northwest and west near the seaside resorts of Lubmin and the town of Lassan. Even in East German days several parts of Usedom had been declared nature reserves, and they were gradually expanded. It was designated a protected area in 1966 and, in 1993, expanded to the area of the present-day nature park.In December 1999 the entire region was officially designated a nature park in the sense of being a large-scale cultural landscape. An information centre, the Ruth and Klaus Bahlsen House, with exhibition rooms, maps and leaflets, is located in the historic station building on the Bäderstraße from Usedom. The building was promoted as part of an INTERREG project and completed in 2005.The park is bounded by the Baltic Sea on the Bay of Greifswald (Greifswalder Bodden), the Peenestrom river, the Achterwasser lagoon and the Oder Lagoon (Stettiner Haff). The total area of the park is 632 square kilometres (244 sq mi). Roughly 30% of this area is covered by forest, about 50% by lakes and the bay, 15% is moorland and the remaining area is a cultural landscape. A special feature of the nature park is the great diversity of landscapes within a small area. These include beach and littoral, lakes and marshes, dunes, pine and beech forests mixed with small villages and fields. The island of Usedom is one of the richest bird areas in Germany. Osprey, white stork, crane and heron all breed in the nature reserve. The eutrophic and shallow lakes, such as the Gothensee and Schmollensee are ideal for bird roosting and nesting sites. The park is easily accessed on the B110 from Anklam or the B 111 from Wolgast or by rail on the Usedomer Bäderbahn. At the edge of the park is the municipality of Heringsdorf with its villages of Ahlbeck, Heringsdorf and Bansin.

Pudagla is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.

Rankwitz is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The economy of Rankwitz depends on tourism. There are many summer homes. Attractions include boating, fishing, and a historical museum.

Usedom-Süd is an Amt in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The seat of the Amt is in the town Usedom. The Amt Usedom-Süd consists of the following municipalities: