Germany Guide
Brandenburg
The Spreewald
The Spreewald is Brandenburg at its most attractive and touristy. Designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, this gentle landscape of meadows and meandering waters 80km southeast of Berlin is home to Germany's Sorbic community, but every bit as well known for its market gardening: famously it produces 40,000 tons of pickled gherkins every year, in a staggering number of varieties.
Gateway towns in the region include Lübben and Cottbus, but easily the most attractive hub is Lübbenau.
Tropical Islands
Telephone: 035477/60 50 50
Website: www.tropical-islands.de
Address: Off the A13 motorway from Berlin (exit Staakow), near Brand (Niederlausitz) train station, where free shuttle buses wait for visitors
Once home to zeppelins, an old airship hanger 60km south of Berlin has since 2004 housed Tropical Islands, an indoor landscaped park the size of four football fields and containing all sorts of watery attractions – pools, lagoons, water slides, waterfalls, whirlpools, saunas among them – as well as a clutch of bars, restaurants and shops. The quality of the landscaping is first class, and its tropical shrubbery and tropical birds that flit around its undergrowth get to luxuriate in the constant 27°C temperature. A Disney-esque quality is added by various interior buildings and monuments – like the Bali, Borneo, Thai and Samoan pavilions – and regular evening dance shows, but what really sets the place apart is its laid-back vibe and convenience. A wristband received on entry handles all purchases electronically – to be paid off on exit – but best of all, the place is open all day, every day, allowing you to stay overnight. Tents can be rented, but most people just crash on the beach with a mat and blanket – allowing for stays for days, even, weeks or months for the same one-off complex entry charge of €25. Other one-off additional charges valid for your entire stay include use of waterslides (€3) and the immense, nudist sauna area (€6.50).