Spreepark, the Abandoned Funfair
In a Berlin forest, a big wheel creaked in the wind for years over an empty funfair, where fallen fibreglass dinosaurs lay in the long grass.
What was reported
Spreepark opened in 1969 as the Kulturpark Plänterwald, the only permanent amusement park in communist East Germany, beside the River Spree in Berlin. After German reunification it was taken over by a private operator, but visitor numbers fell, and in 2002 it closed for good.
For years afterwards, the rides were left to decay. Swan boats sat stranded, toppled dinosaurs lay among the trees, and the giant Ferris wheel turned slowly in the wind, creaking. Urban explorers and photographers climbed the fences, and the park became one of Berlin's most famous lost places.
Explanations offered
There was nothing supernatural about it, just a business that failed and a site left behind. The city of Berlin bought the park in 2014 and is restoring it as a public park and arts space, keeping the Ferris wheel. Its eerie years made it a backdrop for films and photography.
- When
- Opened in 1969; closed in 2002
- Where
- Plänterwald, Berlin, Germany
- Witnesses
- Berliners, urban explorers and visitors
- Status
- A real place
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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