To ensure we never take this beautiful city we live in for granted, and to take full advantage of all it has to offer, we never let a weekend pass by without an adventure. Our tradition is Saturday morning breakfast, then a study of Google maps to venture to an area we’ve yet to see.
There are countless parks, playgrounds and lakes in Berlin. So many that I’m sad to say we probably won’t be able to see them all before moving home. Each park is different from the other. Most are filled with history that overwhelms you while there, some are so rustic and beautiful they make you forget your living the city life.
Here are our top favorite parks in Berlin so far.
TREPTOWER PARK
This is probably our most visited park and we have a specific route we take every time we venture that way. If the weather cooperates, we make sure to take our visitors that make their way over here to Treptower Park because there is so much to see. It’s just a beautiful park all around with sites of the river Spree alongside.
It’s a refreshing stroll with massive trees throughout while passing rose gardens, fountains and crossing sunny lawns. Slightly further east is a small bridge to an island where you can find a perfect spot for a picnic or enjoy a drink at the beer garden. The views of people paddle boating, renting canoes or partaking in boat tours give an oasis getaway feel. One of Annalina’s favorite playgrounds is directly across the bridge so it’s a definite win-win for everyone.
If you just spent your time walking along the Spree you would not be disappointed, but if you venture more “inland”, you will find a breathtaking Soviet War Memorial that was built to commemorate 7,000 of the 80,000 soldiers who fell in battle. Or, you may also stumble upon a small inner lake people go for a peaceful swim or topless sunbathing.
BRITZER GARTEN
Another fave destination to take our guests is Britzer. This park is one we pay an entrance fee to but definitely worth the expense (and by “expense” I mean 3€ for adults and 1.50€ for kids) since you can easily spend an entire day there. Every time we go, we discover something we haven’t seen before so each visit is a new surprise. There are numerous playgrounds, water playgrounds, restaurants, gardens and even a train ride to cover the 220+ acre park encompassing a 25-acre lake in the center. Children can partake in the learning facilities, visit animal enclosures or see a fully functioning windmill grinding grain into flour. Additionally, there are countless green areas spread throughout where you can claim a spot to have a picnic or lay back and enjoy the sun.
MAUERPARK
It’s easy to forget Mauerpark or “Wall Park” is an actual park – especially on Sundays. The park turns into a big flea market complete with food trucks, artists entertaining to make an extra euro and slightly (or more) tipsy people partaking in the Bearpit open air karaoke. The history makes Mauerpark particularly special – part of the former Berlin Wall and its “Death Strip” lies along the linear park. Also on Sundays, you can watch in-person graffiti artists express themselves and freely paint on the walls.
VICTORIA PARK
With the highest natural elevation in the city, the panoramic views from the top can make you forget you are in the heart of a city. In between walking the streets of Kreuzberg while passing by apartments, restaurants and shops, suddenly lies a picturesque artificial waterfall. It’s a fun hike climbing up while watching people climbing over a few rocks to sit in the flowing water and soak up the sun with water cascading down all around them. Further exploration reveal even more incredible features of the park including a children’s playground, mini-zoo and of course, a beer garden.
KIENBERGPARK
This park was a nice surprise and more like a mini amusement park getaway in Berlin. We’ve always heard of “Gardens of the World” being a must-see so that was really our only expectation. When we arrived we were surprised to see so much more. This park has a more modern feel with futuristic looking playgrounds, a cable car ride that runs above, bob-sledding track and a viewing platform that resembles a floating cloud, or “Wolkenhain”, with breathtaking views of both Berlin and Brandenburg.
GRUNEWALD
Grunewald is a 7,000+ acre forest with everything you can imagine including multiple parks, swimmable lakes, roaming wild life and restaurants, it’s impossible to see the forest in its entirety in one day. In fact, some visitors make weekend trips out of it and stay at the hotels within. We’ve yet to discover more of the forest but we were able to enjoy some top sites on our first visit there. One very memorable site was the famous Teufelberg (German for Devil’s Mountain), a spy station that sits on top of an artificial hill made from WWII rubble and covers an incomplete Nazi college . There’s definitely an eerie feeling you get walking past, but we’ll definitely have to come back and actually head to the top. Off the beaten path, we also stumbled across a small climbing wall where Annalina burnt off more energy and gave us a “break” before we hiked (with our self made walking sticks) up to a sightseeing spot with more incredible views of Berlin.
I get the feeling this list has the potential to change and grow with every park we visit. Each one is so impressive, and every one adds special context to the story of our Berlin adventure. I can’t wait to see what next Saturday brings!