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Top 11 Outdoor Activities in Berlin

How to be active outdoors!

Tempelhofer Feld
© Tempelhof Projekt GmbH

Spring at last! Enjoy the longer days, get outside, soak up the sunshine and vitamin D - and get in shape for the swimming season. Here are our tips for springtime activities where you can really work out or relax! Don't give spring fatigue a chance and welcome spring in Berlin!

Tip 1: Cycling tours through Berlin

Cycling in Berlin
Cycling in Berlin © visitBerlin, Foto: Thomas Kierok

Getting back on your bike in spring and exploring the city and surrounding area is definitely one of the top outdoor activities in Berlin! In Berlin there are varied or romantic routes, along the Panke, the Tegeler See, through the Grunewald forest or the zoo and of course along the former Berlin Wall. Or you can start a discovery tour on the traces of Berlin's industrial culture, visiting backyard sites and former factory buildings. To cool off after your tour, you can also take a ride to one of the many lakes for swimming in Berlin.

Tip: If you prefer guided bike tours, check out Berlin on Bike.

More information about Berlin by bike

Tip 2: Relax during a walk in the park

Park Schloss Charlottenburg im Frühling
© visitBerlin, Foto: Dagmar Schwelle

Berlin has so many beautiful parks to offer that it is difficult to choose the best one. The Britzer Garten,  featuring blossoms in spring and a colourful dahlia show in the fall, is definitely one of the highlights! On 100 hectares you can stroll through the lake district, theme gardens such as the famous rose garden or the witch garden.The little ones enjoy the beautiful play areas. Of course, the Botanical Garden in Steglitz. the park at Schloss Charlottenburg or the Tiergarten - the green lung in the middle of the city - are always worth a visit.

More information about Parks & Gardens

Tipp 3: Calisthenics

Parkour
© Mike Harrington

Calisthenics is the perfect sport to get in shape in time for the summer swimming season. Many parks in Berlin now have smaller and larger facilities with various equipment - from high bars to trampolines. Some even offer organised boot camps. And the best thing is that you don't need anything more than comfortable clothes. Let's go!

Calisthenics in Berlin

Tip 4: Hiking in and around Berlin

Frühling am Tegeler See
© visitBerlin, Foto: Dagmar Schwelle

Hiking in the big city might sound like a crazy plan at first, but this year you've seen that Berlin has some beautiful corners that are well worth exploring! For example, take a walk along the Wuhletal hiking trail, which winds its way south from Eichepark at Ahrensfelde S-Bahn station with the valley of the Wuhle River to Köpenick S-Bahn station.  Besides the species-rich, idyllic river valley, you will encounter numerous parks and meadows along the way. The route also runs along the IGA grounds, which invite you to take a short detour with a cable car ride.

More information about hikes in and around Berlin

Tip 5: Excursions to Brandenburg

Schloss Rheinsberg
© Yorck Maeck

Why not take a trip to neighbouring Brandenburg? In the Spreewald biosphere reserve, about an hour south of Berlin, you can enjoy the landscape on a boat trip along dreamy thatched cottages. Rheinsberg Castle in north-west Brandenburg is also worth a visit. The rococo castle is located directly on the Grienericksee lake.

More information about Brandenburg

Tip 6: Go skating

Skater in the forest Grunewald in Berlin
Skater in the forest Grunewald © visitBerlin, Foto: Thomas Kierok

The sun is shining, the paths have been cleared: finally it's time to get out the inline skates and skateboards again. From skate parks to the skater meeting place at the Allmende Kontor of Tempelhofer Feld to the kilometre-long track through Grunewald - Berlin has a whole range of options for starting the spring on wheels. We have compiled the 11 best routes for you here

THE 11 MOST BEAUTIFUL SKATING TRACKS IN BERLIN

Tip 7: Discovery tours through the city

Sightseeing in Berlin's government district: wheelchair user pets a dog.
Sightseeing in Berlin's government district: wheelchair user pets a dog. © visitBerlin, Foto: Fotoagentur Wolf, freiheitswerke

During a walk through the city you can always discover something new. The whole of Berlin is a gigantic outdoor museum. Here you can stroll through the neighbourhoods and see numerous sculptures and works of art by famous artists such as Henry Moore or Keith Haring, and all for freeThe government district and the banks of the Spree also attract inline skaters and joggers, in Dahlem you can walk along green paths and from Tempelhof you can cycle or hike along the Teltow Canal to Steglitz.

A trip to the Bavarian Quarter is also historically interesting. Numerous commemorative plaques await you, which remind you of the gradual discrimination and disenfranchisement of Berlin's Jews. Incidentally, Albert Einstein also lived here in Haberlandstraße between 1917 and 1932. There is a project website about the new Einstein-Stela with quotations and a lot more information about the famous physicist.

And for all those interested in art, we also have put together 11 beautiful Berlin walks.

11 Berlin walks for art lovers

Tip 8: Discover Street Art

Street Art in Berlin: Elephant with world balloon by Jadore Tong
Street Art in Berlin: Elephant with world balloon by Jadore Tong © visitBerlin, Foto: Josefine Köhn-Haskins

The whole of Berlin is a gigantic outdoor gallery. You'll find great works of art and murals all over the city, ranging from the mosaics of GDR times to the East Side Gallery and modern street art works. Street art icons from all over the world like Jadore Tong, Shepard Fairey, Jim Avignon, Herakut or blu have left their mark.

Discover street art highlights in Berlin with our ABOUT BERLIN app and learn more about the artists and the individual murals. Download now for free. Your digital city guide to Berlin history and stories.

In the Google Play Store now: Download ABOUT BERLIN
In the App Store now: Download ABOUT BERLIN

There are many stories to tell: ABOUT BERLIN

Tip 9: Geo-Caching

Frühling
© visitBerlin, Foto: Dagmar Schwelle

If you're looking for a challenge, geocaching is definitely the right choice. With the help of a free app, you can solve puzzles, follow tips and find treasures. It's not unusual for you to have to go to places that are new even to experienced Berliners.

Start Geo-Caching here

Tip 10: Viewpoints in Berlin's neighbourhoods

 

Abhoerstation Teufelsberg
© visitBerlin

Teufelsberg is the highest elevation in Berlin. For this reason, the Americans chose this heap of rubble as the site of their former spy station. Thee journey and climb up the hill takes about 30 minutes, you will be rewarded with a magnificent view. The whole of Berlin is at your feet, and there's always a good breeze blowing on the 99 metres of the artificially raised hill. We have put together a list of other beautiful vantage points in Berlin's neighbourhoods.

12 beautiful viewpoints in the neighbourhoods

Tip 11: Climbing and bouldering

Climbing tower on the RAW site
The Kegel © Getty Images, Foto: Juergen Bosse

A little below the former spy station on Teufelsberg you will also find a climbing tower that is even suitable for top rope, which means you can attach your climbing ropes to the top and belay each other. You can also climb and boulder outdoors at the "Kegel" on the RAW site. Many bouldering halls like Bright Side open their outdoor climbing gardens in summer. And in the Jungfernheide forest high ropes course, completely new challenges await you.

Bouldern in Berlin 

Here you can find more tips for activities in Berlin: things to do and explore.

Josefine Köhn-Haskins

Josefine

is originally from Munich and started out her career at one of Germanys largest daily news papers. Before finding her home in Berlin, she also reported as a correspondent and trend scout from the US. Today she is cruising Berlin's neighbourhoods, always on the lookout for good stories - with a focus on culture, music and ideas for the future of an innovative Berlin. All posts