Visual Bornholm
Published by Visual Media ApS
Designed by Miru Studio
Text: Mads westermann Foto: anders beier
Bornholm’s nature is Scandinavia in concentrated form. Like a stock cube of landscapes, where in a single day you can walk from rugged cliffs to soft sandy beaches, from deep forests to open meadows.
From the windswept granite coastline of Hammerknuden, through the dark Douglas fir plantations of Almindingen, to the powdery white sands of Dueodde.
Bornholm is also an open-air museum, showcasing landscapes and architecture long vanished from the rest of Denmark. You’ll find ancient castle ruins, heathlands, rift valleys, rock carvings, and the iconic smokehouses in nearly every coastal town.
Yet despite all this, Bornholm remains one of Europe’s most overlooked hiking destinations.
With over 120 km of coastal trails winding from Hammerknuden’s granite formations in the north to the soft sand beaches of Dueodde in the south, and the 67 km long Højlyngsstien cutting through the island’s interior, Bornholm is a true paradise for hikers.
Along the trails, you’ll find shelters and tent sites at regular intervals, allowing for budget-friendly overnight stays in the heart of nature. For more comfort, there are plenty of traditional accommodations along the coast.
Whether you choose the coast or the inland route, the experience is rich with impressions: crashing waves and the scent of smoked fish on the Kyststi, or the still forest air and spicy aromas of juniper and crowberry on Højlyngsstien. Along the way, the island’s deep history lies scattered like breadcrumbs—rock carvings, ruins, and stones that whisper of ancient footsteps.
There’s something cinematic about following a coastline. Something that brings to mind the film “Wild,” where Reese Witherspoon hikes along the Pacific from Mexico to Canada to heal herself after a cascade of life crises.
Granted, Bornholm’s cliffs can hardly compare to California’s Pacific coast, but here is the same elongated choreography, where each step blends with the rhythm of the sea’s roar and the wind’s play with the vegetation. A dramaturgy where there’s room for reflection and an intense feeling of freedom.Wikipedia+5Wikipedia+5DVL+5
The Coastal Trail, Bornholm’s 120-kilometer-long circuit, is one of the most versatile hiking routes in Denmark. Through time and geology, from the raw granite along the north coast to the flat, expansive sandy beaches in the south and the high sandstone cliffs on the west coast.
And although it’s a route that can be walked by most with good physical condition, it’s a route that demands both thigh muscles and proper footwear. Especially on the more rugged stretches, where the surface constantly shifts from bare, worn rock surfaces to small, loose stones that behave like ball bearings underfoot, and where the inattentive can quickly get a lesson in gravity.
But for those who overcome the hardships, the reward awaits in the form of panoramic views over the Baltic Sea, where light and sea meet in an ever-changing play of colors. The sun reflecting off the cliffs and the sea makes it clear where Oluf Høst and the other painters of the Bornholm School drew their inspiration and motifs.
Although the Coastal Trail doesn’t require Sherpa training or mountaineering equipment, it’s a hiking route that demands planning if you want to make it all the way around unscathed.
There’s a marked contrast between the easily accessible stretch between Nexø and Boderne, where the sand creaks gently underfoot, and the uneven cliff paths on the northeast and north coasts, where each step requires full attention to where you place your feet.
Therefore, it’s also advantageous to plan the stages thoughtfully—varying between short and long stages, incorporating rest days, and remembering to take breaks during the day to enjoy nature and the towns’ offerings. Set aside five to six days for a trip around the coast
For those who prefer to travel inland, away from the wind and the sound of waves, the Højlyngsstien is an equally worthy alternative. A well-marked 67-kilometer trail that zigzags down through the island’s interior.
Here, you pass through nature that could be taken directly from Tolkien’s “The Hobbit” or from Astrid Lindgren’s lyrical and sensory depiction of the forests around Mattisborgen, where Ronja the Robber’s Daughter seeks refuge from quarrelsome adults.
