11 Lost Places in Berlin (and Nearby) You can Visit Legally
They’re mysterious, they’re sometimes more than a century old, and they’re abandoned: the lost places in Berlin. Throughout the years, I visited some of the most iconic modern ruins and abandoned sites in Berlin and nearby.
In this blog post, you’ll find a list of places that may be appealing for urban explorers. You could (and sometimes still can) visit all these places legally. Each of them is linked to a more detailed blog post, where you’ll learn how you can visit them - if they still exist.
Table of Contents
Lost places in Berlin (within the city limits)
Let’s start with a few lost places that are directly located in Berlin, that you can reach by buses and trams and visit legally.
The abandoned public Bathhouse in Lichtenberg
The abandoned Stadtbad Lichtenberg, also known as the Hubertusbad, is a lesser known lost place located directly in Berlin. It was opened in 1928 and served the public until 1991, when it was closed due to construction defects and lack of funds.
Bath tube at the abandoned Stadtbad Lichtenberg
Because this public bathhouse was locked and guarded after it was abandoned, it’s still in an excellent condition without graffiti and other damages.
Check my blog post about with photos of the abandoned Stadtbad Lichtenberg from 2024, where you’ll learn how you can see this beautiful lost place.
Spreepark, an abandoned amusement park in Berlin
This abandoned amusement park is probably the best known lost places in Berlin. It was the largest amusement park in the former GDR and visited by more than 1 million people each year.
After the Berlin Wall fell, the park quickly ran into financial problems. The number of yearly visitors plumbed, and it had to close in 2002.
There were many iconic photo spots at the Spreepark like the Ferris wheel, dinosaurs and the iconic rollercoaster. As of 2024, the park is being revitalized and the iconic Ferris wheel was deconstructed, and also the dinosaurs are no more.
Spreeblitz roller coaster at the abandoned Spreepark in Berlin
But you can still see many other abandoned rides, including the famous Spreeblitz roller coaster. Head to my blog post about the abandoned Spreepark amusement park in Berlin for more info and how to see it.
The abandoned Stasi Prison Berlin-Hohenschönhausen
The abandoned Stasi Prison in the east of Berlin was a top secret location and prison-hospital in the GDR. Once abandoned, it became a memorial with a permanent exhibition about the prison hospital and how the people were treated there.
Prison cell at the Hohenschönhausen memorial
To learn more, please follow this link which will take you to my blog post about my visit to the abandoned Hohenschönhausen Memorial in Berlin.
The abandoned surveillance station at Teufelsberg
The Teufelsberg is an artificial hill made from Second World War debris. During the 1950s, the U.S. Army thought that this artificial hill would be a great place for a surveillance station to monitor radio communication of the Warsaw Pact states.
Abandoned surveillance station at the Teufelsberg in Berlin
After the German reunification, the military surveillance station was abandoned in 1991. Until 1999 it was used for civil air traffic monitoring. After its abandonment in 1999, the area at the top of the Teufelsberg became another iconic lost place in Berlin.
See some photos I took there in my post about the abandoned surveillance Station at Teufelsberg Berlin.
Lost Places within an hour of Berlin
The lost places you’ll find in Berlin are interesting, but also rather small. For bigger lost places, you’ll need to look to places next to Berlin.
The abandoned Beelitz Heilstätten
The Beelitz Heilstätten are probably the most iconic and well known lost place near Berlin. This abandoned place is in a small town called Beelitz, which is surrounded by a huge forest. The forest and the clean air should support the treatment of lung diseases at the Beelitz Heilstätten.
During both World Wars, the Beelitz Heilstätten was used as a military hospital. Once the second world war was over, it was occupied by the Red Army, and it was the largest Soviet hospital outside Russia.
Long hallway at the abandoned Beelitz Heilstätten
Moreover, the Beelitz Heilstätten were also used as filming locations. During the three trips to Beelitz I could see the superficially restored filming location of a Cure for Wellness.
Today you can only see a small part of the former military hospital. Many buildings were either revitalized and some were even torn down. But luckily, the owner preserved the most spectacular building, which you can see from the canopy walk at the Beelitz Heilstätten.
I was lucky enough to see the Beelitz Heilstätten three times. So take a trip to the past to see some photos of the abandoned buildings at Beelitz Heilstätten that do not exist anymore, or check my blog post about the filming location of a cure for wellness. Finally, if you plan to visit the Beelitz Heilstätten today, head over to my blog post about the Beelitz Heilstätten canopy walk.
