Very few people actually know everything Berlin has to offer and the full diversity of the city. For example, did you know that you can enjoy a 360° panorama of the skyline right in the middle of Berlin? And all from a futuristic steel structure weighing around 800 tons? Or are you already familiar with what is arguably the capital’s most futuristic observation deck, located just about 30 minutes from the city center? Sounds exciting—and getting there is a little adventure in itself. That’s because the site is accessible via the Berlin Cable Car, one of the city’s most unusual modes of transportation.
The cable car was originally built for the International Garden Exhibition (IGA) in 2017 and remains Berlin’s first and only permanently operating urban cable car to this day. Instead of traversing alpine mountain landscapes, here you glide right over the rooftops, treetops, and parks of Marzahn-Hellersdorf— and that’s exactly what makes the experience so surreal.
The approximately 1.5-kilometer-long route connects the Kienberg subway station with the futuristic Wolkenhain and the Gardens of the World. During the ride, you’ll float about 30 meters above the ground at times and enjoy a surprisingly expansive view over Berlin all the way to Brandenburg. The entire ride takes about five minutes.
But what makes it special is above all the feeling the cable car creates. As soon as you step into the gondolas, Berlin suddenly no longer feels like Berlin. Instead, the atmosphere is reminiscent of international metropolises with urban cable car systems—such as New York, Singapore, or Medellín. Surrounding the cable car are the Gardens of the World, featuring garden landscapes from various cultures and countries, including Chinese, Japanese, Oriental, and Korean garden worlds. As you glide over the landscape, you almost get the feeling of moving between different continents.
The gondolas themselves feature modern glass walls and offer a 360-degree panoramic view. Some cabins even have glass floors, allowing you to look directly down at the paths, treetops, and bodies of water below you. In total, there are more than 60 gondolas, each with room for up to ten people.
Architecturally, the cable car is now an integral part of the Kienberg’s futuristic appearance. Together with the Wolkenhain, which is illuminated at night, an almost sci-fi-like landscape park was created here in the middle of Berlin during the IGA 2017. Especially in the evening, when the platform is lit up and the gondolas float over the hill, the scene looks almost like it’s from another city.
