Freaky Friday: Exploring an Abandoned Amusement Park in Berlin
"Kulturpark Planterwald" was an amusement park built in 1969. It thrived for 20 years until the tumultuous reunification between the East and West of Berlin began in 1989. After a series of mysterious legal issues in the 90’s it went bankrupt, doors closed and was abandoned.
A Glimpse Inside...
There are bizarre creatures lurking in the woods of Plänterwald… flooded viking ships, giant swans, mustachioed golf carts… and dinosaurs. Spreepark is a fantastic and visually addictive cultural relic of East Berlin. The now fenced off and overgrown Park was officially abandoned over 15 years ago but still opens its rusted gates when the family-in-residence decides to. The eccentric “Witte” clan has maintained a complicated ownership the park since 1991. Several of them still live on-site and make a few dollars on the weekend selling tickets for tours. Near the main entrance, there’s a miniature cartoonish looking train that circles around the park, but there’s really only about a 50/50 chance that the train has enough juice to run that day. If you’re lucky, grab a ticket, it’s worth the ride. The train moves surprisingly fast. Dense trees opens up in pockets, unveiling prairies of exotic and forgotten worlds.
While living in Berlin, the four of us @hitheryon explored the park several times. Both formally (through the gates) and “informally” (over and under the gates.) A few years ago we did an art installation here… but more on that on another #freakyfriday.
Here are a few images we took that hopefully give you a sense of this incredible hidden Berlin gem...
Prehistoric carnage...
Here’s a fun old map of “Spreepark” (one of many names) when the amusements were at their peak.
There’s an amazing lagoon in the center of the park that protects a massive ferris wheel. Giant swans and an old Viking ship still stand guard. Further down, you’ll see an army of swans stand in formation.
The ferris wheel is a colorfully rusted work of art nearly 40 meters high. On a windy day the wheel creeks around (loudly)... it’s an eerie profile against a wooded treeline that you can see and hear from miles away.
Many empty other amusements and hidden villages...
Kulturpark Planterwald has fought through a multi-decade tangled odyssey. The park was once successful, later bankrupt, then rebranded, at one point was literally exported to Peru, subsequently involved in a South American cocaine bust, auctioned on German Ebay… and only very recently… it was finally bought back by the City of Berlin. What a place!
Steem on with @hitheryon !
What a place to visit! Great place for shooting a zombie film.
Have you seen the movie Hanna with Saoirse Ronan? There's a really creepy scene where she runs through this park!
Yes! I thought I recognised it.
very cool. I love abandoned sites, especially entertainment sites!
Hey thanks! This one is especially entertaining... if you ever swing through Berlin, it's a must visit.
Ah, well I am very far away from Berlin.......USA.
I actually went to Berlin, and visited East Berlin, saw the wall too.... I have a weird story about that. My mom is nuts, and she refused to stop taking photos while we were on the train. The East Berlin train guards busted into our cabin and seized my mom's film from her camera. Even then she continued to take photos. It was really scary! I had more sense than my mother!
Wow! I'm envious that you saw the wall. That sounds like a scary situation for your family to be in. Makes for a good story though! The four of us actually use to live in an old East-German prison complex now converted into artist residencies (of course.) It was called Hohenschönhausen. Lots of folks were held up there for simple things like taking pictures of the wrong people. Berlin has such an incredible and complex history...
the scariest thing happened on our overnight train trip through East Germany: in the middle of the night the train stopped and we heard screams. Apparently, some of the passengers were kicked off the train. In the morning we were told that they were drunk and causing issues. No one knows though.........it was really freaky.
That's terrifying! I can't imagine you slept very well afterwards. Thanks for sharing. There are a lot of incredible stories still hiding in East Berlin. It's amazing to think that all of this was a norm only a couple of decades ago.
Love it, I find abandoned places very interesting
Thank you! There's just something about 'em. Shouldn't there be an english word for "one who explores abandoned places"?
Cool. Is this the one featured in the movie Hannah? Those swan boats!
That's the one!! It's equally as creepy in person. I can't believe they got a permit to film there, it must have been a nightmare to coordinate with the family still living on the grounds. Love the swan boats!
Here there be ghosts. I imagine the owners having three eyes or other such anomalies.