Travel Feature
Known for its beaches and natural beauty, the island of Bornholm is Denmark's easternmost region. It lies in the Baltic Sea on the far side of Sweden's Skåne peninsula.

Painters were among Bornholm's earliest tourists, lured by the island's pure sunlight some 150 years ago. Yet even before that (back into the Stone Age in fact), Bornholm was known for its ceramics, made from the island's native clay. Today, the island's Glass and Ceramic School (celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2004) is doing its best to ensure Bornholm's reputation as an artist's enclave for years to come.

Why Now?
Summer is prime time to visit the beautiful island of Bornholm, with its pristine beaches and easy-going attitude. The island's craftspeople open their workshops to visitors, and you can hardly go anywhere without discovering the work of local ceramicists, glassblowers, sculptors, jewelers and artists.

Don\'t Miss
Four round churches, originally built as refuge fortresses in the 12th century, are Bornholm's most recognizable buildings. Find them in Nyker (left), Nylars Olsker and Østerlars. The Østerlars church, known as the Church of St. Laurentius is the largest and oldest of the four. Some 130,000 people visit it each year. The round churches are part of the Danish National Church (Lutheran). They are usually open to the public. In summer they are also used as concert venues.

NaturBornholm is the island's fascinating new natural history museum designed by world-renowned Danish architect Henning Larsen and situated (quite daringly!) on the prehistoric fault line that divides the island. It's a must for dinosaur-lovers, who come to "meet" Dromaeosaurus, Denmark's first native dinosaur.

Hammershus, near the island's northern tip, is northern Europe's largest castle ruin and the most-visited site on Bornholm. Built in the 12th century, it remained Bornholm's stronghold for more than 500 years.

Smokehouses, where you can sample the smoked herring for which Bornholm is famous. The silvery herring is fresh-caught and smoked over alder wood for hours until it turns a characteristic golden-red. Hot from the smokers, the fish are skinned and served with salt, radishes, onion and, sometimes, a raw egg yolk.

Best-kept Secrets
Among the more desirable residences in Rønne and Nexø are the so-called Swede houses. These wooden homes were presented by the government of Sweden to Bornholm after World War II. They replaced hundreds of the island's famed half-timbered houses that had been destroyed during the war.

If Bornholm isn't out-of-the-way enough for you, take the 1-hour ferry ride northeast to the tiny island of Christiansø. Once a fortress island, Christiansø now has about 100 permanent residents, a small inn, and perfect quiet for bird-watching or simply relaxing.

A distinctive type of rye biscuits, called Bornholmske Rugkiks, have been a Bornholm tradition for generations. The family-run bakery that makes them marks its 80th year in 2004. The biscuits, packed in an easy-to-spot blue wrapper, are especially delicious when topped with locally made Bornholm blue cheese.

The Templars' Secret Island, a 1993 book by Erling Hågensen and Henry Lincoln, posits the theory that the round churches of Bornholm were part of a "treasure map" devised by the ancient order of the Knights Templar to conceal the location of the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant.

The Oscar-winning film Pelle the Conqueror is set on Bornholm and was filmed on the island. Martin Andersen Nexø, author of the 1906 novel on which the film was based, grew up on Bornholm. His childhood home in Nexø is now a museum.