Nordby main city of Fanø

The main town on Fanø is Nordby – which translate into northern city. The name is fitting considering the town is located at the northern end of the island and is the only connection to the rest of Denmark via the ferry to Esbjerg. The city is an old town but it doesn’t really have the same charm as you find in the southern city of Sønderho.

Despite the water separating Nordby from Esbjerg on the other side it is kind of a suburb of Esbjerg with a lot of the locals commuting by ferry to work in Esbjerg. Fortunately the village has still kept a bit of a village feel.

Three is several old thatches roof houses spread across the center of the town which has kind of a pedestrian street – though cars are allowed to drive through it so it is sort of a mix between pedestrian street and an ordinary road. There are a few shops along the main street which is mainly target at tourist – I doubt there is enough of a local market to keep all these shops alive.

In addition to the ferry harbor there is also a harbor where the locals have their boats. It looks like a pretty place on a sunny day with a view out over the waters towards Esbjerg.

A little funny detail around the town is a fairly large dike. Like all islands around this area Fanø is prone to fall and winter storms. The very powerful storms can raise the water several meters above normal sea-level making a dike essential to protect the island and the village against the elements. The problem with the dike is it is very difficult to get in and out of the village from the main road which is located outside the dike.

• 

• 

To actually be able to get inside the village there is a few places you can cross through the dike. This would compromise the dike – but they have found a solution. They have put in large waterproof doors which can be shot in case of a storm. I guess these water proof doors couldn’t take the full wrath of a storm – but the village is on the easterly side of the island and all major storms here comes from the west since there is only very limited water on the eastern side of the island which can’t create a flooding situation.