Altes Fährterminal – „Glasbahnhof“

“Did the walls just shimmer?” a child’s voice echoed across the Sassnitz harbor. We stand before the Altes Fährterminal – “Glasbahnhof,” its nickname a testament to its shimmering glass facade. This very spot has witnessed the ebb and flow of history, from the grandeur of kings to the quiet hum of a museum. The Altes Fährterminal, inaugurated on July 6, 1909, originally served the “Königslinie” ferry route between Trelleborg, Sweden and Sassnitz. Imagine Kaiser Wilhelm II and the Swedish King, present for the grand opening, their presence marking the beginning of a new era of connection. Fifty years later, in 1959, the “Glasbahnhof” was reborn, adapted for modern four-track ferries and the burgeoning automobile traffic. The Altes Fährterminal continued its service until 1998, when ferry traffic shifted to the new port in Mukran. But the Altes Fährterminal was far from forgotten. Today, it houses the Museum for Underwater Archaeology, where treasures salvaged from the Baltic Sea and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern’s waterways tell silent tales of the past. Shipwrecks, forgotten structures, remnants of lives lived – all brought to light, echoing the shimmering reflections of the “Glasbahnhof” itself. The Altes Fährterminal in Sassnitz stands as a beautiful reminder of a bygone era, its glass walls now reflecting not just the harbor, but the passage of time and the treasures it reveals.