Lustgarten
The Lustgarten (which means Pleasure Garden in English) is a pleasant neoclassical park on Museum Island. It is smack dab in the midst of several iconic landmarks.
The rectangular park faces the spectacular Berliner Dom and Altes Museum. It is across the street from the Berlin Palace, across the Spree River from the German Historical Museum. You can easily see the Fernsehturm TV tower from here.
The central location makes this a popular people space to show up and relax on the green grass or benches. You can enjoy music played by buskers, sit and read a good book, or simply people watch. It is close enough to the museums that you can connect with their free WiFi too.
A water fountain forms a focal point near the center of the garden.
Closer to the Altes Museum stands a giant solid granite bowl weighing in at 70 tonnes. A primary attraction in 19th century Berlin, it was transported up the River Spree in 1828 and inaugurated in 1834. Berliner’s often refer to it as the Berlin soup bowl.
History
Lustgarten had a lengthy and turbulent history.
It appeared in the 16th century as a vegetable garden for the adjacent City Palace. Friedrich Wilhelm converted it to a Dutch style royal garden featuring flower gardens, aviaries, fountains, and sculptures.
In the 18th century, Friedrich Wilhelm I had other ideas. He paved it over to create a military parade square. It wasn’t until 1790 that green lawns were planted again.
When the Altes Museum opened in 1830, the garden was further enhanced to present a pleasing landscape in front.
But that was not going to last. Military aspirations of the Nazis led to the park being paved again in 1934. With opposition to the regime now outlawed, Hitler addressed mass rallies of nearly one million people here. Immediately following WWII the park was nothing but a bombed wasteland.
Stuck in East Germany following the war, it wasn’t until after the reunification of Germany in the late 1990s that the park was at last restored to closely match its design prior to the WWII.
There are good bus connections to the Lustgarten with a stop right in front. The U-Bahn and S-Bahn are only a short walk.
Facts For Your Visit
Fee: NoLustgarten Hours:
Opening hours may differ on holidays
- Monday: Open 24 hours
- Tuesday: Open 24 hours
- Wednesday: Open 24 hours
- Thursday: Open 24 hours
- Friday: Open 24 hours
- Saturday: Open 24 hours
- Sunday: Open 24 hours
Address: Unter den Linden 1, 10178 Berlin, Germany
Official Website: Lustgarten
Lustgarten Reviews
Rated out of 5
Such a calm and beautiful place.
Be it morning, afternoon, evening or night, always very pleasant to visit.
There is always someone local playing the live music.
Prateek Zare - in the last week
amazing square
beautiful gardens and monuments historic old buildings restored after wartime
visit for second time but also berlin is more and more famous and fantastic
we recommend walking around take time and enjoy the ambience streets
vacation at summer at july 2024
Gustavo Montenegro - 3 months ago
Amazing Square where you can Spend time and take photos having good view of the dome and Atlus Museum also near to Station
KhAaDi - a week ago
Monumental impressive architecture with such presence & stature that it was revered across the planet, don't miss checking out this particular spot
Rob the Nomad - 4 months ago
What a lovely place! Large open area of grass. Many people stop here to grab photos of the cathedral. Along the river there are some trees and benches. This was a beautiful place to sit and hardly anyone here. Particularly right now (November 3) with all the leaves falling from the trees, it’s very picturesque.
Anna R - 11 months ago
Directions
How to get to Lustgarten by U-Bahn, S-Bahn
Nearest U-Bahn, S-Bahn Line(s): S1, S2, S3, S5, S7, S9, S25, S26, S75, U6
Nearest U-Bahn, S-Bahn Station(s): S+U Berlin Friedrichstraße
Exit from Friedrichstraße Station. Walk one block south on Fredrichstrasse and go left (east) onto Dorotheenstrasse. When you get to the river, go right onto Am Kupfergraben and cross the bridge just ahead. Lustgarten is on your right.
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Accommodations near Lustgarten:
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Photo Credit: dalbera - cc license via Flickr
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