Tierpark Berlin

The Tierpark Berlin is the second zoo in Berlin after the Zoological Garden.

The largest landscape zoo in Europe is located on the extensive grounds of the Friedrichsfelde Palace Park in the Lichtenberg district in the east of the city. Wild animals from all over the world live in the Tierpark Berlin on an area of ​​around 160 hectares around Friedrichsfelde Palace. The most famous resident of the zoo is polar bear lady Hertha, a real Berliner.

Tierpark Berlin was opened in July 1955 on the grounds of Schlosspark Friedrichsfelde. At the opening, visitors were able to observe around 400 animals of 120 species on an area of ​​around 60 hectares. Today, the Tierpark Friedrichsfelde is the largest landscape zoo in Europe in terms of area - around 8700 animals live here. Together with the Zoological Garden, there is a variety of species in the Berlin Zoo that is almost unique in the world. Giraffes, elephants and polar bears, among others, live here in spacious enclosures.

The Alfred-Brehm-Haus (rain forest house), which was redesigned in 2020, is particularly worth seeing. Here visitors can immerse themselves in the wildlife of Southeast Asia with tigers, crocodiles, fruit bats and tree kangaroos. You should also plan a visit to the walk-in kangaroo enclosure. On hot days, the water playground in Tierpark attracts big and small children. The area of ​​​​the zoo is considerable - tired feet can ride the electric train through the park for free.

Friedrichsfelde Castle was the starting point for the construction of the zoo. It’s right behind the entrance. It was built in 1695 by the Dutch naval director Benjamin Raulé, probably based on plans by the architect Johann Arnold Nering. After changing hands several times, the castle finally came into the hands of the von Treskow family at the beginning of the 19th century. They ran an estate on the property and had a garden laid out by Peter Joseph Lenné in 1821. The house survived the Second World War relatively unscathed and has been part of the zoo since 1955 and can be visited.

https://www.berlin.de/sehenswuerdigkeiten/3559835-3558930-tierpark-berlin.html

Photo: Manfred Brückels