Adlershof: Aviation History, Landscapes and Culture

Adlershof combines aviation history, protected landscapes and cultural venues. If you are looking for a hotel in Adlershof, these different themes can give you a concrete starting point for planning: would you like to explore technical monuments, spend time outdoors or discover art and literature?

Technology and Early Aviation History

One listed technical monument is the spin wind tunnel, also known as the “Trudelturm.” For many years, it was the only way to simulate the dangerous flight condition of a spin in a laboratory. The Large Wind Tunnel was used for aerodynamic studies in airflows and for optimizing aircraft shapes and surfaces. Together, these technical features offer insight into the challenges addressed by aviation research.

Two dates are also part of the site’s aviation history, but refer to different events: Germany’s first powered airfield opened at the Johannisthal-Adlershof site in 1909. Germany’s first flying school followed in Adlershof in 1911. If you are interested in the development of aviation, you can connect these milestones with the technical focus of the Trudelturm.

Visitors can look inside the Trudelturm as part of guided tours and events such as Long Night of the Sciences. Access is therefore limited to these offerings; check the current tour arrangements before your trip.

Johannisthal Landscape Park and Nature Reserve

Johannisthal Landscape Park, formerly Adlershof Landscape Park, covers 68 hectares and is a public green space for recreation. It includes walking paths, a runway, a dirt-bike track, a beach volleyball area, a ball court and a floral mosaic. The different areas give the park several focal points, from outdoor activities to relaxing in green spaces.

Its central area includes 26 hectares of the former airfield and is protected as a nature reserve. A circular path runs along the edges of this core area. A partially raised walkway and wire-mesh cages filled with fieldstones make it possible to experience the area visually, even though the core area is not accessible for use. A flock of sheep maintains the nature reserve in an ecologically compatible way. This allows you to combine a walk with a view of the protected landscape, without describing the core area as a usable space.

Museum, Art and a Digital Walk

The Anna Seghers Museum is located in Anna Seghers’s preserved original apartment on Anna-Seghers-Straße. Visitors can explore the faithfully preserved living and working environment. The museum visit is thus closely tied to the rooms in which this setting has been preserved.

The Alte Schule Cultural Center is the municipal center for contemporary art in the Treptow-Köpenick district. Around seven exhibitions in various artistic genres are presented there each year: painting, graphic art, photography, sculpture, video art and applied art. The annual program changes; check which exhibitions are currently on view before visiting. Every floor of the cultural center is wheelchair accessible. Check this practical access information before your visit.

If you would like to explore the technology park independently, the Gedankengang educational trail offers a digital walk starting from Adlershof S-Bahn station. Check the latest route details before setting out.

The different themes are easy to distinguish: the landscape park combines walking paths with a protected core area, while the Trudelturm and wind tunnels focus on the history of technology. The Anna Seghers Museum and the Alte Schule offer other perspectives through literature, contemporary art and exhibitions. You can take into account which of these themes you would like to shape your trip to Adlershof when planning your stay.

Discover more destinations: Kladow, Lichtenberg, Marzahn, Schmöckwitz, Ruhlsdorf, Wannsee, Kreuzberg, Mahlsdorf.

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