Use local Baltic sectors and water-level information rather than a generic North Sea tide product.
Forecast sectors and coverage
Select the applicable western/southern Baltic area in the current DWD marine product and check its coastal subdivisions. A German land warning or North Sea bulletin is not a substitute for the chosen Baltic sector.
Weather-sensitive legs
Distinguish sheltered harbour, open bay and onward strait exposure. Assess wave access from the forecast direction, and verify actual water level even where astronomical tide is not the main driver.
Observations, sea state and reassessment
Use the BSH Baltic level product and available local observations with timestamps and datum. A model current map is context and cannot certify the stream at an entrance.
Worked planning scenario — not a live forecast
For a Kiel Bay day passage, compare departure and return exposure separately. If a forecast direction change affects the return harbour, include an alternative before leaving the sheltered section.
Official products by task
- DWD sea-weather products — Choose Nord- und Ostsee, coastal reports and warnings; the portal is not one zone forecast.
- BSH Baltic water levels — Baltic water-level products; do not infer low-water clearance from a wind-only forecast.
- BSH modelled currents — Operational model maps, not measured tidal stream at a harbour entrance; inspect freshness.
Sector names help you locate the issuing product; they are not an automatic route-coverage match. Open the current issue and check boundaries, issue time and validity. This page does not display current warnings; an unavailable product does not mean no hazard.
Countries & territories
- Germany
North Sea tidal approaches and Baltic bays need separate weather and water-level products.
Map orientation
The approximate map centre is not an approach waypoint, track, depth survey or forecast-zone boundary. The third-party map loads only on request.
Build your passage brief
Bring your route, leg timings, vessel and crew profile, checked sources and reassessment triggers into the brief. Personal AI analysis and expert review are available to invited closed-test participants; a port page does not extend the calculation service’s coverage.
A Sailing Weather editorial guide to local conditions, practical passage preparation and marine-weather sources. Source and structure review: 27 September 2026. For a specific passage, check current issues, validity and forecast coverage. The skipper retains the final decision and responsibility.
Kiel Bay and the outer leg need separate checks
For a Kiel–Fehmarn or Lübeck Bay planning example, distinguish the departure basin, open-bay leg and destination entrance. Select DWD's applicable Baltic area and coastal report, not a German land warning or North Sea text. A quay-side wind reading may be sheltered by buildings and coast geometry; compare its trend with an exposed marine source before treating it as representative of the day's open-water leg.
- DWD sea weather — North/Baltic products and coastal reports, separate from land warnings.
Water level is more than a small tide
The practical depth question requires actual local level and a compatible chart reference, not the assumption that Baltic tide is negligible. Keep water-level forecast, observation and current model distinct. A BSH current map represents a modelled field, not a measured entrance stream. If level evidence is missing, the briefing should show the gap rather than making a wind-only approach judgement.
- BSH modelled surface currents — Hourly operational model currents include tidal and wind-driven components; inspect date.
- DMI water-level interpretation — Measured versus forecast level, vertical reference and limits of automated curves.
Check shelter after the forecast turns
Compare the arrival and return coast under the forecast direction change. A berth protected at departure may be exposed when the yacht returns. Reassess before leaving the useful shelter if the revised wind/sea direction alters the approach or if slower progress shifts arrival beyond the checked issue. Include a feasible alternative with its own local conditions rather than labelling all neighbouring harbours equally sheltered.
- DWD sea weather
- RYA passage planning — Practitioner guidance on contingency, tides, vessel and crew constraints.
Editorial review of this material: 27 September 2026. This date concerns the page content; check current forecast issue times and validity at the original sources.