Groß Plasten: Castle, Village Church and Landscape Park

A village church with a distinctive architectural history

Groß Plasten village church was built in 1901 as a plastered, octagonal central-plan building in the Neo-Baroque style, on a natural stone plinth. It was designed by architect Franz Schwechten. The building was prompted by a dispute over the shared use of the church in Klein Plasten—a local conflict that explains why it was built. The church has been listed since the 1980s.

The church’s furnishings include the complete sandstone fit-out from the time of its construction. The organ also tells the story of that period: W. Sauer built it in 1901 for the west gallery; it was restored in 1997. Anyone interested in architecture, historic interiors or organs will find several specific points of interest in this building.

Castle, park and trails

Groß Plasten Castle was built in the second half of the 19th century and extended with an addition in the early 20th century. A landscape park adjoins the castle, with rare trees growing there. The park offers a different focus from the village church: here, the designed landscape and its trees take centre stage; there, the architecture and furnishings.

Hiking trails run through the landscape park, connecting Groß Plasten and Klein Plasten. If you like to include a walk in your day, you can plan to follow these trails as an activity in their own right, alongside sightseeing.

At Groß Plasten Castle, THE RESET offers detox and therapeutic fasting programmes with medical care. This is a distinct wellness focus in the area. When planning your holiday, you can therefore decide whether culture and exercise in the landscape park or a stay focused on these programmes is more important to you.

More places to explore in the municipality

Varchentin adds its own buildings to the area’s history. Its castle was built in 1847 in the Tudor style, based on plans by Swiss architect Auguste de Meuron. Varchentin’s church dates from the second half of the 13th century, around 1270 to 1280. The municipality therefore brings together buildings from different periods: the medieval church and the 19th-century castle.

Varchentin Park also has its own design history: Peter Joseph Lenné drew up plans for its layout in 1838. Groups of trees, distinctive individual trees and meadow areas shape the park.

Beckenkrug is home to an old mill with a thatched roof. It was built sometime between 1851 and 1875 and is the only mill in the Müritz area to have survived at its original site. In Klein Plasten, the so-called Rundling, a circular village settlement, was laid out in 1934 with 13 farms. The mill and the Rundling offer two more ways to explore the municipality: a surviving building at its original site and a settlement comprising a specifically stated number of farms.

Lakes and choosing where to go

The Small and Great Varchentin Lakes are surrounded by a belt of reeds. The Small Varchentin Lake can be circled on foot in about an hour.

At Klein Plasten Lake, only boats belonging to the association are permitted; a boat is available for visiting anglers. If fishing is one of your interests, this restriction is an important difference compared with a walk around Varchentin Lake. When choosing where to stay, you can weigh up whether the cultural sites, park trails or lakes and the activities they offer matter most to you.

Explore more places

You can also include Klink, Torgelow Am See, Kargow, Vollrathsruhe, Jabel, Klocksin, Dratow-Schloen and Neu Gaarz in your search.

For the wider travel overview: Amt Seenlandschaft Waren.