There are neither gray dwarfs nor rumpnissar here, but the Underworldly beings will surely keep an eye on you along the way.
Following the Højlyngsstien, you pass through narrow rift valleys, lush heaths, ancient primeval forests with large, moss-covered boulders, along narrow boardwalks through bogs and over lakes. Through Ravnedal in the north, to the Bison Forest in the middle of the island, where you might be lucky enough to see the European bison lying and chewing cud.Past Dybedal and the Witch’s Door in the south, before you meet the sea again at Aarsdale and can follow the Coastal Trail south to Dueodde.
If the Coastal Trail is the noisy little brother with waves and sea mist, the Højlyngsstien is the contemplative older sister with silence, the bogs’ scent of decay and decline, the heaths’ sweet, dusty aroma of flowers and herbs, and the soft crunch of fallen cones under hiking boots.
Just like along the Coastal Trail, there are shelter and tent sites scattered along the Højlyngsstien like oases for modern nomads. However, if you want a real bed to sleep in, you’ll need to rely on private accommodations.
While it’s the landscape that demands planning on the Coastal Trail, it’s the provisioning that requires planning on the Højlyngsstien. Between Allinge and Aarsdale, there are no shopping opportunities. Therefore, you must carry all the food you need in your backpack.
Some choose to cover the 67 kilometers in a single day, but if it’s to be a relaxing holiday, three days of hiking with a single rest day to explore Almindingen or Paradisbakkerne is probably a better choice.
If you’re not into overnighting in nature or don’t have the time or physical ability for several days of hiking, there are fortunately more accessible alternatives that can provide some truly exceptional hiking and nature experiences.
Most tourists only see Hammerknuden from the bench at the ice cream shop in Sæne Harbor while considering whether they can eat another traditional ice cream cone with whipped cream and jam.
But up on the cliffs themselves, above the harbor, a network of narrow trails unfolds across the large granite knoll.Dramatic, wind-blown, and slightly gloomy in gray weather, the trails wind through heather and dwarf pine. Along the way, there are occasional views of the sea, which constantly shifts between lead gray and turquoise hues. If you’re lucky, you might see a raven or a peregrine falcon soaring in the wind over the cliffs, searching for an unfortunate mouse or lizard.
Further south, in Paradisbakkerne, you can get small tastes of Tolkien’s and Astrid Lindgren’s nature descriptions. The trails wind in and out among boulders as large as suburban houses, and the names—Grydesø, Midterpilt, Slingestenen—sound like something from an old folk song. Here and there, you encounter old stone fences, evidence that before the forest was planted here, people struggled to make a living from farming.
It’s so wild here that it can feel slightly irresponsible not to sprinkle breadcrumbs on the trail to find your way back to civilization.
While Hammerknuden and Paradisbakkerne are both hilly and wild, Ekkodalen and the surrounding forest are more accessible.
From Ekkodalshuset’s parking lot, a wide trail and a boardwalk lead through the rift valley, where no one tires of asking the cliffs what Møller drinks.
The trail and boardwalk end at Jægerhuset, where you can enjoy your packed lunch before walking back to the parking lot along the gravel road through the forest.
Granted, Bornholm may not be the Camino, with pilgrim masses and saint veneration, but if you set aside the sacred dimension for a moment and instead focus on what truly makes a hiking destination remarkable, Bornholm stands tall beside the Camino and other famous trails.
According to the leading German outdoor magazine TREKKING WANDERN & OUTDOOR, which has its finger on the pulse of Europe’s hiking routes, Bornholm offers something rare in today’s outdoor world: an accessible adventure package where dramatic nature and civilized comfort go hand in hand.
Where Iceland’s Laugavegur leads visitors through a wilderness of hardened lava, reeking of sulfur and desolation, Bornholm offers a more refined nature experience – cliffs, forest, beach – and, at the end, a Svaneke Pilsner and a slice of Sol over Gudhjem.
