Golm International Youth Meeting and Education Centre in Kamminke/Island of Usedom

The historic island of Usedom is an ideal destination for youth trips and school class trips to the Baltic Sea. The Golm International Youth Meeting and Education Centre combines first-hand encounters with history and the opportunities offered by a group holiday on the Baltic coast.

“Working for peace – reconciliation over the graves” is the motto of the German War Graves Commission, which is responsible on behalf of the Federal Republic of Germany for maintaining German war graves abroad.

Since 1953, the German War Graves Commission has organised international work camps every year for several thousand young people from across Europe at war cemeteries stretching from Brittany to the Volga and from Norway to Crete. For young people today, war cemeteries are places of remembrance and encounter, as well as places to learn about history: starting points for fostering understanding between peoples in a very tangible way.

On 12 March 2005, the German War Graves Commission opened its fifth International Youth Meeting Centre in Kamminke, on the Baltic island of Usedom. At the Golm War Cemetery and Memorial in Kamminke, right on the Polish border, young Europeans experience the effects of war and violence, meet eyewitnesses, explore history first-hand and get to know peers from other countries.

Historical background: On 12 March 1945, Swinemünde was packed with refugees when 671 American bombers turned the city into a blazing inferno at midday, unleashing an enormous bomb load. It is estimated that up to 20,000 people died; most of the victims had to be buried anonymously in mass graves at Golm. By engaging with individual life stories, young people are to be equipped to understand the history and message of the vast cemetery and the border at Kamminke, and motivated to stand up for peace and democracy.

Whether for project weeks or traditional school trips, the Golm Youth Meeting and Education Centre gives school classes and youth groups—especially from Germany and Poland—the opportunity to spend a week together filled with activities, close to the beach. Peenemünde, the birthplace of the V2 rocket, and the formerly German, now Polish city of Swinemünde/Świnoujście are regular features of stays at Golm.

The German-Polish team at the Golm Youth Meeting Centre supports the planning of projects and international exchanges, and offers educational modules focused on peace.

The various programmes are suitable for young people from all types of schools. Adult groups also use the centre, cyclists stay overnight here, and eyewitnesses share their stories. Guests stay in modern four-bed rooms with private bathroom facilities in residential pavilions built in 2005; group leaders are accommodated in single rooms.

The German Federal Forum for Children’s and Youth Travel awarded the Golm Youth Meeting Centre its prestigious four-star quality seal. The award recognised not only its youth-friendly facilities, but above all the tailored educational programmes offered to guest groups.

Golm Youth Meeting Centre at a glance
- Suitable for: school classes, students, group trips, adult education, cycling holidays
- Opening hours: year-round
- Beds: 94
- Facilities: four-bed, single and double rooms, all with shower/WC; seminar rooms; 50 bicycles
- Prices: full board from €25
- Description: opened in 2005; educational programmes for school classes; ideal for school and project trips and seminars. Football pitch, beach volleyball, street basketball, outdoor chess and barbecue area available
- Within walking distance: Golm War Cemetery, Polish border, bathing beach on the Szczecin Lagoon

Contact
German War Graves Commission
Golm Youth Meeting Centre
Dorfstraße 33
17419 Kamminke/Island of Usedom
T +49 (0) 38376 290-0
F +49 (0) 38376 290-68
info@jbs-golm.de
www.jbs-golm.de 

Excursion options
Excursion destinations on Usedom
Excursion destinations in Western Pomerania