Spreeweltenbad
Famed for its home among the Spreewald canals, the town of Lübbenau attracts mostly German vacationers and a handful of foreign tourists to explore the historical waterways. However, those making the journey are treated to yet another surprise, as just across the train tracks lies another Lübbenau daytrip, lesser known yet famous in its own right among the local crowd. Spreeweltenbad (or the Spree World Baths in English) features a classic German wellness complex and water park with a quirky twist offering the opportunity to swim with penguins (or at least to swim in an adjoining tank with only aquarium glass separating visitors from aquatic bird antics). It may sound insanely gimmicky, and you wouldn’t be wrong, but I was blown away by the high quality pools, saunas, and all around attention to detail. Go ahead and watch our YouTube video to get a feel for the place, and once you are sold, continue reading for the in depth logistics.
Speaking directly to those of you (all of us) with limited vacation days, I cannot recommend visiting Lübbenau from Berlin just for the Spreeweltenbad alone, as Berlin boasts dozens of themed saunas. None featuring a Penguin pool, but again, I’m not sure that alone warrants the trip out of Berlin. Maybe to you it does, however, as for myself, I can highly recommend rolling Spreeweltenbad into a larger Spreewald themed weekend. First by spending an entire day exploring the Spreewald historical canals via kayak, (my article on that here) spending the night in town, and following up the next day with some well deserved rest and recuperation at Spreeweltenbad.
Opening at 10 am, it became apparent that this sauna and water park was no joke, as the Lübbenau residents were playing the entrance meta. I was shocked, discovering a line snaking from the entrance and around the Spreeweltenbad complex. Who would think timing would be so critical at this quirky aquarium? During our following thirty minute wait in line, the remaining capacity sign loomed overhead, steadily counting down: will you secure a treasured slot before the counter hits 0? Luckily for us, only 300 of the 1000 person max capacity entered the complex prior. So, by 11:00 we were in the clear and paying for tickets. As a general note, adult day tickets cost 28 euros each for the entire complex, but you can get a reduced price if you don’t wish to visit the sauna. With your ticket purchases, an employee will equip you with a wrist band, touch activating your entrance into the waterpark and later (if paid for) the Sauna. This wristband will also work as your virtual credit card during your stay. With the complex offering a decent array of food/drink options in both the main hall and the sauna, you’ll use this wristband for payments rather than running back to your locker for your wallet.
The indoor jungle themed water park is cute, but definitely geared towards children, so we headed directly for the outdoor Penguin pool enclosure. Swimming via tunnel into a heated outdoor pool, guests discover the glass sides of said pool butting up against the Penguin enclosure, allowing visitors to swim next to the penguins. The penguins have scheduled feeding times which is a surreal experience. However I don’t recommend visiting just after a feeding like us, as we stared in anticipation while the Penguins floated in the water lazily preening themselves and digesting breakfast. An hour later, as we all but gave up hope on capturing exciting penguin footage, they livened up for their lunch time play session. Dozens of penguins shot back and forth across their pool, playing keep away with pool toys. It was really cool. Bring goggles to marvel underwater at the jet streams left in their wake. Some penguins even interacted with us, curiously following my hand as I traced patterns on the glass. A few even slowed down and swam alongside us while filming. Perfect! After you’ve swum “with” the penguins, the only thing left is the sauna.
It would be remiss to recommend Spreeweltenbad without a sauna culture debriefing. In my years as an expat, I have noticed that mental health and well being constitute a high priority in German culture. To many people from countries with Puritanical histories, it is often quite shocking to learn the length to which German wellness attitudes extend towards true body positivity and acceptance. The most obvious example can be seen in German saunas, as they always require complete nudity and are not sex separated in the slightest. As such, guests are given a towel that may be worn in the saunas, but in my experience most Germans just walk around completely naked. In the Spreeweltenbad, there isn’t even a separate locker room, as guests are expected to immediately strip upon entering the sauna area and pop their clothes in a little cubby in the entrance hallway. This can be especially distressing to those with little experience, as the locker area is completely open and situated in front of the restaurant. As for German saunas, that’s not even the most flagrant sauna entrance I’ve seen. Once while staying in a hotel, I took the elevator to the top floor and was immediately greeted as the elevator doors opened to a room full of naked people. So, please consider those factors before purchasing a spa ticket. Now you know, so do not become a statistic in my favorite German travel pastime of reading sauna reviews written by surprised/angry Americans shocked and appalled at sauna culture. The reviews for Therma Erding in Munich are particularly cringe worthy, with foreigners bestowing zero stars upon what they deem as a “haven of smut” (it’s a water park). Moving on, these saunas essentially provide mini selfcare vacations, with many visitors hunkering down for the day and typically include bars, restaurants, massage therapy, relaxation/nap areas, heated pools, cold plunges, and dozens of saunas. Spreeweltenbad in particular offers a 4000m indoor/outdoor complex with 14 different saunas featuring varying infusions and temperatures. I recommend the saunas outside, as they are fashioned after the Sorbian huts squated along the Spreewald canals. Each hut boasts a different interior theme, temperature, humidity level, and scent. I told you they take it seriously. The lemon infusion sauna is my favorite, but the gherkin sauna was a close second.
` So there you have it. The water park, penguin pool, and wellness area are the three main attractions. Easily enough activities for half a day, and a great way to soothe your arms from the day prior. Perhaps afterwards, catch a train back to Berlin, or continue deeper into east Germany by heading towards Dresden. Maybe consider taking a day trip to the Bastei Brücke? (Link here)
