The lakes of Holstein Switzerland form a loose chain around Malente, and the town's main street is the place where the lake atmosphere turns into something you can sit in with a cup of coffee. The name Holstein Switzerland is a nineteenth-century tourist invention, given by visitors who thought the rolling hills and blue water looked like Swiss scenery. It is not a bad comparison if you squint, and the area has a gentle, glacial beauty of its own, shaped by ice that left behind hills, hollows and a string of lakes.
Malente itself is a spa and holiday town, with a long tradition as a Kneipp resort, a water-cure centre where people came to take cold footbaths and walk in the woods. It has a calm, slightly old-fashioned air, with villas along the lakes and a good number of bakeries and cafés. Sit down at one of them and order a slice of cake, since the north Germans' attachment to afternoon coffee and cake is serious. On the lakes, small passenger boats run a circuit connecting several of them, called the Five Lakes tour, and it is a pleasant thing to do on a warm day.
The riding to and from Malente is modest but engaging. Roads run through low hills, past fields, lakes and beech woods, with plenty of gentle bends and the occasional small climb. The hills are not high, and the highest point in Schleswig-Holstein, the Bungsberg at about 168 metres, lies not far away to the northeast, which tells you how much altitude you can expect. Tarmac is mostly fine. On summer weekends the lake roads can be busy with cyclists and cars, and the lanes around Eutin are popular, so go early.
Services are easy. Malente has more than ten thousand people, so you will find fuel, supermarkets and several choices for lunch, while neighbouring Eutin has a bigger range. Parking a motorbike on the main street is not a problem. A small piece of advice: you will be tempted to stay longer than planned, particularly if the sun is out and a table by the water is free. Allow for that in the day's plan.