Site 6 of 20: Havel Tourist, Germany
This story happened on: 11/08/2016
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Our journey now starts to head north as we leave the Potsdam region and drive up to Userin, about three hours north of Berlin to our third German site or seventh site of 20. The site is called Havel Tourist (Havelberge) and is one of a group of Leading campsites. It has a 5 star rating.
Havelberge is one of nine campsites set amongst a network of lakes, rivers and canals. It is the most central and largest of them. The location, set on an undulating woodland hillside overlooking the lake, make it idyllic but slightly remote. If coming here, then a stay of a week would be recommended rather than a couple of days since it is slightly out of the way. But there is plenty to do here once settled in. The reception is nestled at the bottom of a hill and a slight walk away from the main areas. Being a large site, the reception is often busy throughout the day as staff meet and greet visitors. At this point it must be said that hardly any of them spoke English and the couple that did only spoke a few words. We muddled through though and were handed a map showing the vast site (24 hectares) along with a barrier card and sanitary block cards. Payment for both of these is required as the start of your stay. A deposit of €2 is needed for the barrier card and €5 for the sanitary block card. In addition to this a payment of €10 is needed to put on the sanitary block card. Multiple cards can be purchased but we only bought one that we shared for our two days. The card needs to be used for showers, the dishwasher and washing machines. The dishwasher costs €1.50 and takes approximately 5 minutes to wash and dry your dishes. The showers cost approximately €0.90 for three minutes. When taking a shower, the card needs to be placed on a narrow shelf by a sensor outside the shower itself. Money is deducted off the card according to how much time is spent in the shower. Any money left on your card at the end of your stay is refunded along with the deposit. Wifi is another cost to be considered; it is €1.50 a day for one device. There are wifi hotspots dotted around the site but given the location it is limited so don't expect a fast connection.
After leaving the reception and going through the barrier, the single lane road borders the river then climbs a steep hill into the main campsite where there is a restaurant, and terrace overlooking the lake. This is where the site entertainment takes place in the evening on a stage with the lake backdrop. Meals and drinks are served throughout the day. The supermarket is in a more central location, deeper into the site. It is a small shop that sells a few basic items and freshly baked bread.
The sites is organised into coloured and lettered zones which make identifying your location slightly easier. Pitch sizes vary as do the locations; some are under trees in the middle of woodland, whilst others are in more open space. The pitches are mostly flat and are on grass (although a little patchy under the canopy). The site attracts caravans, motorhomes and many tents but also has a variety of different style chalets. Our pitch was on the far side of the campsite in the L block; all the pitches were in the open and bordered by hedges. One of the four sanitary block was close-by. The sanitary blocks are large and spacious with separate areas for toilets, showers, dish-washing facilities and washing (clothes) facilities. There is also a wash room for children; it is a brightly-coloured tiled room with open showers (no cubicles).
Children's entertainment is provided at the kinder centre. This is located beside the main playground, trampolines (payable) and a high ropes course.
The main attraction of this site is the lake(s). The site borders the lake and there is easy access to it. A large sandy beach is popular with families who sit and play in the sand or swimming area. There is no life guard supervision. The entrance to the water is gradual and a line of buoys indicate when it gets deeper. There is a pontoon further out for swimmers to sunbathe on or dive / jump off. The girls loved swimming, jumping off the pontoon and playing on the beach.
There is a sauna and beach cafe near the beach, a pier for mooring sailing boats and an area for dogs. At one there is a watersports centre where you can hire canoes and kayaks. There is also the option of hiring motorised boats including 'Tom Sawyer' boats, a large flat-based boats with huts attached to them.
We chose to hire out a four-man canoe for the day and explored the lake and nearby river. It's surprising how many other people of all ages were out on the water. It definitely is the best way to explore the area. Some treat the canoe as the main form of transport, loading it up with camping gear and moving on between the different campsites.
So, Havel Tourist gets the thumbs up from us. Although a little out of the way, it is a great site with lots to do. Two nights was not long enough to fully appreciate the area but we enjoyed our little taste.
@meekroadventure