The abandoned Heilstätten Grabowsee
Similar to Beelitz Heilstätten, the Heilstätten Grabowsee was a hospital complex for treating lung diseases. Compared to the Beelitz Heilstätten, Grabowsee is two years older but also notably smaller.
But other than that, the Heilstätten Grabowsee shared a similar fate as the hospitals in Beelitz. During the two world wars, it was used as a military hospital but also for prisoners. There's a dedicated complex with prison doors and windows.
The iconic red sofa at the abandoned Heilstätten Grabowsee
Similar to Beelitz, the Heilstätten Grabowsee was used as a filming location. The first notable movie filmed here was Monuments Men (2014), starring John Goodman, Matt Damon and Cate Blanchett. The second one was Heilstätten (2018), which is actually set to play at the Beelitz Heilstätten. But Beelitz was occupied by the filming of a Cure of Wellness, so the directors filmed it at the Heilstätten Grabowsee.
I’m not aware of any possibility to see and explore the abandoned Heilstätten Grabowsee as of 2024. Of course, I’ve a dedicated blog post about the abandoned Heilstätten at Grabowsee.
The abandoned airfield Rangsdorf
The airport Rangsdorf is a historically interesting lost place near Berlin. The airport started as a pilot school and was home to a flight club. Shortly before the outbreak of World War II it was used as a civil airport.
On July 20th, 1944, Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg departed from Rangsdorf, carrying two explosive kits in his briefcase to eliminate Adolf Hitler.
Communication devices in a bunker at the airport Rangsdorf
The most impressive photo spots at this lost place near Berlin are the huge halls and hangars.
I’ve dedicated an entire blog post to my visit at the abandoned Airfield Rangsdorf near Berlin.
The abandoned Airfield Schönwalde
The Airfield Schönwalde is a huge lost place in the east of Berlin similar to the airfield Rangsdorf. The uniqueness of this lost place are also the huge and partially decayed hangers and the decaying buildings with trees growing on top of them.
Decayed hangar the abandoned airport Schönwalde
See some photos of the abandoned Airfield Schönewalde in a dedicated blog post.
Lost Places within 1-2 hours of Berlin
Wünsdorf: The former Red Army headquarters
Wünsdorf is a small town in the east of Berlin that you can reach within 1 hour and 15 minutes by car. The city of Wünsdorf is also known as the forbidden city because after the end of World War II it became the headquarters of the Red Army forces outside of Russia.
Boots in a building in the forbidden city Wünsdorf
I visited this lost place in eastern Berlin in 2016 and wrote a blog post with some photos of my visit to the former Red Army headquarters in Wünsdorf.
The abandoned textile factory in Forst (Lausitz)
The city of Forst was once the center of Germany's textile industry. By the end of the 19th century, there were already over 100 companies with 7,000 employees in Forst.
But the factories faced a similar fate as many other places I’ve written about on this blog. After the German reunification the production was not feasible anymore and factory after factory closed. So you’ll find many lost places in this city east of Berlin.
Collapsed roof at the abandoned textile factory in Forst
What makes this lost place special and interesting are the huge production halls and that I could still find plenty of bolts of fabric and yarn spindles.
You can see them in my blog post about the abandoned textile factory in Forst-Lausitz.
The abandoned Freudenberg Bunker
The Freudenberg Bunker was intended to provide shelter to the members of the Ministry of Interior of the GDR. Built in the 1980s, it was abandoned only after a few years after the end of the GDR. The bunker facility consists of three bunkers hidden below residential-like buildings.
But beware: This is not one of the usual lost places. Only enter wearing an FFP2 mask!
Collapsed control room at the Freudenberg Bunker
Head to my blog post about the abandoned Freudenberg Bunker to learn why you should only enter the bunker with caution.
Summary: Lost Places in Berlin and nearby are worth visiting
Urban exploration and photographing lost places is a rewarding experience. I hope I could inspire you to visit one of the lost places in Berlin I’ve mentioned in this blog post. This list of modern ruins is by no means a complete list of lost places in Berlin and nearby. It contains places that you can (or could) visit legally by simply purchasing a ticket for a tour.
If you want to experience abandoned places that are not yet decayed, I recommend visiting the Spreepark, the public bathhouse Lichtenberg or the abandoned Hohenschönhausen Memorial.
If you look for a more eerie experience and decayed buildings, visit the abandoned Surveillance Station at Teufelsberg, or take a day and visit one of the abandoned airports or sanatoriums I mentioned in this blog post.
