:: Germany > GEOGRAPHY > North German Lowland The North German Lowland The German Federal States of Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, Hamburg, Bremen, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Brandenburg, Berlin, Saxony-Anhalt, and parts of Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia are located in the North German Lowland belt which is part of the Great European Plain that reaches from the Pyrenees in France to the Ural Mountains in Russia. The Lowlands slope towards the sea with the northern Lowlands being very flat, below sea-level in parts. Green meadows, pastures and dairy farming prevail. The North Sea coastline has wide expanses of sand, marsh, and mud flats, called "Wattenmeer".
			The East Frisian Islands are lined up the Lower Saxon coast, the North Frisian Islands lie offshore the Schleswig-Holstein coast. All offshore islands have maximum elevations of only a few metres. A few hundred years ago they were still part of the mainland. During low tide large portions of the mud flats between the islands and the coast are exposed. The Baltic Sea coast of Schleswig-Holstein differs markedly from the North Sea coast. It is indented by several deep fjords with steep banks. In the south and further to the east in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the Baltic Sea shore is flat and sandy. Most of the North German Lowland lies well under 100 metres above sea level. Hills in the southern parts of the lowlands hardly ever reach 200 metres. Soils are usually more fertile and productive in these more elevated regions, suitable for all kinds of agricultural use including grain, potatoes and vegetables production.
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								Left: typical view of rural Frisia. Top: the flat North German Lowland is perfect for easy biking tours.