A Magical Tour of Berlin's Secret Plänterwald Forests

This is a children’s playground built mostly out of natural elements, and is a great place to get your hands dirty while also getting in touch with your inner child. The climbing frames, trains, tractors and boats are all crafted from pieces of trees, and make for an imaginative, happy space for children and adults alike.

The sleepy abandoned amusement park is tucked away in all its eerie wonder within these forests. Enclosed behind green fences, it is the site of much mystery and intrigue. This was the GDR’s biggest amusement park – the ‘Disneyland of Socialism‘ – which went bankrupt after being privatized; today its destiny is still unclear. For forest explorers, it remains an enchanting place. Remnants of life-size plastic dinosaur sculptures lie in pieces on the forest floor, and a giant red Ferris wheel becomes increasingly rusty as nature takes its natural course. You’ll probably get caught jumping the fence to get inside, but for those with an adventurous spirit, it might still be worth a try.

Insel der Jugend, or the Island of Youth, is a declared experimental ground for all forms of art. Situated between Treptow Park and the forests of Plänterwald, people come here to enjoy picnics, watch live music, hire a tug boat for a few hours of off-land fun, and pass over Germany’s oldest steel bridge, the Abteibrücke.

Spring brings new life to the forest and summer offers shaded, comforting respite from the heat; autumn becomes a kaleidoscope of burnt yellow, red and orange. During winter the forest dies off, getting ready for another incredible cycle of life to begin. With its beauty in constant change, the forests are best explored with no goal in mind and no destination to get to. By bike or by foot, choose to get lost down its winding pathways, follow your instinct and simply be. The area is only about three square kilometres, so you’ll never get too lost.