German is located in central Europe, with an area of 357,021 sq km. To its north are the North Sea, Denmark and the Baltic Sea; to the east are Poland and the Czech Republic, to its south and southeast are Austria and Switzerland; and on the west side are France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium.
In the northern part near the Baltic coast are rolling hills covered with forests and plateaus with lakes; whereas along the coast are sandy dunes. In the northeast are wide plains and moors along the coast, which gradually rise south into the centre of Germany to become mountains, including the Harz mountains, of up to 1,500 m above sea level, and densely covered forests.
In the southern edge of the country are the German Alps, which rose to a height of 2,962 m at Zugspitze, and border Switzerland and Austria. The Alpine region gradually slopes downwards towards the north, before the central lowlands, to create low plateaus and mountains, where the Black Forest is located.
Running from east to west in the centre of the country between the central mountains and the Alps are the lowlands through which flow several major rivers: the Rhine, Danube and Elbe. Apart from rich farm lands which the rive valleys have created, these rivers are major waterways to the northern ports and to the rest of Europe. The Rhine and Elbe flow into the North Sea around which important ports have been established over the centuries. The Danube, which originates in the Black Forest region in the south, flows from the west to the east until it reaches the Black Sea.
Germany shares Lake Constance, which is at the base of the Alps, with Switzerland and Austria. The lake is fed by water from the Alps brought by the Rhine and other rivers in the region.
