Datteln is a town in the district of Recklinghausen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on a crossroads of four canals (Datteln-Hamm Canal, Wesel-Datteln Canal, Dortmund-Ems Canal and Rhein-Herne Canal), which makes it the biggest canal junction in the World, approx. 10 km north-east of Recklinghausen and 20 km north-west of Dortmund.