Zehlendorf: Nature, Local History and Art

When choosing a stay in Zehlendorf, you can focus on different interests: spending time by the water and on paths in the green, local history or art. Krumme Lanke, museums and historic architecture offer a variety of points of interest. Think about which topics you are particularly interested in during your visit, and tailor your hotel search accordingly.

Krumme Lanke and Green Paths

Krumme Lanke is a swimming lake in Zehlendorf, set amid the Grunewald forest and part of the Grunewald lake chain. Walkers, anglers and bathers use the lake as a place to relax. A path more than two kilometres long runs along its shore, where you can walk, jog or cycle. The lake and its shore path offer different ways to spend time outdoors.

Another distinctive feature of the landscape is the Zehlendorf Community Woodland: this park-like forest is characterised by old copper beeches. The 48-kilometre Teltow Village Trail connects, among other places, Krumme Lanke, the “Zehlendorf Community Woodland” nature conservation area and Paul Mebes Park. This information can help you distinguish a longer route from a stay by the lakeshore; you should plan a specific route for your own visit separately.

Local History and the Museum Village

At the Zehlendorf Local History Museum, the permanent exhibition “From Farming Village to Suburban Municipality” traces the area’s rural beginnings through to the early post-war period of the 20th century. You can also see a detailed model of the village as it looked around 1800. Those interested in the area’s development will find a different perspective here from the historical craft techniques at Düppel Museum Village. Exhibition details may change; check the current displays before your visit.

At Düppel Museum Village, visitors can learn about medieval craft techniques, including blacksmithing, tablet weaving and tar making. Covering around 16 hectares, the museum village, which opened in 1975, seeks to recreate a High Middle Ages village from around 1200. Families with children aged five and over can climb, play and make flame bread over an open fire on every opening day. Admission to the Zehlendorf Local History Museum is free, according to information current as of 31 August 2026; check this before your visit. The museum’s events calendar includes talks, historical tours, hikes and readings. As individual dates may change, it is worth checking the calendar when planning.

Art, Architecture and Modernist Berlin

Haus am Waldsee is known as a villa in the English country-house style and has been used for cultural purposes for almost 77 years. Its sculpture park extends across around 10,000 square metres to the lakeshore. Changing sculptures accompany visitors on their walk and invite them to stroll. The site thus combines a historic villa with outdoor art, so a visit is not limited to an exhibition space.

Kunsthaus Dahlem is based in the former state studio of sculptor Arno Breker. The building was constructed from 1939 to 1942 to designs by architect Hans Freese. Its former function and present-day use as an art centre are part of a complex architectural history. The Zehlendorf Forest Estate is another landmark of modernist Berlin: on 26 July 2026, it was added as the seventh component of the “Berlin Modernism Housing Estates” World Heritage Site.

The Allied Museum also offers its own historical focus. Its permanent exhibition tells the story of the Soviet blockade, the Cold War in Berlin and German reunification from the Allied perspective, using numerous original objects. Together with the local history presented at the Local History Museum and the architectural history of the art centre, this offers a way to explore different historical periods. When planning your trip, you can therefore consider whether you would like to spend more time on landscapes, historical topics or art.

Discover more destinations: Friedrichshain, Schöneberg, Karow, Adlershof, Altglienicke, Hohenschönhausen, Marienfelde, Wilmersdorf.

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