During the Napoleonic occupation, shipping came to a halt due to the blockade against England which led to great poverty.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the idea of coastal resorts - having originated in England - became popular among the German North Sea islands.

To improve the comfort of tourists and guests, a 1.7 km long horse-drawn railway was built in 1885 between the village and the western beach.

Gustav Heinemann, Richard von Weizsäcker and Johannes Rau (who got married on the island) spent their holidays here.

Spiekeroog has a capacity of 3,500 beds for guests - counting all hotels, pensions, private rooms, vacation apartments and health and leisure centres.

The portrait of the Virgin Mary within the church is supposed to have come from a ship of the Spanish Armada that was stranded on Spiekeroog in 1588.

Since 2007 the Bronze sculpture „De Utkieker“ (Height 3,50 m) by the German sculptor Hannes Helmke is standing on a dune, looking over the sea.

The National Park Center Wittbülten is situated at two kilometres East from Spiekeroog village, surrounded by sand dunes and salt marshes covered with Sea Lavender.

The exhibition displays a Sperm Whale skeleton and many interactive and multimedial objects explaining the island's habitats.