Köpenick: the old town on the water

Stops along the way

Things to notice.

1. 01

   1

   Rathaus Köpenick

   Start at the red-brick town hall, because of what happened here in 1906: a cobbler in a borrowed officer's uniform marched in a squad of soldiers, arrested the mayor, and made off with the treasury. The *Hauptmann von Köpenick* — the Captain of Köpenick — became the city's favourite story about Prussia and its weakness for a uniform.

   01

   Rathaus Köpenick

   Start at the red-brick town hall, because of what happened here in 1906: a cobbler in a borrowed officer's uniform marched in a squad of soldiers, arrested the mayor, and made off with the treasury. The *Hauptmann von Köpenick* — the Captain of Köpenick — became the city's favourite story about Prussia and its weakness for a uniform.

   ◉Street View
2. 02

   2

   Alt-Köpenick (the Altstadt)

   The *Altstadt* (old town) is small, cobbled, and walkable in twenty unhurried minutes. Low houses, a church on the square, the feel of a river-town that Berlin happened to grow around rather than over. Wander rather than route-march.

   02

   Alt-Köpenick (the Altstadt)

   The *Altstadt* (old town) is small, cobbled, and walkable in twenty unhurried minutes. Low houses, a church on the square, the feel of a river-town that Berlin happened to grow around rather than over. Wander rather than route-march.

   ◉Street View
3. 03

   3

   Schloss Köpenick

   The baroque *Schloss* sits on its own island in the Dahme, a 17th-century Hohenzollern water-palace now holding the decorative-arts collection — furniture, silver, panelled rooms. Even shut, walk the island bridge and the gardens for the water on three sides.

   03

   Schloss Köpenick

   The baroque *Schloss* sits on its own island in the Dahme, a 17th-century Hohenzollern water-palace now holding the decorative-arts collection — furniture, silver, panelled rooms. Even shut, walk the island bridge and the gardens for the water on three sides.

   ◉Street View
4. 04

   4

   Kietz

   The old fishermen's lane, a single row of low cottages along the water — one of the oldest surviving corners of Köpenick. Slow down here. It's the village before the village, and almost nobody walks down it.

   04

   Kietz

   The old fishermen's lane, a single row of low cottages along the water — one of the oldest surviving corners of Köpenick. Slow down here. It's the village before the village, and almost nobody walks down it.

   ◉Street View
5. 05

   5

   Confluence of the Spree and Dahme

   Where the two rivers meet — the reason the town exists. Boats, a jetty or two, the wide flat water that made this a trading post long before it was a Berlin postcode. A bench here is the right place to sit.

   05

   Confluence of the Spree and Dahme

   Where the two rivers meet — the reason the town exists. Boats, a jetty or two, the wide flat water that made this a trading post long before it was a Berlin postcode. A bench here is the right place to sit.

   ◉Street View
6. 06

   6

   Müggelsee shore path

   Follow the Dahme east toward where it opens into the *Müggelsee*, Berlin's biggest lake. You don't have to reach the open water; the riverside path on the way is the walk. Turn back to the tram and the S-Bahn when you've had your fill.

   06

   Müggelsee shore path

   Follow the Dahme east toward where it opens into the *Müggelsee*, Berlin's biggest lake. You don't have to reach the open water; the riverside path on the way is the walk. Turn back to the tram and the S-Bahn when you've had your fill.

   ◉Street View