There is plenty of space for you to stop and relax. The Schwerin Lakeland – full of plants and animals – is a paradise for nature watchers. To the south, you will find many charming towns along the River Elde – towns such as Parchim with its historic old part of town, or Lübz with its beautiful marina and historic town centre. The health resort Plau am See, which is famous for its good, healthy air, is an old, romantic fishing town and the gateway to the Mecklenburg Lake District.
North of Lake Plau is the 365 km² large Nossentiner/Schwinzer Heath Nature Park. It has 60 small and large lakes, over 300 km of well-developed cycling and walking paths and 160 km of horse-riding trails. The Warnow River – one of the most beautiful canoeing areas in Germany – flows to the northeast of Schwerin.
The wildly romantic Warnow transverse valley – with up canyons to 30 metres deep, quiet forest lakes and forest areas that are like a jungle sometimes – is home to beavers, otters, sea eagles and kingfishers. The nearby town of Sternberg has a mediaeval town centre with an almost completely preserved town fortification. A few kilometres away in Gross Raden, you can explore a Slavic temple from the 9th century. The beautiful Nature Park Sternberger Lakeland has, among other things, the largest inland salt marshes and one of the oldest known sea eagles of Germany.