Friedrichshain park
The sound of summer
Climbing or a barbecue? Cinema or cake? Anything goes in Volkspark Friedrichshain in the summer.
Jogging, bouldering, playing frisbee or beach volleyball? Or just simply relaxing on the grass and having a barbecue? Volkspark Friedrichshain is where Berlin celebrates the summer, because there’s plenty of room there for both sport and relaxation.
The fun goes on into the night
Imagine you had a whole day to spend in Volkspark Friedrichshain: you could go out in the morning with the joggers and rollerbladers – along the fitness course and up the great hill of the old bunker. You could take a good book and read it while dabbling your feet in the Märchenbrunnen. You could meet your friends for a game of beach volleyball in the afternoon sun and then have a coffee at Café Schönbrunn. Maybe you feel like bouldering or rock climbing? Or just pack your picnic basket and have a barbecue in the park. And then when it finally gets dark, the lights go on at the open-air cinema and you can enjoy a classic film or a blockbuster on a warm summer night.
With such a range of leisure activities on offer, it’s no wonder that people of every age come out of their shells in Volkspark Friedrichshain. Children run around in its playgrounds. Lovers gaze at the TV tower from Mont Klamott at sunset. With 49 hectares of greenery, everyone discovers their favourite place there.
Berlin’s first public park
Berliners have been able to relax in Volkspark Friedrichshain since 1846. The idea of the park came from Peter Joseph Lenné. It was to be Berlin’s first park open to the public. Parts were gradually added to it: the Märchenbrunnen with ten statues from Grimm’s fairy tales was completed in 1913. After the second word war two bunkers were demolished and filled with rubble. This resulted in two hills that are covered in greenery and offer a view of Friedrichshain and Prenzlauer Berg. In 1950, an open-air stage was built, which is now an open-air cinema in summer.
History all around – memorials in Volkspark Friedrichshain
On your summer’s day in the park, you’ll also come across many memorials and sculptures. The park contains the Friedhof der Märzgefallenen, a cemetery for more than 200 civilians who died fighting on the barricades in the March revolution of 1848. After the November revolution of 1918, the fallen were also buried on the site. Not far away, a memorial was built in 1968 to the 3000 German members of the International Brigades who died in the Spanish Civil War. Since 1972 a memorial has commemorated the joint struggle of Polish soldiers and the German resistance. A Japanese Peace bell and a bronze bust of Friedrich II can also be found in the park. This makes the park not only a place to relax, but also an authentic part of Berlin’s history.
Petersburger Kiez
In the northern part of Friedrichshain you will find the popular area around the Samariterkirche. With its many cafés and bar, students and young families have made this charming neighbourhood of old buildings and small shops their own.
Find out more about the city’s neighbourhoods with our Going Local Berlin app.
