Spreebogen

Spreebogenpark stretches across Berlin's Tiergarten district, within the striking northern loop of the River Spree. Bounded by the Moltke Bridge to the west, the Kronprinzen Bridge to the east, and the Band des Bundes to the south, the roughly 15-acre park (about six hectares) offers a peaceful contrast to the political infrastructure around it. The Federal Chancellery, the Bundestag's Paul-Löbe-Haus, and the Hauptbahnhof (Central Station) are all nearby. The park opened in 2005 and is part of an urban planning concept for reorganizing the parliamentary and government district. Its understated landscape design, based on plans by landscape architect Toni Weber, aims to connect visitors with the history of the site by incorporating older parts of the riverbank development.

The landscape is dominated by a large, mostly treeless lawn that rises into a hill and is interrupted by a cut in the terrain that acts as a "viewing window." This cut follows the historic route of the former Alsenstrasse and makes the site's historic north-south axis visible. Two parallel riverside paths at different levels shape the park, with a panoramic path running up to five meters (about 16 feet) above the actual riverside promenade. The themed gardens "Gartenspur" and "Spurengarten" run along the paths, using boxwood beds and tall-perennial meadows to draw symbolic connections to German history. Here you can find some quiet, take a stroll, and enjoy the wide views across the Spree, which open up toward the Hauptbahnhof and the Charité hospital.

One of the park's special features is the Gustav-Heinemann Bridge, a slender steel footbridge that connects pedestrians and cyclists to Washingtonplatz in front of the train station. The park is deliberately infused with symbolism representing the city's historical layers. At night, for example, the lighting on the footbridge recalls a string of lights, while the topography of the different levels is meant to reflect the city's development. Although the park opened in 2005, it could not be fully completed because of a temporary bypass road at the Swiss Embassy. Only after lengthy negotiations between the State of Berlin and the federal administration did removal of this road begin in late fall 2018, making it possible to create the planned path connections and finally complete the park with additional plantings and benches.